Pouring One Out for Ravine
I was recently alerted by bestie, and GTC blog partner Cameron Abel, that Ravine in Oxford, Mississippi, was closing its doors for good. I had literally just eaten there with my husband less than two days before I received the sad news. Per usual, our meal that particular evening had been spectacular with us feasting on duck breast on wild rice pancakes, and some heavenly devil’s food cake topped with homemade cream.
I took the news hard, and I could not help but ask myself: why do I feel this emotional about a restaurant closing? After a (tiny) bit of reflection, I realized that not only do I find dining out to be enjoyable, but it has always been a comfort to me as well. Most of my happiest memories in life are of times out with friends and/or my husband involving lots of laughs, bonding, and lively conversation over a good meal with a cocktail in hand. Doing all of this at a special restaurant can turn a gathering into an “experience.”
Ravine is a special restaurant. A special place. It opened 15 years ago with owner, Chef Joel Miller, at the helm. When my husband and I started dating 14 years ago this was one of the places he took me to dinner when he came to visit me while I still lived in Oxford. We returned several times over the years when coming in for a night or two, including for dinner with a group of my law school classmates for a little reunion last year.
When discussing where to make reservations for the dozen or so of us, I piped up quickly and said “we HAVE to eat at Ravine. It is the BEST.” We did, and everyone was delighted with the meal, the atmosphere, and the service. Plates shared that evening included an avocado and crab salad, housemade papardelle pasta with fresh veggies (perfect for one of my vegetarian friends), and some to-die-for pecan pie.
Located in a large, rustic and charming cabin in the woods a few miles outside the City of Oxford, Ravine was always about using locally sourced foods, including some items grown in its own garden outside the cabin. Thus, the menu was ever-evolving and always fresh.
Understandably, Chef Joel, a true culinary artist, is exhausted after surviving a crippling pandemic, which put countless businesses and restaurants out to pasture, and an economy, which is making quality service harder and harder to maintain. Chef Joel has publicly expressed that he needs a break, but he should know that he and it will be missed by many of us.
So I am pouring one out for Ravine today, but hoping Chef Joel will be back with something equally as exciting and interesting in the near future.