First of all, those pictures of food do not represent what I ate today for lunch. I forgot to bring a camera, so I ripped off these pictures from Our Community Place's website. Hopefully they don't mind too much. What I ate today was much more colorful and summery, but no less creatively arranged on the plates.
You may have noticed it has been seven or eight months since my last restaurant review. The reason for this lapse in reviews is the simple fact that in those months, I have found no other restaurant in this town worth reviewing.
Until now!
If you are unfamiliar with Our Community Place, aka OCP, it's time someone introduced you. OCP is a welcoming spot in Harrisonburg, VA. They provide meals, have cool programming (Tai Chi, Poetry writing, energy healing, drum circles, karaoke nights, etc), grow food, and are generally a safe space for anyone to be. That's OCP in a fair-traded nutshell.
Now, let's talk about the Friday Lunch Restaurant experience! Every Friday, the people of OCP hang up a sultry black curtain, call up some easy-listening music, set the tables, and get busy in the kitchen. The atmosphere retains its usual comfort, but with an air of sophistication and imagination that takes the diner wherever he wishes to be on a Friday afternoon.
It is the food that inspired me to break my silence. The menu changes from week to week, following seasonal ingredients around like a groupie with ADD. This is from today:
As you can see, there are three courses, and three choices for each course. Vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options are always available, which is not easy to find in this unhealthy town. I'm talking to you, Krispy Kreme and Olive Garden; Go &*@% yourselves.
Anyway, this is the only restaurant in Harrisonburg where you can tell that they both use fresh ingredients and prepare the food with Love.
The waitstaff are OCP staff and volunteers, so there are smiles to go around and interesting conversation as they take your order or your empty plates. I ordered the bruschetta, my favorite appetizer, and was surprised to see it show up with little slices of black olives. No me gusta los black olives. But they added saltiness to a multi-layered taste sensation and I was impressed.
The feta and roasted sweet potatoes gave the large summer salad substance and depth. And the smoothie was the perfect consistency, pouring easily out of the glass into my mouth; a lovely dessert for a hot summer day. Looking over at the plates of other patrons, I saw the turkey sandwich with sauteed kale and the loaded baked potato; both looked like they would fill up any hungry person. All of the dishes were packed with local color and texture. This is what I wanted for lunch. And at the same time, it's what I needed for lunch. Where else could you say that?
The place is open every Friday from 11:30-1:30. The music is smooth. The conversation both light and deep. The clientele diverse and open-minded. Did I mention it's only $8 flat, no tip allowed? I know. What a deal. And a great place to take your liberal yuppie friends. Or your old-school conservative friends. Or your friends whose politics you don't know about. Or your hungry friends. Or your girlfriend. Or your friend with benefits. Or your best friend. Or someone you literally just met. Everybody is welcome at OCP. That's really the crux of its charm.
Go see for yourself! Amanda out!
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