OH MY GOD! This is only the second five-star review I've seen from Greg Cox since he moved to a five-star scale. Go HERE to read his review of Yamazushi in the Woodcroft Shopping Center in Durham.
Note: The only other restaurant to receive 5 stars is Herons at the Umstead Hotel and Spa in Cary.
Here's good news for two local restaurants:
The Daily Beast named Herons at The Umstead Hotel and Spa in Cary as one of the 101 best restaurants in the world, based on a survey of 55 chefs. Here's what chef Hugh Acheson had to say: "What's not absolutely absorbing about this: seared sea trout, smoked pineapple, purple yam purée, cashew cabbage, fermented pepper. Chef Scott Crawford is awesome--a really skilled guy. The man is bringing together everything and making it work."
And chef Ashley Christensen's Beasley's Chicken + Honey was named one of the 50 best new restaurants in 2012 by Bon Appetit. Go HERE to see that list.
And if you missed it, Atlanta Journal-Constitution restaurant critic John Kessler blogged about eating at Christensen's restaurants in Raleigh. Go HERE to read that piece.
The Umstead Hotel and Spa is offering monthly guided wine tastings called Umstead Uncorked on the last Thursday of every month.
Sommelier Hai Tran will lead guests through four wines as executive chef Scott Crawford serves up complementary food pairings. The upcoming tastings include:
The tastings are from 6-7 p.m. and cost $35 per person. Advanced reservations are required; call 919-447-4000 or emailing guestservices@theumstead.com.
The Umstead Hotel and Spa in Cary is again offering Tea with Santa events, which include your favorite holiday treats and story time. The dates include 11 a.m.- 1 p.m. Dec. 3, 10 ann 17 and 2-4 p.m. Dec. 4, 11 and 18. Tickets cost $28 per person.
Or if you need a more adult break from the holiday hustle and bustle, The Umstead is offering a special champagne and caviar tasting event from 6-8 p.m. Dec. 15. Tickets cost $65 per person.
Reservations can be made by calling 447-4200. For more information, go to www.theumstead.com
The Chef's Academy, a new culinary school in Morrisville, will celebrate its grand opening next Thursday, Sept. 29, with a Triangle chefs' showdown. The event, which is open to the public, is from 5:30-9 p.m. at the Morrisville campus at 2001 Carrington Mill Blvd.
The local chefs cooking for the event include Scott Crawford of The Umstead Hotel and Spa and Michael Chuong of án Restaurant, both in Cary, Walter Royal of Angus Barn Khoury Solomon of Irregardless Café, both in Raleigh.
The event also will feature a silent auction to raise money for the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina. Among the items up for auction are a cooking class for up to 12 people at the school and a set of Mercer knives.
The school is asking folks to RSVP. You can do that online and see more details about the event at bit.ly/pgKayA.
Triangle Family Services’ annual Gingerbread House Benefit Auction is Thursday, Dec. 2 at the Umstead Hotel.
Almost 20 gingerbread creations by local chefs from the Madhatter Bakeshop and Cafe to Sugarland Bakery in Chapel Hill will be auctioned off to benefit Triangle Family Services, a non-profit that helps families in crises.
Attendees will enjoy holiday music, wine, beer, desserts and appetizers. The event is 6:30-8:30 p.m. Tickets cost $65.
To buy tickets, go to www.tfsnc.org or call 821-0790.
REMINDER: On Thursday nights at The Umstead Hotel and Spa in Cary, the hotel's Herons restaurant offer wine tastings and food pairings on the terrace.
From 5:30-7:30 Thursday nights until Sept. 23, diners can enjoy wine flights for $15, food pairings for $12 and live music.
No reservations required. If it rains, tastings move into the bar area.
On Thursday nights at The Umstead Hotel and Spa in Cary, the hotel's Herons restaurant offer wine tastings and food pairings on the terrace. It starts this Thursday, June 3.
From 5:30-7:30 Thursday nights until Sept. 23, diners can enjoy wine flights for $15, food pairings for $12 and live music.
No reservations required. If it rains, tastings move into the bar area.
Travel + Leisure magazine has named the Umstead Hotel and Spa in Cary as one of its top 500 Hotels in the World for 2010.
The luxury hotel, which opened in Jan. 2007, is the brainchild of philanthropist and businesswoman Ann Goodnight, wife of SAS co-founder and billionaire Jim Goodnight.
It's one of only three North Carolina hotels on the Travel + Leisure list. The others are both in Asheville: the Inn on Biltmore Estate and Richmond Hill Inn.
The magazine cites the Umstead's "art-filled public spaces on 12 wooded acres," and recommends room 103 as the "room to book," with a patio facing the herb garden and three-acre lake.
