What’s In Your Cellar? W.Va. Chefs Launch New Dinner Series

You’ve heard of farm-to-table dining. Now a group of West Virginia chefs is launching a 10-dinner series they call “Cellar to Table” at state parks throughout the state.

And they’re not waiting for the fresh blooms of spring. 

The group includes chefs devoted to the farm to table movement and Appalachia’s food heritage. The dinners start in January and run through April – by design, that’s before most spring and summer crops are available for harvest. 

“We all know the history of a cellar in Appalachian culture where, you know, we grow our food and we put it up for the winter, for the harder times, and we’re not really celebrating that right now,” said Matt Welsch, executive chef of West Virginia State Parks. 

“And there are a lot of really wonderful West Virginia producers across the state who are making some great, great things, and we wanted the opportunity to showcase those things. I thought a new dinner series that we could do in the winter and spring to offset the fall, farm to table dinners would be really, really great,” he said.

The project works with the West Virginia Food and Farm Coalition to highlight West Virginia’s culinary heritage and promote food products from farmers and growers across the state. It focuses on foods that would be found in a traditional Appalachian cellar. 

“We immediately think of jams and jellies, but it’s also honey, it’s maple syrup. There are a lot of sauces and spice blends that are available.  Anything that can be shelf stable fits the description, and that’s what we will base in these courses for these meals,” Welsch said.

Dinners will be held at popular sites like Hawk’s Nest, Pipestem State Park and Stonewall Resort. Dinner prices start at $40 per person. 

“The tickets for the inaugural event, which will be Jan. 4, with Chef Marion Ohlinger from Morgantown partnering with Canaan Valley Resort,” Welsch said. “Those tickets are available on the West Virginia State Parks website, and we’re diligently working to get the other tickets up ASAP, as well as menus.” 

For more information visitwvstateparks.com/calendar/ or follow West Virginia State Parks on social media for the latest updates.