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Dining DispatchPinehurst, N.C., USA
In the interest of full disclosure, I preface this with an admission. I am a devout fan of Pinehurst and the surrounding Sandhills region of North Carolina. My wife and I fell in love with the area during a visit in 1997. I returned two years later to “window shop” real estate, but in less than 24 hours ended up buying a lovely cottage beneath the pines, in Pinehurst’s Old Town. If you are intrigued by real estate investment options, consider Pinehurst. Turns out the area offers a vibrant rental market because golf packagers handle high demand for three- and four-bedroom homes by visiting golfers attracted to the area’s numerous premium courses. When our home is not leased we try to visit as frequently as possible with family or friends. My top complaint about the area as recently as a few years ago was that there were very few good dining choices. Those days are gone. Pinehurst even has a sushi house (Ten-Ya) now, and nearby Southern Pines, a larger and more diverse shopping destination than its neighbor, is the home of a cozy eatery called Chef Warren’s. Warren Lewis came to the area from Miami, where he was a cook at the renowned Chef Allen’s. A reviewer writing in a Raleigh, N.C., magazine nailed it when he described Chef Warren’s as a “hometown mom-and-pop bistro with international flair”. The menu is creative and the dishes are hearty. After an 18- or even 36-hole day you will appreciate the relaxed setting and memorable menu, including an “obscenely large pork chop”. But the restaurant that has locals and visitors buzzing of late is a quirky little spot called Elliott’s on Linden, where Mark Elliott is building a culinary empire. Inside Elliott's on Linden Elliott’s is a bit off the beaten path, occupying a rustic retail space a couple of miles outside of central Pinehurst. It features an intimate dining room, an adjoining deli and wine shop, and a cooking school with a separate observation kitchen. I will go a bit out on a limb here, but I truly believe that Elliott’s is probably one of the Mid-Atlantic’s best dining experiences, a competitor with many of the trendy spots between Washington, D.C., and Atlanta, including the Charleston/Kiawah Island, S.C. area. Principally, Chef Mark is brilliant, and hardly risk averse. New Zealand lamb, sea bass, grilled elk rack and a bison filet are proof of the latter. Entrees are prepared with flair -- flavored with spices and sauces uncommon to menus in this part of the world. But the energy of the place, the attention to detail by the staff and the wine list are extraordinary, too, and heretofore unavailable to area connoisseurs. Elliott’s also will cater private events, and have done so for me two years running with great success.
- Steve Woodward
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December 2006
First course accolades: “Caprice” Salad (buffalo mozzarella, pickled yellow beets, confit of tomatoes and Asian pesto); duck spring rolls (shaped to resemble long, skinny crab legs) with a fennel-watercress “slaw”.