THE ROUND BISTRO. I don’t make it out to Gastonia very often (once a year, give or take), but I made a special trip last month to check out Chef Jack Acheson’s restaurant, The Round Bistro, and celebrate the restaurant’s two year anniversary with a wine dinner. Within minutes of speaking with Chef Jack, one thing becomes blatantly apparent: his strong passion for the history and diversity of American food. That’s what fueled him to chose American cuisine as his concept for the Round Bistro, and each month, Chef Jack develops a new regional menu that features indigenous ingredients of a specific U.S. region. Last month’s region was the Pacific Northwest, and for September, he’s taking a fun turn and featuring famous football stadium foods. Ingredients are sourced locally whenever possible, and Chef incorporates what’s in season into his regional menu planning.
The menu at the The Round Bistro is large, and spans the gamut from fondue-of-the-day to potato-crusted crab fritters, muffaleta to “Pittsburgers”, plus several salads, She Crab soup, shrimp and grits, and fresh salmon FIVE ways (including baked parmesan crusted, olive oil poached, cedar plank roasted, and blackened). In short, if you want it, they’ve got it, brunch included.
Every third Thursday of the month, The Round Bistro hosts a wine dinner. Chef Jack works closely with a sommelier to select regional wine pairings for each of the six courses, and he uses these dinners as an opportunity to showcase his culinary creativity. The menu for the wine dinner I attended included a cold peach soup with mint and cantaloupe, bay scallop over cactus and smoked gouda salad tossed in a green apple vinaigrette, cedar roasted salmon over basil tomato risotto, wine poached heritage chicken over rosemary polenta, pappardelle pasta with lamb ragu, and chocolate and raspberry mousse parfait, plus wine pairings for each course. All for just $65 per person.