Town House Chilhowie, VA...Best Meal in the USA?

Thanks to a New York Times article in this weeks food section, Caroline and I made the 4 hour trek up to Chilhowie to check this place out.

The background is a soon to be married couple of Chicago chefs (she the pastry chef at Charlie Trotters and he a sous chef at Alinea) were selected to open Charlie Trotters new restaurant in Las Vegas, but ultimately decided they wanted to do something a "little" different. Chosen by a local Virginia couple named Tom and Kyra Bishop who love to travel and great food to revamp their Chilhowie restaurant, they have brought molecular gastronomy to a part of the country unfamiliar with it.

This may be the best meal in the United States right now...John Shields and Karen Urie told the owners that the first goal was to be the best restaurant in Virginia, but after a year and a half, it has easily surpassed that. As we were 4 courses into 14 Saturday night, we realized we were onto something very very special. At that point, we felt it had surpassed our meal at Alinea just 3 weeks prior, and every NY restaurant including Per Se, Le Bernardin, and Jean George we'd ever been to. Comparisons to French Laundry, Arzak and Noma began to form in our minds. By about course 7, the Laundry (which admittedly we haven't been to in about 10 years) had been left in the rear view mirror.

The cooking involves molecular gastronomy techniques, but the flavors far surpass those of Alinea, WD 50 and even Mugaritz. Hence, the comparison to Arzak which uses molecular gastronomy to better result than either Mugaritz or Alinea. Karen is in charge of the sweet side of the menu, but her influence is felt in elements on the savory side as well. You can hardly wait for her desserts...we sampled 4 of them. The chefs forage for local ingredients in the local countryside ala Rene Redzepi of Noma in Copenhagen (we had a lobster salad at Noma where he had foraged for "beach herbs" that was amazing).

There is a feeling of being in the twilight zone, as the restaurant is so unexpected in such a small out of the way corner of the US, but perhaps its a part of a trend to follow the European example of "destination" restaurants in small towns such as is seen in France and Spain. The feel of the place is definitely more Spain casual than French formal which is a good thing in our minds. The chefs make the rounds of the dining room just like Elena and Juan Mari at Arzak, stopping to chat and even introduce a dish here and there.

They told us they plate every dish themselves, unheard of at most restaurants of this caliber. The owners are present and involved and contribute to an unbelievably welcoming experience.

The wine list is evolving but is unbelievably fairly priced with many solid selections under 50 dollars. Accommodations are available at nearby Marion and Abingdon...we stayed at a recently opened B and B called Collins House in Marion...a car service is offered by the restaurant to nearby accommodations.

The website to check out the menu is townhouseva.com. A 4 and 9 course option are available, but they are extremely flexible about adding items from other parts of the menu as you desire. There is a maturity to the flavors, textures, artistry and sheer intellectuality of the cooking that is far beyond chefs of 31 and 32 years of age. Amazing. One of the great meals of our lives.