Field & Main
Marshall / American / $$$
On your way past the small city of outdoor cabanas, you encounter a staffer picking blueberries from the bush out front. He offers you one. It tastes like a distillation of every fresh, sun-warmed berry you’ve ever had. Welcome to Field & Main.
Many restaurants claim to be farm-to-table. Here, chef-owner Neal Wavra uses his close community ties to craft menus to suit whatever comes in from his friends in the field each day. This extends to the wine program, with a list that features local grapes, but not to the point of overlooking great glasses from Europe, New Zealand, and elsewhere in the U.S.
The best way to experience Wavra’s wares is with a tasting. The Present Menu is true to its title—a collection of dishes that have captured the fancy of the chef and his team that day. If you shrink at the idea of tiny servings, this is the tasting menu for you. It usually includes a full-sized steak, like a recent rib-eye from Ovoka Farm in nearby Paris. It’s a meal that will leave you full in both stomach and spirit.
See this: Sit in one of the nooks and crannies of this charming old house, relax in the elegant central dining room, or take advantage of one of the outdoor cabanas.
Eat this: The Present Menu, a five-course tasting
Service: Hit or miss, but the finest staffers know the suppliers and techniques so intimately, you’d think they worked in the kitchen.
When to dine here: You’re planning to celebrate a major accomplishment—and the season.
Feature image by Rey Lopez
This post originally appeared in our November 2021 issue’s Best Restaurants cover story. For more food reviews, subscribe to our weekly newsletter.
