Anyone looking for an upscale restaurant to visit on New Year's
Eve doesn't have to ponder a drive to Boone
or Winston-Salem. Matthew's 102 North, located on Jefferson Avenue
in West Jefferson, will be preparing a five-course meal for the
occasion.
For $45 a person, patrons can receive an appetizer, soup, salad,
entree and a dessert. The restaurant will feature two seatings
- at 7 and 9 p.m. - so that customers can either eat an early
or late meal before seeing in the New Year.
For Matthew Alouisa, who has owned the restaurant since February,
the dinner goes along with his goal of bringing fine dining to
West Jefferson. Alouisa also brings years of eclectic restaurant
experience to the restaurant, as he worked in restaurants in New
York City and Melbourne, Fla., before he purchased the Blue Ridge
Bakery Cafe in Glendale Springs.
Alouisa ran the Blue Ridge Bakery Cafe from 2003 until 2006, when
he retired. But the call of the restaurant business was too much
for him, partially due to his admiration for Michael's in West
Jefferson.
"I used to come here for dinner on Saturday nights and I
really liked the place," he said. "When I sold my place
in Glendale Springs, I said probably for the 100th time 'never
again, never again,' but after a year of being retired I said
'I'm going to go to Michael's and buy the place,' and that's what
I did."
Matthew's 102 North officially opened on Feb. 29, 2008. Alouisa
made very few changes to the restaurant originally, even keeping
executive chef Shane Graybeal to run the kitchen.
Graybeal said that, at first, the changes were all technical.
"We had a total kitchen overhaul, fixed a lot of broken equipment,"
said Graybeal, who has worked at Michael's/ Matthew's for three
and a half year. The dining room didn't see many changes, however,
since " there wasn't too much to be done so far as the dining
room and the view."
They later began to play with the menu, incorporating local produce
purchased at the farmer's market into the dishes whenever possible.
The menu is updated four times a year so that the food reflects
both the season of year and the crops that are currently being
harvested. The fall menu, for example, features
in-season crops like beets, butternut squash and apples.
"Things are a lot fresher with a lot of exciting flavor combinations,"
Graybeal said of the current menu. He noted that he has "total
creative control of the menus," so he can set his own standards
for quality.
Alouisa has also added a touch of the local artistic scene to
the eatery by displaying the work of local artists on the walls.
Works from Joanie Bell, R.T. Morgan and Rainey Rogers are currently
on display (and for sale), but Alouisa said that he would like
to display the work of other local artists as well.
He noted that he hopes it all adds up an intimate, cozy restaurant.
"I just want it to be the ultimate dining experience,"
he said.
Graybeal added that although the restaurant has been trying to
reach out to the community, he's not sure everyone knows about
Matthew's 102 North.
"We try to reach out to the locals, using local ingredients
to give back to the community," he said. "There's a
lot of people that live here that haven't been out here yet, so
I'd like to invite everyone."
Matthew's 102 North is open for lunch from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
from Monday through Saturday, and on Sunday for brunch. They are
open for dinner from 5 to 9 p.m. on weekdays and from 5 to 10
p.m. on weekends. There is live entertainment on Friday nights
provided by Lady Victoria of Lady Victoria's Academy of Vocal
Training.
To find out more about the restaurant, visit them at 102 North
Jefferson Avenue or call (336) 846-4102.
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