New chefs mean new menus for The Nose Dive

Table 301's gastropub, The Nose Dive, recently rolled out new lunch and dinner menus under new Executive Chef Spencer Thomson (formerly head chef at Devereaux's) and I couldn't wait to get in the door to try the change of fare.  As you'll recall, The Nose Dive, is not on my top lists of restaurants in Greenville.  Not because the food is bad, or the service is horrible.  The food just never popped for me.  I was excited to give it another try and invited my business partner for the Greenville Small Plate Crawl and fellow food blogger (Carolina Epicurean) along for the adventure. 

Laura and I looked like we were visiting journalists with our cameras, phones and notebooks sitting all over the table.  I guess we technically were, now that I think about it... We were stoked to get a seat by the window which provided excellent lighting to photog the heck out of some food.  And I got to take my new camera for a roll!

Our first course, and favorite of the day was a lineup of three deviled eggs they call Devil Makes 3: a trio of southern ham salad, pimento cheese and traditional deviled egg. The ham salad was absolutely delicious!  I have to admit I was a little happy to see the Scotch egg replaced with something so incredibly flavorful!

One of the awesome things about Nose Dive is that they have a nice selection of wines on tap.  I sipped on a fresh and light  Elki Savignon Blanc.

We tried two of the salads on the new menu.  We enjoyed the Chef Salad (Black Oak Ham, cucumber, red onion, white cheddar, riced egg, and green goddess dressing) but nothing stood out about the dish. But the fried tomato rings were a nice surprise on the Southerner, and when scooped up in a bite of greens, goat cheese, spiced pecans and apple cider vinaigrette, you get an amazing assembly of flavor.

Next up was a creamy No Carb Carbonara made with squash, portobello mushrooms and a nice fried egg on top.  I have recently learned to appreciate two things when it comes to food: egg yolks and goat cheese.  They add something amazing to the flavor package.  By themselves?  No thank you, but when added to a dish, it's a total flavor enhancer.  It adds a savory richness that is just blissful.

I was super excited to try the Tator Tots.  I heard they were going to be a part of the menu and seriously couldn't wait to see what they were doing with them.  They came out and were absolutely beautiful!  Three housemade tots, bathed in duck jou and topped with aged cheddar.

We dug in happily, but after the second bite put our forks down.  No bam!  It was savory, for sure, but needed something.  Salt?  The flavors were just there.  No bliss.

This was the second time I've had this pot roast.  My first taste was on Greenville Culinary Tour's At the Chef's Table tour where we met Chef Craig Kuhns, who was Sou Chef at Devereaux's and followed Chef Spencer to The Nose Dive.  Chef Kuhns is responsible for creating most of the new lunch menu at The Nose Dive.   As a small bite on the tour, the pot roast was fantastic, creamy grits, savory pulled beef, delicious, with a touch of sweetness from the roasted winter carrots.  As a large serving, it was still nice and hearty, but undersalted and lacked the pow of the small bite I'd eaten before.

I still think about this sandwich all the time.  It befuddled me. I couldn't decided at the time if I liked it or not, but for days I've been craving it again, so I guess I did!  It's not often a chef can challenge your palate with a sandwich, but Chef Craig sure did with this one.  Mustard and black pepper-roasted pork with braised collard greens, and goat cheese on a hoagie roll.  And the brussels sprouts are just heaven.  A little vinegary with chunks of tasty ham.   We also tried the Mason-Dixon, a hoagie bun topped with New England Lobster Salad, fried scallops with lettuce, tomato and dill vinaigrette.  It's a twist on their once popular lobster roll. The brussels stole the show on this plate.

Dessert.  Isn't this plate lovely?  And when it landed in front of me, I couldn't contain myself.  The Lemon Goat Cheese Cheesecake is back.  I walked two blocks in shoes that were eating my feet once to get a piece of this cheesecake and it wasn't on their menu anymore.  Praise, praise, praise, it's back and so absolutely marvelous. As good as I remembered.  And why don't restaurants make desserts like this all the time? Just tiny bites of sweetness after a meal that's left you stuffed.  Perfect. 

I'm anxious to get back for a taste of their dinner menu.