Stoned Again
Two Stone’s Pub Naaman’s is here. Here’s the Day One buzz on Facebook: “It’s officially opening day … only 16 hours until Wilmington get its very own Beer Temple. And guess who’s helping us kick thing off? Stone Brewing Co….that’s who! Tomorrow night, on tap:16th Anniversary, Arrogant Bastard, Cali-Belgique, Imperial Russian.” The place was mobbed, so here’s the FB buzz for last Friday: “Alright, Opening Week – Night 2! We’re pouring some awesome beers from Evolution starting at 4:00pm… Lot #3, Exile Primal, Lucky 7, Lot #6, Rise Up, Summer Session, Jacques Au Lantern, Menagerie #7, Spring Migration (you hear that, Dave?), Morning Wood.” That’s a long way of saying that, if you didn’t get to 2SP over the weekend, get there soon to taste all the great craft brews and some darned good food. (The truffle fries won a Best of Delaware award in July.) Then mark your calendar for Fall Festival No. 2 Oct. 12-13. That means fuller beers: Dogfish Head Punkin’, Evolution Jacques au Lantern, Schlafly Oktoberfest, Brooklyn Oktoberfest, Troëggs Troegenator, Victory Festbier, Ayinger Oktoberfest, Southern Tier Pumking, Schlafly Pumpkin, Yuengling Oktoberfest, Brooklyn The Concoction, Elysian Night Owl, Coney Island Barrel-Aged Blockhead and more. Plus some German fare. We’re in. Visit 2SP Naaman’s at 2502 Foulk Road, Wilmington (Valley View Plaza Shopping Center). We think you’ll like it. twostonespub.com
Also New—Kinda
Chef Hari Cameron approached the table with a warm but weary smile. The evening sun cast a warm glow onto his black-rimmed eyeglasses and tattooed forearm. He spoke softly. “We’re about 45 days into service now,” he said. “I don’t have kids of my own, but I’ve been told that’s the rapid diaper-changing stage.” The chef had every right to sound slightly delirious. In those 45 days, he’d given himself just three days off. But like a new dad, Cameron also looked profoundly satisfied with his new creation, a(MUSE.), his labor of love on Rehoboth Beach’s colorful Baltimore Avenue. Cameron, a native of Georgetown, had spent the previous eight years at Rehoboth’s excellent Nage restaurant, which provided a foundation for locally driven, progressive-leaning coastal dining. Now it was clear that his culinary mind was moving at a different speed. He’d speak excitedly about a shipment of earthy heirloom sunchokes, or his new temperature-controlled sous vide cooking bath. Cameron was, of course, the only chef who thought to bring a liquid nitrogen tank to the Rusty Rudder’s Country Chili Cook-Off. And perhaps the most fun element of his new restaurant is the chance to share in Cameron’s excitement for food, an unbridled dining nerdiness that drips from every absinthe foam and sweet corn emulsion. The enthusiasm speaks even louder in Cameron’s cooking—his lively, erudite, and often brilliant cooking—and makes a(MUSE.) one of the most inventive and exciting new restaurants in Delaware. Read the rest here.
Apples to Apples
It’s apple harvest time, so head to Milburn Orchards in Elkton, Md., for a special weekend Sept. 29-30. Pick all you want, or hit the store for everything from butters to ciders to pies—and more apples, of course. If you miss it, mark Oct. 6-7 on your calendar. It’s Pumpkin Harvest Weekend. That means pumpkins of all shapes and sizes, plus fall decorations, gourds, corn stalks, Indian corn, and straw bales and more. You’ll find Milburn on Appleton Road. (Where else?) (410) 398-1349, milburnorchards.com
A Tasteful Event
One of our favorite food fests of the year—Taste of Newark. The ninth annual affair happens Sept. 30, noon till 3 p.m. on the lawn of Old College of Main Street. Buy your tickets, then taste the best of what 45 local restaurants have to offer. This year Taste of Newark hosts special guest Jason Viscount, executive chef of Bricco restaurant in Harrisburg, Pa., the destination for world-class dining in Central Pennsylvania. Bricco was named Best New Restaurant by Harrisburg Magazine readers in 2007, and Viscount received the Pennsylvania Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Culinary Arts in 2010. What’s more, Bricco is a member of Distinguished Restaurants of North America, one of only 800 members. “It brings excitement and anticipation to the day to have someone of Chef Jason’s caliber join one of my favorite Newark events,” Newark Mayor Vance Funk says. “I could not be happier having him participate in the Taste of Newark.” Viscount will give cooking demonstrations at the Taste of Newark, and he’ll judge the Battle of the Chefs, where six Newark chefs slug it out by creating a stellar dish out of a secret list of ingredients. The list of contenders so far: Andy Matulaitis and Jesse Jones of The Stone Balloon Winehouse, Chantell Orellana and Jeff Brittingham of Coutyard Newark at the University of Delaware, Geovanny Vale of Caffé Gelato, Rich Colliss of Cucina Di Napoli, Eric Aber and Brian Mackey of Home Grown Café and Jeff Matyger of Taverna. Be there for the throw-down. Tickets are $45 before the event, $60 at the door. They sell out quickly, so act swiftly. 366-7030, tasteofnewarkevent2012.eventbrite.com
More Good Taste
We love this: Meet the Makers, a select tasting event featuring the region’s finest fermented fare as part of Kennett Square’s fourth annual Fermentation Festival. On Sept. 28, slide into the brick alleyway along Sycamore Alley and State Street, directly across from the Kennett Square Farmers’ Market, where $10 buys you tastings of small-batch craft brews by Forest & Main, Round Guys and Argilla. Flickerwood Wine Cellars will offer its fall wines. Frecon Farm will bring fruit wine and hard ciders. That’s not to mention Prohibition-era inspired artisan spirits from Philadelphia’s Art in the Age and Quaker City Mercantile’s Spodee Wine. Did we mention the tasting of choice local cheeses? Brewers and vintners will spill all the secrets about the creation of their beverages while you enjoy live music. More than 30 vendors will offer drinks, cured meats, pickling, saurkraut making and other vegetable fermentation. The next day, hit the annual Kennett Square Brewfest to sample 70 of the best local craft brews. The event runs 2 p.m. till 6 p.m. Be warned: Tickets sell out every year. Buy now. 610-444-8188, kennettbrewfest.com
Roaming to Roma
While we’re on the subject of beer (a favorite topic around here), don’t miss the Craft Beer Dinner at venerable Roma in Dover on Sept. 26. You know the drill: several great plates paired with their own complementary microbrew. Hosted by Marc Steiman, Roma’s dinner features an amuse bouche of “deconstructed” corn chowder (grilled corn purée with crispy bacon lardons and a fried oyster) with RJ Rockers Pumpkin Ale followed by a ravioli of kale and farmer’s cheese in rosemary-brown butter sauce teamed with Lacu Biere D’Abbaye, then pork rillettes with Chardonnay mustard and grilled crostini paired with Laughing Dog Rocket Dog Rye IPA. There’s plenty more food, including bacon ice cream—and beer, and it’s a real bargain at $50. Act now. Call 678-1041.
