By Leah Hughes
Dustie Gregson of The Table
Photo submitted by The Table
Dustie Gregson is a hard woman to catch. She’s a wife, mother and restaurateur. On a recent Wednesday, she stopped to talk in the dining room of The Table in downtown Asheboro.
As she talked, the mid-morning din of her bakery-coffee shop-eatery sang around her. Customers chatted at simple, wooden tables with white, metal chairs. A barista broke out in song as steam hissed from the espresso machine. Servers passed by the windows delivering plates of eggs and grits, and bowls of granola to diners seated on the patio.
She appreciates fresh food and community, and she felt that if she could combine those elements into one concept, people would welcome it. And they have.
Gregson had no previous restaurant experience when she opened The Table in May 2013. She drew inspiration from her childhood in rural North Carolina where her family practiced home cooking and gathered around the table to share meals. She appreciates fresh food and community, and she felt that if she could combine those elements into one concept, people would welcome it. And they have.
If you arrive at The Table anytime from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on a weekday, a line of people in suits and scrubs, high heels and running gear stretches from the front door to the counter where you place your order. On a busy Saturday, when The Table is open from 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., 600 to 700 people may dine here.
The Table’s Zucchini and Roasted Tomato Quiche. Photo submitted by The Table
Gregson is quick to point out that due to the high volume, sourcing food from local farms is a challenge, and she doesn’t want to overstate her farm-to-table efforts. She sources eggs for omelets, scrambled eggs and egg sandwiches from Chelsea Manor Farm in Siler City. Yet her eggs for baking come from a larger supplier. The beef for Friday’s burger night comes from CFSA Member Back To Earth Farm, just 10 miles away. But Tom and Janice Henslee, who own the farm, can only deliver enough beef for one night a week. All dairy products come from Homeland Creamery in Julian, coffee from Counter Culture Coffee in Durham and the peanut butter from Durham’s Big Spoon Roasters.
It’s a balance, she says.
CFSA has been bringing the farm to the table for 37 years, and with your help, we can continue to support farmers across the Carolinas as we build a healthy and resilient food system. Join us!
Chef Deanna at the Asheboro Farmers Market
Photo submitted by The Table
Every dish that servers bring from The Table’s kitchen is made from scratch. Executive Chef Deanna G. Clement grew up in the catering business. Her first job, at 13 years old, was working in event catering at AVS Catering & Banquet Centre, a local family-owned business where her mother was manager at the time. She explored other career paths but eventually found herself back in the kitchen.
“I have creative energy. I didn’t know where to put it or what to do with it in my life,” she says.
Loaves of freshly baked bread from The Table
She discovered an outlet for that creativity at The Table. Customers, suppliers and Gregson herself are in awe of Clement’s simple approach to food. Her knack for pairing ingredients and using minimal techniques to enhance flavors has won her many fans.
“I love her food because it’s so balanced,” Gregson says. “Sometimes we think more is better, and that is not always the case.”
Clement frequents the Asheboro Downtown Farmers’ Market across the street from The Table every day that it’s open: Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
“I just feel really passionately about experiencing as much as you can when you can, and food is a simple way to do that,” Clement says.
“I just feel really passionately about experiencing as much as you can when you can, and food is a simple way to do that,” Clement says. “I love layering flavors, as long as it all goes together and you can still taste the product. Part of it is not masking flavors, but building on them and respecting the product.”
One product Gregson and Clement are proud to present to their guests is beef from Back To Earth Farm.
Tom and Janice Henslee of Back To Earth Farms
Photo from Back To Earth Farm’s Facebook page
Tom and Janice Henslee moved from Dallas, Texas, to Farmer, North Carolina, about the same time The Table opened. The Henslees, who both held corporate careers, were looking to reestablish a connection with the land and help others do the same. They purchased property along the Uwharrie River in Randolph County and began raising Angus and Red Devon cattle. They became once-a-week customers at The Table.
“We liked the way The Table does things, from their attention to detail, to the decor, to the menu,” Tom Henslee says.
Back To Earth Farm
When The Table staff learned about the Henslees’ farm, the conversation began about how to get beef from Back To Earth Farm on the menu. This past December, when the Henslees first had product to sale, The Table purchased some. Six months later, burgers with beef from Back To Earth Farm became a favorite Friday feature.
“Chef Deanna is great to work with,” Tom Henslee says. “She really respects our product. She doesn’t feel like she has to do a lot with it. Less is more when you’re dealing with a good starting place.”
Friday night burger at the Table
Clement recently visited Back To Earth Farm to see how the Henslees raise their grass-fed beef. Stepping on their land had an impact on her.
“Both of my grandparents had respectable-size gardens,” Clement says. “But I think I had just forgotten [what it takes]. It reawakened in me all it takes to get something going successfully, especially from the ground in the farming and agriculture field.”
Farmer Tom
With each of those connections — a farmer sharing a meal with a customer around the large center table in the dining room, a chef shopping the farmers market and shaking a grower’s hand, a diner biting into a sandwich of fresh-baked bread and locally sourced eggs and cheese — The Table makes an impact.
“We’re getting back to a more community-minded way of living,” Clement says. “If we can focus on the strength of our relationships, that makes us healthier.”
Visit the Table at 139 S Church St in Asheboro or at their new location at 227 S. Elm St. in Greensboro. Or, check out their website at www.thetablefarmbakery.com/.
Learn more about Back To Earth Farm. Like them on Facebook! www.facebook.com/backtoearthfarm/
Or, watch this terrific video about their partnership by People First Tourism, a project of NCSU and the NC Cooperative Extension, with the support of The Heart of NC.