Thistle Farms Launches A Place at the Table

The Café at Thistle Farms is known to be a welcoming spot. On any given day, tables in the cafe are filled with diners enjoying food and fellowship. One evening in early November, the Café opened its doors for a new series — A Place at the Table. This dinner brought together James Beard Foundation semifinalist for Outstanding Chef, Margot McCormack of Margot Cafe & Bar, and longtime Café employee and 2016 program graduate, Donna Dozier, to create a multicourse dining experience.

After a welcome reception, guests sat down for dinner. Margot created an incredible menu, beginning with a salad of Greener Roots Farm lettuces, shaved fennel, grapes, pecans and white balsamic vinaigrette. After the salad, guests enjoyed apple-cider-braised pork, greens and roasted autumn vegetables. Donna finished the meal with a delectable apple pie with crème anglaise. The Common Ground beverage team provided delicious mocktails to pair with each course. As a special surprise for sponsors, graduates of the Thistle Farms program hosted every table, captivating their tablemates with stories of survival and finding the support they needed through Thistle Farms.

After dinner, Margot spoke to the room about what it was like meeting and mentoring Donna. Then Donna took the floor to share how the Thistles Farms program helped her. “This program, what it does is it teaches you that you have self-worth,” she said. “When we come through the doors to begin the program, we are full of imaginary daggers — the daggers of self-loathing, hate and hurt. And as we move through the program, those daggers fall out onto the floor.” Donna likened the Thistle Farms program to a pot of soothing honey. “That salve, that honey, it heals us — it makes us stronger and heals those wounds,” she said. “That is how I look at my recovery. It opened the door for me to do the things that I like to do — food, music, talking …” All felt the power of Donna’s words and left the dinner eagerly anticipating the next event in the series.