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The Kennedyville Inn
Celebrating Maryland's
Best.
The wine flowed. We started with a crisp little aperitif of Woodhull Rosé Sangiovese from Parkton,
Maryland. Dry with a little fruit, it was cool and lovely with the hors d’oeuvres of polenta squares topped with tapenade.
Searching for what? Maryland’s best. The night was a celebration of Maryland food and wine. About
70 percent of the food was local. It’s become a bit of an obsession for both owners. As Jason commented, “It’s
becoming so important to know where our food is coming from.” On this night, we knew. The grassfed veal, from St. Brigid’s
Farm down the road. The lamb from David Smith’s Springfield Farm in Sparks, Maryland. Fruits and produce everywhere
from Lockbriar Farms to the vegetable patch in back of the Kennedyville Inn. (Now that’s local.) Dinner in earnest began with seafood. Individual crab & leek pot pies made their way to the plate — an unexpected and and very fun dish, paired
with Boordy’s Vidal Blanc 2006, the Governor’s Cup winner at the Maryland Wine Festival. Personally, I loved the
savory pot pie and the crispy crust, and can see why the pairing worked, but the Vidal lacked the complexity that I want from
a good wine. (There, Glenn, how’s that for commentary?) Try the crab pot pie yourself, the recipe's here. But more wines were coming. Next course: Potato gnocchi and veal
in a light tomato sauce. The veal was braised, osso bucco-style, until it fell apart. The beautiful fresh sauce was spiced
with a little chili flake and oregano. A garnish of asiago frico gave us a crispy crunch for balance.
And here’s a little karma that makes you realize all is right with the universe: the wine paired
with the gnocchi was Fiore’s Chambourcin Reserve 2004. By sheer coincidence, we’d tracked Mike Fiore down the
weekend before at the Maryland Wine Festival. (You can see him on our “Drink” page this month.) Fiore likes to make his wines for Italian food — no surprise there — and when we asked him which was
his favorite, he gave us a healthy “tasting” of the Chambourcin. Tonight, it tasted even better. Either it was
the pairing that made a difference, or the “reserve” in the name. Or both.
Now, the meat
course.
Slices of perfect medium-rare lamb (rack and loin) from David Smith’s Springfield Farm, with roasted figs and fingerling potatoes, served on chard with a goat-cheese mousse. It was fab. The chevre was another Maryland product, from those fine folks at Firefly Farms. The wine: a superb, if ill-named, “Super Talbot” 2004 from Little Ashby Vineyards. Rich, with excellent spice and tannin, the wine is a blend of merlot and sangiovese grapes. (We liked that at the wine festival, too.) One of the pricier wines we were served, but — let’s be a little snobby here — it goes into the “This is a Maryland wine?” category.
By now, the room was getting very convivial. Or was that just me, getting a little too convivial? I think it was just me. Anyway, it was time for dessert —
Jason’s arena. The them was “An Ode to Peaches” with a trio of perfect little treats on the plate. They
were served with a bone-cold vin de glace 2005 from Elk Run that could have been dessert by itself. From the farms to the tables. In our midst were couples from two of the farms represented that night — David and Lilly Smith from Springfield
Farms, and Bob Fry and Judy Gifford from St. Brigid’s Farm. St. Brigid’s is in its first year of offering pasture-fed,
humanely treated beef and veal, and is located in Kent County — not far from the Kennedyville Inn.
Springfield Farm on the western shore north of Baltimore, is earning a lot of buzz these days for their reputation for providing local, sustainable farm food — eggs, chicken and lamb. (They offer other fowl and meats as well, including turkeys. Take note with Thanksgiving coming up.) Animals are free-range, humanely treated and grass-fed during the grass season.
If you’ve read “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” you’re familiar with the
kind of farm we’re talking about. David spent time working and learning from Dilemma’s Joel Salatin and
Polyface Farm about pasture farming, and an interdependent cycle between different free-range animals and the field. Lambs
feed on grass, chickens follow, lay their eggs in the henhouse, the grass rests, and so on. While demand is outgrowing supply
for his product, Smith and his extended family are working on creating a network of like-minded farmers.
Smith talks freely and happily about his passion, as he calls it. While there’s more to the picture — much controversy and staking of ground these days among farmers and those in the movement between what’s local, organic, natural, certified, etc. in the market — there’s no denying that Springfield Farms is successful. And that those who care about reducing their food-miles find it important to make their way there. In the end, it's what's good that counts. Beyond local, beyond organic, when the diners sit down and the kitchen serves, it really all comes down to the plate.
Dinner was good. And knowing it was better for the planet added even more depth to the flavor and the enjoyment. So to the people at the Kennedyville Inn, thank you for your efforts,
your searching and thanks for a great night. We hope local stays front and center in your cuisine, you've proved it can
be done. And once again, you’ve made yourselves a worthy destination for a special meal.
The Kennedyville Inn's All-Maryland
Dinner Crab and Leek
Pot Pie Served with Boordy Vidal Blanc 2006 Gnocchi with a Ragout of Veal from St. Brigid's Farm Served with Fiore Chambourcin Reserve 2004 Roasted Lamb Loin from Springfield Farms With fingerling potatoes, Swiss chard and Allegheny chevre
rom Firefly Farms Served with Little Ashby Super Talbot 2004 Ode to Peaches: Baltimore peach cake, panna cotta with peach sauce, peach mousse cake Elk Run Vin de Glace 2005
Want the recipe for Crab Pot Pie? click here:
Kennedyville Inn at a Glance:
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