Good Eats in Elkin, NC

Elkin, NC isn't a large place so hunting for good food options when you have been out drinking wine all day is very important.  Our timing for our most recent trip was good and bad.  Bad because a key restaurant, Twenty One & Main, was still undergoing a redo and they were not ready to reopen.  The good was that their sister restaurant, 2Twenty Two Public House, was open and had recently expanded their menu.

Pork Skins

Red Hot & Blue Boneless Wings

 2TwentyTwo Public House is located right in downtown Elkin. We enjoyed it so much we ate there on two occasions during our three day weekend stay.

Mac & Cheese with
Bacon & Pesto Pizza

It is a nicer pub/bar seat yourself kind of place which got fairly busy both nights we were there.  I did notice management helping settle in waiting patrons as tables opened up so they were very efficient in that process.  They have the best made to order pork skins, really tasty and interesting pizza options, wide variety of sandwiches and a great beer list (draft and bottle).  Everything we had was really good but I am not sure all of it is still on the menu since it was newly revised and undergoing public opinion considerations.


We also went back to Elkin Creek Winery just to enjoy their fantastic pizzas. They only serve food on Sunday's and can be very popular/crowded.  You cannot reserve a table but I highly recommend you call and reserve your dough. Check out our previous visit here.  We usually enjoy a bottle of their Classico with our pizza.

This time we did a create our own pepperoni and mushroom pizza and their custom selection pizza with brie, bacon, spinach and caramelized onions - oh, yum!!  Two pizzas are way too much food for two people but the leftovers are fantastic.

Back to Yadkin Valley Wineries Part 2

The first winery we visited for tastings on Sunday was Brushy Mountain Winery in downtown Elkin, NC. This tasting room is in the old Elkin canning company building and they base their wine labels on the old canning labels.  This is actually a really nifty spot, with a pretty bar and inviting seating/conversation area.  The most interesting thing is the exposure of old ads on the interior brick wall that was uncovered during their renovation of the building.  They offer different prices for the level of tasting you want to do and one level includes option to keep the glass.

• Foothills Folly Renovation Rosé – sparkling rosé, cherry, crisp, nice acidity, very light, not too sweet, good
• Chardonnay – steel and oak aged, very light, green apple, pear, good
• E&A Red – named for railroad, Chambourcin, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon blend, nice tartness, mellow, pretty decent
• Bugaboo Creek Red - Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon blend, very nice, mellow, good fruit, decent/mild tannins, like
• Red Bud Ridge Red - Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Chambourcin blend, dark fruits, berry, a little jammy, good mouthfeel
• Chatham Reserve Red - Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Chambourcin and Cabernet Sauvignon blend, more oaky than others, more tannic, dry
• Pour Mon Amour - dessert wine, port style

Uncovered Ads

Something to note is that Elkin Creek, Grassy Creek, Brushy Mountain and McRitchie are part of the original four wineries in this area and they offer a visitor "punch" card.  After you have done tastings at all four wineries you can return to any of one them for a free tasting. This offer never expires and we have collected 3 of the 4 "punches" over the last year and a half. We have actually already visited all four but when we were at Grassy Creek we were with a wine tour group and didn't know about the punch card.

The second stop for tastings was Adagio Vineyards. Adagio is operated by a husband and wife team with a significant interest in music because the wife is a classical violinist. Hence the name of the group and nearly all their wines being based on musical terms  The tasting room is set up to allow for musical performances which we got to experience in the form of a violin duet during our visit. Do not recall the tasting fee but did get to keep the glasses which are a very pretty stemless version.  Please note this place is brand new and I am sure the wines will better develop over time.

• Chardonnay (steel tank) – crisp, light, buttery, light oak, good
• Vivace – Traminette with a trace of Chardonnay, oily mouthfeel, some tart/sourness, citrus, green apple
• Chaconne – Merlot, Tannat and Petite Verdot blend and was described as “cherry, plum, smoke”, tasted sourness, empty, too light, not balanced
• Coda – dessert style made from Taminette, fruity, kiwi, good

Tasting room performance at Adagio

Final stop of the day was a revisit to Slightly Askew to re-taste some of their fruit wine options in order to stock up for summer beach outing.  Read about our previous visit here.  If you are looking for a nice fruit & real wine blend I think these are the best in NC and my favorites include Tattoo on the Beach (Banana Pineapple Viognier) and Drama Kween (Strawberry Banana Reisling Viognier).