Relish Cafe & Bar

Neighborhood cafe and bar specializing in comfort foods with a "new southern" twist.

Relish is a restaurant and bar, a gourmet retail market, and a recreational culinary school that celebrates a love of food, drink, cooking, and entertaining in an upscale atmosphere without the upscale price tag. We get inspiration from both the traditional “tried and true” recipes and also from the latest food trends to encourage full exploration of the culinary world.

The Relish café side focuses on comfort foods--anything that is homey, rich, and hearty and conjures up images of nostalgic indulgences shared with family and friends. Our food isof the “new southern" style—southern classics that have been modernized and made with more current ingredients while still retaining the heart and comfort of the original dishes. Everything is made from the best ingredients available with the shortest distance from farm to market and served as overflowing portions—all while keeping the prices comfortable, too. We feature gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches and made to order macaroni and cheese skillets—the ultimate in old fashioned comfort foods that have been dressed up with contemporary flavor combinations.

Our bar also features traditional drinks that are old and comfortable right alongside those that are new and trendy. We offer an ever-expanding selection of specialty, craft-brewed, and imported beers; full bottles, full glasses, and also tasting “flight” combinations of wines hand-picked for their food friendliness; and culinary cocktails that go beyond the traditional drink in more complex and adventurous culinary directions.

The front of the restaurant houses our gourmet retail market area carrying many of the local food products that we feature in our restaurant along with wine, beer, kitchenware, dinnerware, spices, and other gourmet ingredients picked to correspond to and complement our restaurant menu. We seek out the new trends in the culinary world and provide an adventurous pantry to explore.

The final component of Relish (coming later in the year) will be a recreational culinary school. We will begin by offering wine and beer tastings and food pairing seminars and then will eventually include both hands-on and demonstration style cooking classes for kids and adults. The students will end the class by eating the food that has been prepared. These classes will be taught by our professional chefs and certified sommeliers and will cover a wide variety of topics with some classes available for open enrollment and other slots set aside for private and corporate group events.

The Relish concept is one born of the current times. The old standby sports bar/neighborhood bar & grill concepts have been overdone and are tired. At the same time that wallets are tightening up, tastes are growing up. Consumers are fascinated by the gastro-education provided by celebrity chefs and the popular Food Network and cooking shows. Preferences are trending away from the fried and greasy and towards the local farm to market offerings prepared in styles that coax more flavor out of more healthy choices. Through the marriage of a café and gourmet retail market and the innovative addition of a recreational culinary school, we will provide a one-stop, budget-friendly, epicurean experience which we believe will appeal to all ages and types of people.

Relish rel•ish (reh-lish)
1. a condiment eaten with plain food to add flavor
2. an appetizer or hors d’oeuvre
3. to eat or drink with pleasure