Tomato Pie? For Dessert?

Some of my favorite emails come from the Empire Eats mailing list - particularly when they are announcing a new menu or chef's dinner.

With the abundance of fresh produce available this time of year, chefs can expand their creativity beyond the protein and make the veggies shine. And what vegetable is more representative of summer's bounty than the tomato?

So, I was overjoyed to see that Gravy's next chef's dinner would be dedicated to the celebration of this quintessential summer treat. Even better, the dinner was to served outdoors on the patio. I immediately forwarded the email to my foodie friends, Cathy and Arjay, who immediately accepted the invitation.

The Starter: Gazpacho with Lump Blue Crab Meat.

Tomato and Pole Bean Salad with Pimento Cheese Fritter

Slow Roasted, Glazed Pork Belly with Queen Corn and Heirloom Tomatoes

Herb Roasted Chicken Leg with Tomato Panzanella Salad

Tomato Pie - Yep Tomato Pie

Thoughts on Dinner:
Once again, we lucked out by having friendly table companions with similarly dark senses of humor. No topic was off limits, including roosters, mating dances, and boudoir photo books.

Dinner was slightly delayed by the need to relocate the tables from the patio to the banquet area, but that was a minor inconvenience. The food was all quite tasty. For me, the standout items were the gazpacho, the pimento cheese fritter, the pork belly and the chicken leg, which would suggest that the proteins were still the stars of the show.

We were somewhat surprised by the wine pairings which consisted of 4 whites and a red. The white wines ranged from very sweet to turpentine and yet, when consumed with each dish, the wines took on different characteristics complementing the dishes. Even though we are all fans of red wines, I think that we would give at least 5 thumbs up for these pairings.

Our server seemed a little overwhelmed or intimidated by the sommelier at our table (who brought his own collection of wines). On each course she seemed to miss/forget/overlook at least one of our party for either the wine or food course. I think this was due to the efforts of serving the ladies first, which I think unnecessarily complicates service when there are 20-25 people at a table. On the other hand, we were all having the same thing, so it should have been obvious who did not have what.

Other than the inconsistent service, the dinner was great fun. We are looking forward to our next dining adventure.

For more information:
Gravy Italian-American Kitchen
135 Wilmington Street
Raleigh, NC 27601
(919) 896-8513