Though it looks like a tiny, one-room café from the façade, the Blue Talon’s completely remodeled (by Everett’s wife, designer Kathryn Tawes) interior is as open and airy as a Van Gogh wheat field under a pale blue Provençal sky. The main dining room features high, pressed-tin ceilings, a long zinc bar, whimsical, poultry-themed art and windows offering a glimpse of the kitchen’s capped chefs and shiny copper pots. Lisa and I were escorted back to one of two light-filled dining rooms in the back. Just about every table was taken by a delightfully diverse group of diners—college students, families with young children, couples of all ages and a few out-of-towners like us. We ordered a bottle of pinot noir and two perfectly contrasted starters: a classic charcuterie board (shaved cured ham, sliced sausages, a quickly emptied terrine of paté, cornichons and little pots of mustard and chutney) and a vivid salad of shaved fennel and green apples with hints of ricotta salata and mustard dressing.
Eager to indulge in a classic, I ordered the plat du jour: an enormous, incredibly tender filet mignon steak drizzled with smooth, tangy Béarnaise sauce. The bistro’s other daily specials not only provided a sense of the kitchen’s range, but also made me want to extend my stay a day or two longer: coq au vin with mushrooms and strips of thick bacon; a cassoulet of braised white beans, duck confit, pork and Toulouse sausage; curried goat stew; and the slightly more Southern shrimp and polenta.
Like any good friend would do, I helped Lisa polish off her apricot-glazed lamb shank, and then we ordered cups of strong and steaming Illy coffee and a beautiful chocolate and orange curd tart for dessert. What better way to walk off two days of contemporary indulgences than with a long, lantern-lit walk through the Colonial streets of this timelessly tranquil Virginia village.
(Originally published in the August 2008 Issue)
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