The Weekly Newsletter
Menus and Stories for February 25 - 29 2008
Bailey and Auntie Laurey




Last week I gave you the words. Here are the pictures.

Bailey's first Haiku:
Tiny little hands.
Lips pursed and sometimes smiling.
I love this baby.

The littlest sweetie pie

I spent two glorious hours with her last week, holding her while she slept. I really can't even begin to imagine anything at all that could be better.

Spike sporting red

And here is the first Spike picture that I told you about last week. Isn't he a sharp dresser?

Dinners to go

Dinners, as you know, come with a freshly-made green salad, salad dressing of the day, and made-right-here bread of the day. We take reservations until noon or so. Please order by phone (252-1500), by FAX (252-02002) or stop in to speak to one of us in person.

As a reminder, every time you order a dinner to go you are eligible to enter our drawing. Just drop a card in our drawing jar (a business card works or fill out one of the cards that we have right here) and, at the end of the month, we'll pull one card which will be good for two free dinners-to-go.

Maybe you'll win next month.

Order a lot? Enter a lot!
Good luck!!

Here is this week's menu:

Monday February 25 Parmesan Chicken with Rosemary Polenta 9.95
Tuesday February 26 Pork Tenderloin with Apricots and Olives 10.75
Wednesday February 27 Crab Cakes with Vegetable Slaw 11.25
Thursday February 28 Old-fashioned Beef Stew 12.50
Friday February 29 Wild Salmon with toasted Pecan Crumbs 15.75

Our website
Special casserole of the week

We make a special casserole each week, usually on Wednesday. Order before noon and we'll have yours ready to pick up between 4:30 and 6:00 that very afternoon. (Yes, you can order in advance too.) Order a full for 9 portions or, if your gang is smaller, opt for the half-sized one, which serves 4 or so.

Say, we'll happily make a salad and provide bread for you if you like, just let us know when you call and we'll get you all set up.

Wednesday, February 27
Traditional Lasagna with Beef and Peppers
Full: 37.50
Half: 18.75

In his Hawaiian shirt


Picture # 2.
He didn't seem to mind.

Bees!

Here's the picture of the bees in the crocus flowers at my house. See the little pollen filled sacs on their legs? Pretty soon I'll have bees that actually live in their own houses in my back yard and won't THAT be wonderful!
I'll show you all of that as I go.

New Blue

Adam is our "cheese monger" of sorts. Encouraged by your interest, he is expanding our offerings. Here's the newest, a wonderfully rich blue cheese made from Sweet Grass Dairy. It is raw cow's milk and is a rarity - only produced a few times a year. Come get some if you are a blue person.

A Note From Laurey




February 23, 2008

Hiya,

Saturday morning here in Asheville. Oh gee I’ve been on the road and am not done with traveling yet. Last night Jaime and I flew back from Chicago where we were consulting with one of our Asheville clients. They are opening a big new factory there and we are helping plan and run that event. There is a fun aspect to a trip like that, meeting, talking, tasting, planning, imagining. And there is also a part that makes me so happy to come home and be greeted, in the middle of the night, by Skipper the cat who has waited up for me and who wants nothing more than some time of cuddling. He let me pick him up and pet him for a long time last night, soothing both of us.

Another interesting part of travel is to see other places. The plant is two hours west of Chicago, in the middle of flat plains. Jaime has traveled a lot in her life and we talked a lot about what we were seeing: different shaped barns, darker soil, and an abundance of hawks hovering on the naked trees. We speculated about building shapes and snowfall and wind and the sky and things like that. Time passed handily while we drove, our minds filled with these things.

It was also interesting and enlightening to be a client at various catering meetings. Gives one a whole new perspective on the business. One of the caterers we met was very much like us and it was fun to taste their food, listen to their philosophies, share bits of our lives. Another one was not so impressive, all fluff and puff and not very good food or service or much of anything. Made me happy to know how we are doing what we do here.

Jaime is also learning about bees and is planning to keep them this spring. She’s taking a test right now as I write to you, hoping to qualify for a credential and a scholarship. There is something very dreamy and mesmerizing about this bee thing. As we waited in airports and flew the various legs yesterday we browsed through her notes and poured over a bee book she brought along. I’ve been thinking about doing this for a long time and am actually very moved, in some curious way, to know that this spring I will begin to have them at my house. Many people remember their grandparents keeping bees. Mine didn’t but I do remember my father reading a book about bees and talking about them for a long time. Maybe that’s where my attraction started. Not sure, but I’m enjoying following this interest.

And as I think about baby Bailey and her big brother I think about sharing parts of my life with them as my aunts and uncles shared theirs with me. Maybe Bailey will be a beekeeper when she grows up. Maybe Jones will help me build stone walls and gardens. I love dreaming about them, love knowing that they are in my life, even at a bit of a distance.

And one more thing: last night in the airport I received an e-mail on my phone (which I have just learned how to do) which was a piece that someone had written about my book. I don’t know the writer but someone who knows ME does and she forwarded the blog to me. The piece was a very complimentary review of my book and it was a lovely piece to read. These gifts show up at the best times, just when I was feeling kind of vague and tired and disconnected. My words made it into someone’s lap (as she said) and into her consciousness and then onto her page and then back to me. And they made me feel connected and good.

After I send this note out I am going to Virginia to read some of my stories to some people up there. Later in the week I’ll go to Washington. More stories, more book stuff. This week is a book week. What a nice thing that is.

I’ll be in touch next week.

Part of the family

During my visit, Jones, recovering from a cold, slept in his room. I never even saw him. Bailey slept too, even though her father and mother and I spent the time of my visit watching the local college basketball team beat a rival. Dustin (the dad) is a big fan and the watching was not silent. Rachael and I chimed in, exclaiming at baskets scored, foul shots made. Bailey slept and slept and slept.

Nice.

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