Virtual Wine Dinner: Undercurrent Restaurant; Greensboro, North Carolina

We arrive home with the virtual dinner
Due to the Covid-19 virus restaurant closings we recently had the opportunity to participate in a virtual wine dinner and it was simply fantastic!!! The event was hosted by the Undercurrent Restaurant1 in Greensboro, North Carolina. The dinner was sold as a four course wine dinner (ready to just heat and eat) for two that included three bottles of wine all for $130.

Reheating the third course
When we picked up our food and wine we were met at the curb and our packages were set in the car without us even having to get out of the seat. Each course was packaged together, food, sauces and dressings along with easy to follow printed instructions to heat the food. Chef Harkenreader also had made a video guide for step by step heating and plating the dinner that really made the whole process easy and fun. The dinner began at seven p.m. when all the participants signed on to a “Zoom” discussion and presentation by Chef Harkenreader, Wes Wheeler, Undercurrent host and Laurence Vuelta, Regional Manager with Trinchero Family estates. This continued as we ate and drank and diners asked questions about the food and wines.

MENU & WINE PAIRINGS

FIRST COURSE
Poached Scallops and Shrimp, Local Greens, Radish, Pickled Carrots, Pine Nuts, Lemon Poppy-seed Dressing

Napa Cellars Napa Valley Chardonnay

SECOND COURSE
Smoked Duck Breast, Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Beets, Raspberry-Sorghum Gastrique, Pink Peppercorn-Cocoa Nib Charmoula

Joel Gott Santa Barbara Pinot Noir

THIRD COURSE
Country Ham wrapped Pork Tenderloin, Roasted Tomato-Lindale stuffed Twice Baked Potato, Blackened French Beans, Balsamic-Blackberry Reduction, Marinated Fennel

Folie a Deux Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

FOURTH COURSE
Strawberry-Ruby Chocolate Cheesecake, Graham Cracker-Macadamia Nut Crust, Fresh Strawberries

Folie a Deux Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon


 

The four course dinner and bread ready to reheat and serve
Ingredients for the first course ready to dress and plate
The poached scallops and shrimp salad ready to eat

The whole wine dinner experience was OUTSTANDING. We dressed up, ate in the dinning room and made a real party out of the event. The food was elegantly packaged and easily reheated…and, we both commented that Chef Harkenreader’s smoked duck breast was the best we’ve ever had. The wines were excellent paired with the food and because there was an abundance of wine for each course we thought it was more like a traditional dinner with wine than a wine tasting with food. In addition, we became more involved with the plating of the food and really liked being able to pace the dinner ourselves. Would we do a virtual wine diner again? YES, the Undercurrent Restaurant is having a Dominican Dinner Party with a similar format next week and we’ve already signed up!!!

Watch for a TastedOnline review of each wine in the near future.

See also: Wine Pairing Dinner: Undercurrent Restaurant; Greensboro, North Carolina, and
Undercurrent Restaurant, Greensboro, North Carolina, A Tasted Online Lunch-Time Review


1. Undercurrent Restaurant
327 Battleground Ave.
Greensboro, North Carolina
336 370-1266
undercurrentrestaurant.com