Pittsboro’s Local on Main treats hundreds to locally sourced meal

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PITTSBORO — Hillsboro Street in Pittsboro was closed on Sunday. Instead of cars buzzing through, the street hosted a table that stretched from Salisbury to the circle, dressed for a three-course meal for 236 people prepared by local culinary artists made with food from local farmers, all with a backdrop of Chatham’s Historic Courthouse.

The event was hosted by Main Street Pittsboro, an all volunteer organization through the N.C. Dept. of Commerce, dedicated to “economic development within the context of historic preservation.” Part of the group’s mission is to promote and elevate the main street area of downtown Pittsboro through events, infrastructure improvements and buying and doing business locally.

As guests arrived, they were greeted and ushered toward local vintners and distillers including Chatham Ciderworks, Fire Clay Cellars, Thirsty Skull Brewery and Starrlight Mead. Volunteers carried trays of appetizers including beet pickled deviled eggs from the Root Cellar and sausage, goat curd and shitake-filled egg rolls from the Pittsboro Roadhouse.

As guests mingled and found their seats, they were entertained by the Dave Quick Jazz band while Tracy Lyn and Dave Smith performed in the cocktail area. The first course of the meal was a divine lemonade pickled shrimp with rhubarb curd with wood-grilled spring onions and popped sorghum created by the chefs at Postal Fish Company. A microgreen and edible flower salad from Angelina’s Kitchen followed. The main course was provided by the Pickle Jar Cafe, a marsala-braised short rib with polenta, poached vegetables and a balsamic reduction.

Following the dinner, dessert was served in the Page Vernon Park with sweet delicacies provided by Cumulonimbus Chocolatiers, The County Bakeress, Pittsboro Roadhouse, the Root Cellar, Small B&B Cafe and Virlie’s Grill. Every bite created by local culinary artists were produced from foods grown by one of 24 local farms.

“It was an amazing experience,” said Lesley Landis, one of the organizers for the event. “It shined a light on farmers, culinary artists, and performing artists that make Pittsboro so special. That’s what we were here to celebrate. It was hearts, heads and hands from across Chatham County and Pittsboro with a phenomenal volunteer army to create the experience.”

Proceeds from the event support the efforts of Main Street Pittsboro. The group is already working with local businesses and owners with ongoing facade improvements, where the organization matches 50 percent of funds by property owners to polish up the buildings downtown. The group is also working with the Chatham Historical Association and the Chatham Center for Innovation, a high school in Siler City, on a self-guided walking tour of downtown Pittsboro. The group will be installing plaques which will include QR codes that, when scanned by a cell phone, will direct individuals to a website with information on the history of the location scanned.

For more information on Main Street Pittsboro, visit its website at https://mainstreetpittsboro.org/.

Casey Mann can be reached at CaseyMann@Chathamnr.com.

Pittsboro, Main Street Pittsboro, Local on Main, Farm to Fork, Farmers