Seasoned in the South

Crook's Corner is a landmark in North Carolina and beyond. "Bon Appetit" called it "a legend." "Travel and Leisure" described it as "country cookin' gone cool." A reviewer for the "Washington Post" said, "I have yet to eat an average meal at Crook's Corner--the food is consistently outstanding, sort of nouvelle down home." And "Delta Sky" rated it "the best place to eat in Chapel Hill, in North Carolina and possibly on earth." It's that good, and it has sustained its reputation since 1982, when legendary Southern chef Bill Neal, author of three popular cookbooks, opened the restaurant with partner Gene Hamer. For more than a decade now, Bill Smith has presided over the kitchen, bringing his creative cuisine to an ever-growing, always enthusiastic crowd who have come to associate dining at Crook's with good company, great food, and a belief that every meal is reason for celebration. Bill Smith's recipes are marvelously uncomplicated: Tomato and Watermelon Salad, Fried Green Tomatoes with Sweet Corn and Lemon Beurre Blanc, Pork Roast with Artichoke Stuffing, Scallops with Spinach and Hominy, Really Good Banana Pudding, and Honeysuckle Sorbet. Structured around the seasons and inspired by the abundant local produce, these recipes reinvent classics of the Southern culinary tradition and offer up imaginative interpretations of bistro fare. "Seasoned in the South" captures the flavors of the freshest seasonal foods and the spirit of one of the South's liveliest and most innovative kitchens.