Taken to Church
In Natchez and beyond, good things come to those who wait.
I’ve always loved Natchez for its slightly sleepy, faded belle vibe, woven with deep history, culture, food, and drink. Going into the new year there is new life, a reinvigoration. It’s exciting to watch the evolution of Church Hill Variety Group (“CHV” is partnered by Chef Nick Wallace with filmmakers Tate Taylor and John Norris) enlivening Natchez hospitality—a revitalization filled with community spirit, legacy, and delicious food.
[Read our sponsored write-up on the current Natchez food scene here.]
“I called [Chef Ashley] about the project and asked if he’d be interested in coming to Mississippi to make the vision a reality—to create a dynamic restaurant group of diverse people and kitchens with a goal to educate, employ, and provide the foundation for entrepreneurship.” – Chef Nick Wallace
At the helm of their extensive culinary project is Chef Ashley Allen, a transplant to Natchez from the Virgin Islands. Chef Wallace tapped Chef Allen to join the project: “I’ve known Chef Ashley a long time,” he said. “We worked together about twenty years ago, and I remembered his incredible skills, art, and nurturing ability. I called him about the project and asked if he’d be interested in coming to Mississippi to make the vision a reality—to create a dynamic restaurant group of diverse people and kitchens with a goal to educate, employ, and provide the foundation for entrepreneurship.” After giving an emphatic “Yes,” Chef Allen now leads the CHV culinary team, all hard at work putting together menus and the many details that go into the restaurants: Smoot’s Grocery, Little Easy Bistro, and Church Hill Variety Restaurant and Farm Store, affectionately referred to as “the mothership.”
Smoot’s Grocery
The Smoot’s Grocery reboot looks to put itself on the map, literally, by connecting its rollicking music-food venue to the existing Mississippi Blues Trail. Meanwhile, the live music lives on and there are simple, sophisticated foods like lush brown sugar and coffee-rubbed brisket tacos with a tart cranberry slaw, CHV farm microgreens, and Chef Ashley’s heady bourbon BBQ sauce; smokey, meaty nachos; and crisp-tender chicken wings.
[Read Publisher James Fox-Smith's story about the "Natchez Poppy Guy" here.]
Little Easy Bistro
Late afternoon happy hour brings more choices: charcuterie and other savories, homemade tater tots, and a trendy fried chicken sandwich with Kool-Aid pickles and jalapeño aioli that is all about that salt-fat-acid-heat.
Opening this month, Little Easy Bistro is an elevated coffee shop serving breakfast, lunch,and afternoon snacks, including a charcuterie Happy Hour from 3 pm–5 pm. Chef Allen’s food here draws on Mississippi staples with a touch of island vibes. There are standards like eggs, pastries, muffins, and cinnamon rolls, of course, but specials built Chef Allen’s way turn into dishes like jerk-spiced waffles topped with pecan-crusted fried chicken, a sticky bourbon-laced syrup, and vanilla bean butter; or smoked brisket with a collard greens chimichurri, avocado butter, and caramelized onions. As a brunch option, Chef’s twist on lox and bagels includes a crisp flatbread topped with smoked salmon, sun-dried olive tapenade, lemon, capers, and greens. Late afternoon happy hour brings more choices: charcuterie and other savories, homemade tater tots, and a trendy fried chicken sandwich with Kool-Aid pickles and jalapeño aioli that is all about that salt-fat-acid-heat.
Church Hill Variety Restaurant and Farm
Opening in February 2021, the “mothership,” Church Hill Variety Restaurant and Farm in Church Hill (Tate Taylor’s birthplace), is eight miles east of the Mississippi River and about twenty minutes north of Natchez. The restaurant boasts an open kitchen with indoor and outdoor seating, combined with a farm store stocked with grab-and-go meals, homemade preserves, produce, farm eggs, and ice cream. For this restaurant, Chef Allen’s menu is more pinkies-up refined, using some swanky culinary techniques, while retaining approachability and incorporating Mississippi-grown products. The farm that is part of Tate Taylor’s property in Church Hill is a work-in-progress. Currently run by present in-house staff, there are expansion and education plans afoot. Meantime, the chickens are producing eggs and there is a wild field of herbs and spices that wind up in many dishes. At CHV, dining is meant to be an extraordinary experience, with dishes like sous vide farm-raised chicken thigh roulade nestled on rich, roasted garlic whipped yukon gold potatoes, served with andouille-spiked sautéed green beans, frizzled collard greens chiffonade, and Creole beurre blanc; or this stunner: smoked jerk catfish atop a cassava-herb cracker, dehydrated lemon zest dust, and a drizzle of scotch bonnet chili gastrique.
The Depot
As if that weren’t enough, the CHV team is also planning to operate The Depot, a venue with enormous potential for local events and tourism. The focus, again, is about creating community and blending the area’s rich music and food history for events of any size.
It’s a plan for culinary legacy that encourages gathering, celebrating heritage, lending a hand, and creating a lasting legacy to help revitalize a beautiful city.
Opening bit-by-bit, delayed by the pandemic, CHV’s projects not only look good, they aim to do good too. The group’s mission to create high quality restaurants and an exceptional farm store are all rooted in providing education, employment, and entrepreneurship. It’s a plan for culinary legacy that encourages gathering, celebrating heritage, lending a hand, and creating a lasting legacy to help revitalize a beautiful city. It’s thrilling to watch as Church Hill Variety Group’s places put on finishing touches, finalize menus, and ramp-up hiring. This is the Natchez worth waiting for, the one I can’t wait to visit and feast on, time and time again.