Every now and then you'll come across a restaurant that feels like a contradiction. A taco and sushi fusion place. An Italian restaurant that has more beer selections than wine. Even something like a gastropub seems like a contradiction of terms.
Then you go to a restaurant like Crook's Corner and don't know what to think other than, "Dang, that was delicious!" Crook's Corner is the type of restaurant that I don't think should be as successful as it is because it's kind of a weird experience (and so, so delicious), but it's been in operation for several decades. It's also been hailed as "Holy ground for Southern foodies" by the New York Times and places as one of 38 essential restaurants of the South over on Eater.com I first came to know about it around the Thanksgiving holidays in 2018. It was through a pie recipe. In creating a Thanksgiving meal that year, I wanted to bake an interesting pie, something that I've never made or heard of before, and I found the perfect one in Bill Smith's Atlantic Beach Pie. It's also called the "Oh, My God" pie because it's so dang good. Smith's pie is so deceiving purely due to its simplicity to make (another contradiction). You just need butter, a sleeve of Saltine's, lemons, condensed milk, eggs and sugar, and you're off to the races. Here's a link to the recipe, if you're curious (you will thank me): https://www.npr.org/2013/04/11/176279512/a-north-carolina-pie-that-elicits-an-oh-my-god-response It took another year, though, for me to connect the dots of that amazing pie all the way to Chapel Hill, North Carolina where Crook's Corner is located. And here's where several contradictions can be noticed: it looks more like a diner than a fine-dining restaurant, it's in a small college town, located on the very end of a main avenue and almost facing away from foot traffic as if it wants to stay hidden, and most people don't know a thing about it although it's recognized as a must-dine spot for Southern food. It's a no frills type of experience and very unassuming. The wine list was simple, but had a nice selection with attractive prices. We went with a Morgon since we knew we'd be having a variety of food, both land and sea. For our meal, we dined through Curried Pork Terrine, accompanied by kimchi, mustard and toast, a half dozen oysters with mignonette, Cheese Pork (the southern answer to Schnitzel) atop mash and veggies, and the Crook's Corner take on Shrimp and Grits (a must try). Can you guess what we had for dessert? That's right, the Atlantic Beach Pie. It was every bit as good as I expected and will be a staple dessert in our house for years to come.
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