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The pork chops at The Herringbone On The Waterfront in Edenton tell a story. On the menu, Executive Chef Kyle Murphy lists his creation modestly, “Grilled Duroc Pork Chop,” but

Rosemary and Goat Cheese Strata

The pork chops at The Herringbone On The Waterfront in Edenton tell a story. On the menu, Executive Chef Kyle Murphy lists his creation modestly, “Grilled Duroc Pork Chop,” but

Historic Hospitality at The Herringbone On The Waterfront

Grilled pork chop, succotash in the background at The Herringbone on the Waterfront

The pork chops at The Herringbone On The Waterfront in Edenton tell a story. On the menu, Executive Chef Kyle Murphy lists his creation modestly, “Grilled Duroc Pork Chop,” but the entrée is more than just a meal. The dish can be appreciated for its appearance and flavor — served with farro, charred cabbage, fingerling sweet potato, and smoked tomato jam, it is beautiful and delicious. But what is not as obvious is how those ingredients reflect the agrarian heritage of Chowan County and eastern North Carolina.

“We try to tell the tale of the area,” says Murphy, who came to The Herringbone from the acclaimed Peninsula Grill in Charleston along with executive pastry chef Rebecca Pensyl, formerly the lead pastry cook at the Belmond Charleston Place Hotel fine-dining restaurant. The pair also happen to be married.

Herring basket lights hanging in Herringbone on the Waterfront

Herring baskets hanging overhead in the foyer welcome guests. photograph by Stacey Van Berkel

The narrative behind his pork chops is a familiar one for Edenton natives who grew up eating their grandma’s peas and greens every Sunday. For visitors coming into town on U.S. Highway 17, it may take a minute to make the connection between the acres and acres of farm fields they’ve passed and the local flavors on their plates.

And, of course, those flavors change by season and extend beyond terra firma. Murphy seizes every opportunity to create dishes around what local farmers and fishers have harvested at any given time of the year.

“Everything is finite,” he says. “You have to make the best of what you have while you have it.”

• • •

The owners of The Herringbone, Joe and Stephanie Wach, abide by that carpe diem philosophy as well. The couple from Colorado settled in Edenton after visiting the town on a whim and falling in love with the place. In fact, they first set foot here on a Saturday morning and placed a bid on a house the following Monday.

“Moving here was just so crazy for us, but in a good way,” Stephanie says. “We were meant to be here.”

Likewise, how they came to own The Herringbone was part serendipity and part leap of faith. Neither had restaurant experience, but when Dawson Tyler, founder of Down East Preservation, a local company that renovates historic properties, approached them about converting the former icehouse on the waterfront to a restaurant, they jumped at the opportunity.

Joe and Stephanie Wach

Joe & Stephanie Wach photograph by Stacey Van Berkel

There were just a few not-so-minor challenges to overcome: 19 dumpsters of trash to remove, false ceilings that were added when the building housed oil company offices and the town’s police station, and a pesky building code requiring insulation in the ceilings, which would’ve meant covering the dramatic scissor-trusses above the bar. Fortunately, Mother Nature stepped in to help them out.

Two days after the couple closed on the building in April of 2021, Joe says, “there was a massive hailstorm.” Damage from the storm necessitated a new roof. Down East removed the old roof, built a substructure, installed insulation, and finally replaced it.

Guests in the dining room at The Herringbone on the Waterfront

In the dining room, more vestiges of the building’s past life ­— hooks in the ceiling, scarred brick, pieces of cork insulation — tell a story of their own. photograph by Stacey Van Berkel

Word got out that the old icehouse was being reborn, and that the next chapter in the building’s life would be a celebration of the region’s fishing and agrarian heritage. Folks began to bring family heirlooms that had been tools of the trade for fishermen and farmers, mill workers and craftsmen. Stephanie and Briley Rascoe, Down East’s chief marketing officer and design center manager, took these local treasures and incorporated them into the restaurant’s decor.

“These things that people had been holding on to had a story that meant something to them,” Stephanie says. “We wanted everyone to see them, for them to become a part of this special place.”

On the plate, from the ceiling, and around every corner, The Herringbone celebrates the industries and the people who made this part of eastern North Carolina what it is today.

The Herringbone on the Waterfront
119 West Water Street
Edenton, NC 27932
(252) 368-1068
the-herringbone.com

This story was published on May 27, 2024

Todd Dulaney

Todd Dulaney is the executive editor at Our State.