08/30/2023
These pimento cheese peppers bring back all the memories!!
Memories of white bread sandwiches pulled out of crinkled paper lunch bags. In my central Jersey hometown, the go-to lunchbox sandwich was white bread with PB&J. Connor's North Carolina equivalent was white bread with a big ol' slab of pimento cheese.
Memories of falling in love with Connor. The first time I had pimento cheese, in my young twenties, sitting on the porch of a farmhouse in the Carolina piedmont. Barefoot and paper plates.
Memories of our start-up days as a casual pop-up at Isabel's. On one of our very first menus, we offered baby bell peppers stuffed with pimento cheese as an appetizer. It was the right balance of familiar and new. It was in Connor's comfort zone, while still presenting a unique flavor to our Jersey guests. And it was just damn good!
When we moved to our brick and mortar at the Boardwalk, we took pimento cheese off the menu. It felt too casual or pedestrian for our debut as a "real" restaurant and a "real" Chef. We had to impress!
Now, in our third year, we are a little more comfortable sharing the simple things, and a little more confident being ourselves. We've learned that - whether you're barefoot on a porch, or high-heeled at white-linen table - damn good is still... damn good!!
