Foothills Milling is located at 315 South Washington St. It’ s an unassuming brick building with a menu outside the door and an elegant, old-timey interior. Belt-driven fans spin over white cloth-draped tables and carpet. The walls carry a variety of decor covered in golden light.
Originally based in Wears Valley, previous owners moved the restaurant to Maryville in 2006, setting a trend of fine dining and gourmet eats. Almost everything on the menu( which includes seafood, meats and Southern favorites) is made inhouse, Miles said.
“ There’ s one or two things that we get out of a can, but everything else is all homemade,” he said. That means one dish might require many“ sub-recipes” before putting the final product together – part of the restaurant’ s dedication to excellence that Miles said can cause problems on occasion.
“ We had one dish on the menu, and there were six different recipes we had to follow to get that one dish out,” he said.“ It was just too much, too time-consuming. We had to take that off.”
Adapting on the fly
Miles comes from Michigan and he’ s been in the hospitality business for years. Building a cohesive hospitality experience, he said, is often about adapting to the situation. As the weather changes, for example, some greens might become harder to obtain.
The last five years in particular, he said, have been a challenge for everyone in the hospitality business.
“ It’ s the cost of goods and to keep the plate cost within
PHOTOS COURTESY OF MATHAUS SCHWARZEN The Walnut Kitchen on Home Avenue keeps a small garden of herbs and flowers to furnish garnishes for drinks.
reason – not for us, but also for the customer,” he said.“ So they get the value that we present, and we’ re able to make the profit margin we need.”
At the end of the day, Miles said, Foothills Milling is about the connection it builds with its guests. People come for the hospitality, and the team sees itself as part of a community institution.
As the season turns, the work will go on at Foothills Milling— and just down the street at The Walnut Kitchen— with chefs simmering spices, plating dishes, and serving some of the finest meals Maryville has to offer. Next time you smell something cooking on Washington Street, maybe stop in for a bite.
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