Magnolia Blue is the newest hotspot HPU students should check out
By Nicole Prince// Staff Writer
Situated on the corner of West Dayton Avenue and North Main Street is one of High Point’s newest restaurants. Magnolia Blue is an attractive multi-level restaurant, equipped with a bar and patio on each floor. They specialize in gourmet Southern and Cajun fusion cuisine.
My date and I made a reservation the morning before our early evening dinner. When we called in the reservation, we had the choice of sitting at the bar or in the dining room. We requested the dining room in hopes of less noise and more privacy.
Walking from the nighttime chill into a large, airy split-level foyer gave a modern feel to the venue’s welcome. The friendly hostess led us to our table that was disappointingly wedged between a party of two and a party of four. Our tables were close enough for me to pick from my neighbor’s plate. We inquired about a private booth after noticing many were empty, and the hostess informed us that the booths were already reserved. We were left with the table.
Despite the rough start, the food made up for the very close seating arrangements. According to their menu, Magnolia Blue creates a blend of southern comfort food with hints and inspirations from Baltimore, Charleston, and New Orleans.
We ordered fried green tomatoes, pulled pork spring rolls and macaroni and cheese for appetizers. The thinly sliced green tomatoes had the perfect thin coating of panko crust, allowing for the most satisfying crunch. They were served with bitter arugula and shredded spring onions whose bite complimented the mild shrimp remoulade. The pulled pork spring rolls had a well-balanced meat-to-vegetable ratio. They were flash-fried just enough not to withhold grease or fall apart while keeping just the right amount of crunch with every bite. The spring rolls were served with a honey sriracha Dijon sauce which sounds sharp and spicy but was surprisingly mild and creamy. The macaroni and cheese appetizer was made from fusilli pasta and smoked gouda and cheddar cheeses. Small pieces of tasso infused the cheeses with a pleasant smoky flavor. The dish was very creamy and almost too herbaceous. Do not let the small portion on your placemat fool you; the flavors make for a robust debut.
My date ordered chicken and dumplings, and I ordered pot roast and braised greens. When asked what entrées they recommended, other diners said, “pot roast,” many times. The pot roast became our favorite too. The braised beef short ribs and potatoes were fork-tender, the green beans were bright and crisp, and the sticky sauce paired well with the chopped carrots, mushrooms, and corn. The braised greens, collard greens, were not considered part of the entrée but a side dish instead. Their taste, however, made me think of Carolina BBQ festivals and my grandmother’s comfort food supper table. The greens packed an initial sour punch with a pleasantly mild aftertaste. My date and I agreed the simplicity of the pot roast meal won over the complexity of the chicken and dumplings. The shredded chicken seemed to be cooked rotisserie-style, and the dish had bite-size chunks of sweet, tender butternut squash. Gnocchi was used for dumplings and was not doughy nor dry. There was a large quantity of sliced andouille sausages that seemed to overtake the chicken, but the entrée’s sauce was warm and satisfying, coating everything evenly instead of pooling in the bottom of the bowl.
The Magnolia Blue dining room was ambient with low lighting, a grayscale color palette and bluesy jazz music. The service was attentive, polite, thoughtful and friendly, and our glasses were never below half-full. Before leaving, I asked if we could visit their newly built rooftop patio bar.
“We tend to be closed upstairs on Sundays because of low foot traffic, but we can accommodate with our downstairs bar,” said our waiter. “We offer full-service no matter what floor you’re on during the week and on Saturdays.”
I will be revisiting Magnolia Blue with full intentions of ordering fried green tomatoes, pot roast and other praised dishes from their dinner menu such as the bayou shrimp and crab pasta and the shrimp and grits. My advice, however, is to specifically reserve a booth in the dining room if you want more space or privacy. Although I cannot vouch for the bar’s atmosphere, I can attest to happy faces and words of praise while strolling through it. For anyone wanting to host a large group, the restaurant’s website says they have a separate second-floor patio available for private bookings. For HPU students that have difficulties with last-minute reservations at Prime or are wanting a tasteful change of pace, I highly recommend Magnolia Blue.
Magnolia Blue is a new southern themed restuarant on North Main Street in High Point. Photo by Nicole Prince