Capturing The Art of Farm to Table Cooking
The main goal of a restaurant is to provide the highest quality of service, food, and atmosphere while attempting to give customers a good value for the quality they are offering to them. For a lot of restaurants, their method of increasing quality is to go farm-to-table: a concept where chefs look to only use fresh and local ingredients, as these always have the freshest flavor, leading to the highest quality. These types of restaurants are becoming extremely popular, and in Carrboro, Oakleaf was the restaurant Bite the Globe decided to visit to learn more about what was necessary to successfully run a farm-to-table restaurant and to see if they produced high-quality food unlike any other.
Head chef and owner of Oakleaf Brendan Cox was there to tell us his story and explain how he is able to maintain high standards for his farm-to-table concept. He started working in professional kitchens in Washington D.C, until he eventually opened up a restaurant down in Pittsboro, which was later moved to Carrboro. Every morning ,Chef Cox visits one of the many different farmer’s markets in the region, whether it be the State Farmer’s Market in Raleigh, or a local market in Carrboro. As a chef, he sorts through available produce to determine what is the most fresh to purchase. As a result of various ingredients being available at different times, the menu might see slight daily variations, ensuring only the freshest foods are being served that day.
Even though freshness is important at Oakleaf, the biggest practice Chef Cox preached about was his desire to provide a quality experience to each customer. From the point of view of a consumer, his efforts can be seen immediately as you walk in. There was a nice, relaxing ambiance that came from being in the restaurant, and immediately as you are seated, the service is prompt and attentive. For our experience, we let Chef Cox pick out three appetizers and two entrées that he felt would highlight his high-quality farm-to-table concept. Ok, here is what we thought!
Appetizers: Brocolini, Sweet Potato and Pork Sausage
We started off with a dish of broccolini served over ricotta. It was a great dish because there was a wonderful balance of different flavors that brought the entire dish together. The ricotta added a sweetness to the dish, but there were also fresh chilies that made the dish taste a bit spicy, yet nothing overpowered the fresh broccolini.
We also enjoyed a sweet potato dish topped with caramelized hazelnuts, which was a solid dish that highlighted the perfect sweetness of the potato.
Lastly, we enjoyed a house-made pork sausage with brussel sprouts. The sausage was very tender and the brussel sprouts were not soggy or overcooked.
Entrées: Duck and Fish
For the entrées, Chef Cox chose a duck dish served with turnips, a sweet potato puree and an au jus made from chicken stock and rosemary. The duck breast itself had a crispy outer crust that had a nice bite to it, which combined with the smooth puree made for an excellent taste. The turnips almost melted in your mouth making for a great and fresh dish.
The second entrée we received was a striped bass, complemented with black trumpet mushrooms. The fish, most likely caught that day had a buttery texture and tasted extremely fresh and had a nice lemony taste toit. The fish literally melted in your mouth, it was that fresh. The mushrooms themselves were decadent as well.
Desserts: Brown Sugar and Chocolate Tarts
For dessert we chose a chocolate tart and a brown sugar tart. The chocolate tart crust was made from crushed oreos and was filled with a fudge-like chocolate ganache and served with salted caramel ice cream. It was very decadent but delightful. The brown sugar tart was a lot lighter. It was served with a vanilla ice cream.
Oakleaf for College Students?
As Chef Cox also mentioned, having fresh food comes at a cost and Oakleaf is not a place a college student could visit every Friday evening. However, he does all he can to make the food affordable enough for people to try something new and exciting! Having food as fresh we experienced is not common here in Chapel Hill, and we certainly believe that for a very nice evening with great atmosphere and food, then Oakleaf delivers, and their farm-to-table experience is a must try!
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