By Donna Cornelius When Jeremy Downey eats an oyster, the taste takes him back to his childhood. Downey, the owner and chef of Bistro V in Vestavia Hills, grew up in Bayou La Batre on the Alabama Gulf Coast. “Our next door neighbor was an oyster guy, and he’d bring us a big old sack and say, ‘Here’s 50 pounds of oysters,’” Downey said. “Sometimes he’d just drop them on our … [Read more...]
Grand Entrance: Grille 29 Restaurant Makes Its Debut in Birmingham
By Donna Cornelius It took some time for Grille 29 to join the Birmingham restaurant scene, but it didn’t take long for the upscale-casual eatery to start drawing diners. On a recent weekday afternoon, a full house was expected for the night in the large Brookwood Village building that formerly housed McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurant, and Grille 29 still found a … [Read more...]
Beyond the Kitchen: Cooks on a Mission’s Work Feeds Body and Soul
By Donna Cornelius Food and church go together like peanut butter and jelly–especially in the South. Sunday school classes take food to the sick and bereaved. Congregations gather for bountiful fellowship meals. Women’s groups automatically think “let’s do a cookbook” when the organ fund needs a little bolstering. At Mountain Brook Baptist Church, one group takes cooking to … [Read more...]
The Art of the Meal: Chef Goes Back to School With Capers on Park Avenue
By Donna Cornelius Jay Roberson’s restaurant, Capers on Park Avenue, has been open for only a few months. But years ago, Roberson spent a lot of time in the building where he now serves his own versions of Southern-style food. These days, he’s on the other side of the serving line. Capers is in what once was the lunchroom of the old Bluff Park Elementary School, which … [Read more...]
Good Eats on the Go: Friends Team up to Provide Healthy Food for Busy Folks
By Donna Cornelius Even for those with the best of intentions, eating healthy isn’t always easy. The two women who own Nourish want to make it that way. Tiffany Vickers Davis and Mary Drennen started their food delivery company last November. Both are busy moms – and both are into nutritious eats. “Mary eats more ‘clean’ – vegetables, healthy grains,” Davis said. “I’m more … [Read more...]