Friday, June 28th, 2019
Greetings from Carrboro,
This will shock you. But my family liked to eat. It gave almost any weekend or holiday an ardent culinary theme. My parents took an earnest, multi-pronged approach. The most troubling scenario involved my father with cookbooks and clipped recipes and his stash of coupons dutifully cut out of the Sunday Charlotte Observer. This treacherous path often led to water chestnuts and Birds Eye frozen vegetables and tepid sorrow that my mother would manage to cook cheerfully. I knew when things had gone sideway if I caught my mom surreptitiously eating a large spoonful of peanut butter just prior to dinner. Translation: the “Oriental Delight” was going to be not-so-delightful.
July 4th was different. There were no culinary gymnastics – just a sacrosanct reliability in the delicious cornucopia of summer. No recipes or cookbooks. No fears of Swedish meatballs made with Lipton soup mix. Just unlimited potato chips and french onion dip, watermelon, macaroni salad, baked beans, corn on the cob, and sliced tomatoes. The only real variant was whether we had hamburgers or hot dogs or both. And if the stars aligned, Mom bought ice cream sandwiches and orange sherbet. Viva America. And pass the ketchup.
The funny thing is, that’s what I still want to eat on July 4th. No question. And it’s that kind of uncomplicated food that I certainly want to cook all summer. For you. At Acme. To be honest, it would almost be a crime to get in the way of the delicious bounty of fruit and vegetables that we get from the market. The fresh corn and okra, tomatoes and squash, blueberries and blackberries, potatoes and onions and cucumbers, the melons and peaches. My only job is to not mess it up. Or add water chestnuts.
The Acme tomato plate. Summertime smash burger. Frogmore stew. Fried oyster po’boys. Pork chops. Watermelon sangria. Fried Chicken. Acme BLT bento box. Zephyr squash casserole. Pan-seared mahi-mahi. Muskmelon salad. Ballpark corn “ribs.” Fried okra and shishito peppers. Blueberry pie. Overnight beef short ribs. Bourbon glazed carrots. Southern tomato pie. Shooting Point Oysters on the half-shell. Forever roasted pig. Hot cornbread and angel biscuits. Fried shrimp and succotash. Go on, dive in. Summer’s a good thing.
The 18th annual Acme Tomato Festival – July 10th – 14th. You in?
Well, that’s all the news from Carrboro. The staff at Acme look forward to serving you soon.
Cheers,
The Staff at Acme
Reservations 919-929-2263 or online
