By Melanie Threlkeld McConnell
Lake Junaluska, NC – Imagine if everything on your dinner plate was grown within 30 miles of your home. What if the vegetables and herbs you planned to eat one night were picked that morning? If the chicken or beef were raised on a farm you passed every day? Imagine if you knew exactly where your food came from or who raised it.
Well, imagine no more. Come experience for yourself the exceptional flavors of locally produced food. From 5 to 7 p.m. July 4, Lake Junaluska Conference and Retreat Center will host its first Farm-to-Table Dinner at the Nanci Weldon Outdoor Gym. Prepared by Lake Junaluska’s culinary staff, the buffet will include a variety of herbs, meat, vegetables and a fresh berry cobbler for dessert.
The menu will feature beef from Lenoir Creek Devon in Canton, chicken from Balsam Gardens in Sylva, seasonal vegetables and fresh herbs from Pineapple Sage Herb Farm in Clyde, seasonal fruit, herbs and honey from Rainbow Ridge Farm in Waynesville, and seasonal vegetables from Mountain Harvest Farm near Hot Springs and King Harvest Farm in Canton.
Along with dinner, the evening will include bluegrass music by The Freight Hoppers from Bryson City.
Tickets for the Farm to Table Dinner are $25 and must be purchased in advance at the Bethea Welcome Center or by calling 828-454-6738. For more information about other July 4th activities at Lake Junaluska, please visit www.lakejunaluska.com/july4th , or call 828-452-2881.