A Sneak Peek of ‘Fire, Flour & Fork’… and Richmond’s Up-and-Coming Culinary Scene

Looking for new and innovative food and drink items? Richmond, Virginia might be the place to satisfy your culinary cravings.

Advocates making the case for Richmond as a culinary destination came to Union Market in Northeast DC late last month to show Washingtonians what they’re missing out on – a vibrant food and drink scene that is a short distance away.

In Union Market’s Rappahannock Oyster Company, invited guests were given the opportunity to sample bites from Richmond:

• Brittanny Anderson, co-owner and chef at Metzger Bar & Butchery, offered up fresh sirloin tartare, pickled celery and capers atop a potato chip that is fried in tallow (in this case, beef fat).
• Dylan Fultineer, chef at Rappahannock (the branch in Richmond), revamped potato salad and added to the dish yuzu crème fraîche, rye bread croutons, trout caviar and sockeye salmon.
• Travis Milton, who will soon be opening Shovel and Pick, was the most experimental of all when it came to the food. He cured duck in sumac, made blueberry compote, cucumber purée, and vinegar, the latter of which is made out of soda. Milton said that he likes to experiment with soda pop vinegars.

Even the sample drinks changed expectations on what cider should taste like. The cider, which Blue Bee Cider owner Courtney Mailey presented at the event, tasted like wine, but with a fizzy component.

The reason for all of this sampling?  To promote an upcoming festival — Fire, Flour & Fork — which will showcase a lot of Virginian fare from Wednesday, October 28 until Sunday, November 1.