The Dish - Catch No. 2 showcases farm-to-chef program

The Port City's big food story this week is the planned opening – finally – of chef Keith Rhodes' second Catch seafood restaurant.

But when I stopped by the new Market Street store days before its debut, Rhodes, you might say, had bigger fish to fry.

Although he and fans had been waiting longer than a year for Catch No. 2 (6623 Market St.), Rhodes wasn't fretting over the latest inspection holdups. Instead, he was on the phone with chefs and farmers seeking common ground in their efforts to put more local foods on restaurant tables.

Before paying customers stepped inside, Catch on Market hosted Southeastern North Carolina Food Systems Council's first Feast on the Southeast. The council is a nonprofit endeavor to increase the amount of local foods we eat and, in turn, support operators of small farms and strengthen the region's economy.

Feast on the Southeast united chefs and farmers in a way that allowed everyone to showcase their wares. Top toques including Rhodes, Kyle McKnight of Circa 1922 and Marc Copenhaver of Marc's on Market prepared dishes using locally grown foods donated by farmers. Chefs who didn't cook got to see creative ways to use the area's bounty and meet with farmers and other local food purveyors.

Dishes served were far from sweet potatoes, collard greens and ham hocks so long associated with Southeastern N.C. food culture.

Collards appeared but as pickled greens with cardamom courtesy of Anglea's Pepper Pickled Foods in Wilmington. Siena chef Steve Hotz served local pork in Italian-style cured meats like salami and capocollo. There was rabbit ragu, roasted goat, and the most perfect little Shelton Herb Farm microgreens atop itty bitty, boiled quail eggs.

Twelve area restaurants are listed in the council's Farm to Chef Guide, available at SNCFSC's Web site (feastsoutheastnc.org). As more join, the challenge will be ensuring that growers provide enough foodstuffs to go around. Therefore, chefs and farmers are discussing development of a cooperative.

Meantime, Rhodes remains committed as ever to local foods at downtown's Catch (215 Princess St.), which has become a quick-service, lunchtime spot, and Catch on Market, where Rhodes presents Catch favorites like miso salmon but emphasizes creative seafood dishes, small plates and local wines and beers, some organic, some made using sustainable practices (see menu details at the StarNews blog Port City Foodies).

Plans also include a sushi bar – local seafood, of course – and, behind the restaurant, a garden and whole-hog barbecues.

Catch on Market is not Rhodes' last stop. He's working on a downtown Asian concept and envisions a vegetarian shop, local produce no doubt.

E-mail food tips to liz.biro@starnewsonline.com. Follow Liz on Twitter.com at @lizbiro or read updates at http://Foodies.StarNewsOnline.com.