Joie de vivre: Town House Chilhowie, VA

Exterior

If you had asked me to spend two months of my summer in Lexington as a freshman, my response would have been something like this: "Sorry, I have to get back to a civilization with queso and department stores. I'll be in Houston if you need me."

But after another year at W&L, I have grown to love small town life. They know me by name at Healthy Foods Co-op and everything I really need is just a walk away. I can honestly say that this summer in Lex has been one of my best to date. I met a number of classmates that I never would have known otherwise and took advantage of Virginia's natural beauty. I hiked House Mountain and swam in the Maury almost daily. I also took a few trips to Charlottesville, Roanoke, and Staunton. But, my most memorable venture was to a restaurant called Town House in Chilhowie, Virginia.

Every year Food & Wine Magazine features the Best New Chefs. The award is a major distinction in the food business. This year one of the chefs that made the list is John Shields, executive chef at Town House.

I had never heard of Chilhowie before, so I immediately looked it up along with the restaurant online. I learned that Chilhowie (pop. 1,827) is a town that has a total area of 2.6 square miles, making Town House purely a fine dining destination restaurant. It is located in the most southwestern portion of the state, just shy of a three hour drive from Lexington. I made a reservation for that Friday night.

I anticipated my meal the entire drive, wondering if it would exceed my already high expectations. Past a sign for Hungry Mother State Park (yes this is real) and just off the highway I found Town House nestled right on Main Street.

Town House interior

Of course there was nobody dining at 5:00 p.m. so I had the place to myself. I ate early so I could get back to Lexington before dark. The sommelier, Charlie Berg, greeted me by name and led me to my table in the corner of the dining room. This was my first solo dining experience, so I brought a book just in case.

Within a couple of minutes, the amuse bouche arrived a top a green slate tile. The cocoa and black olive sandwich cookie was filled with Meyer lemon compote and parmesan cream. The unexpected flavors were simply delicious.

Chilled Vegetable "Minestrone"

The menu offered a four or ten course tasting menu. I made a special request for seven courses of the chef's choosing. Ten seemed a bit too extravagant for the hot summer night, but four was not enough for the long drive.

The first course, Shields' interpretation of vegetable minestrone, was like nothing I have ever seen. Delicate curls of thinly sliced brightly colored vegetables sat upright in the dish that Berg filled with vegetable consomme.

I could hardly bring myself to eat his artistic creation. I'm pretty sure I had a huge smile on my face and I am sure Berg got a kick out of me being young, alone, reading Ruth Reichl in the corner.

The next course was razor clams in a stock of their juices and Benton's ham, honeydew melon, and thyme. I enjoyed it, but it was my first time trying clams. Each item on the menu was extremely inventive and creative. Shields put together ingredients I would have never imagined would taste good. Bananas in a crab dish? But, the Peekytoe crab in brown butter and lime with caramelized onions, salt cod, banana, curry, and cider vinegar was fabulous.

Peekytoe Crab

While the soup of cherries was certainly presented nicely, I did not care for the dish as much as the others. It included marinated sardine, preserved ginger, tomato, and "almond bread" that was actually a cold foam. My favorite dish was the corn and crispy pig tail with Cruze Dairy buttermilk, basil, toffee, popcorn, polenta, and sorrel. You just can't beat good summer corn. I especially liked the contrast of textures in the dish.

Town House's rural location is ideal to utilize produce from local farms. They use the season's freshest ingredients, changing the menu to adapt to what is available.

Two hours later, I was very full and happy. But, the best had yet to come. Shields invited me into the kitchen where I got to meet him as well as the sous chef and other cooks. It was pretty neat. Shields and his wife, Karen, who was not there, work as a husband-wife team. They previously worked in Chicago at Alinea and Charlie Trotter's respectively until they decided to take a chance on a new venture in Virginia. My experience at Town House was phenomenal and I hope to return with friends this semester.