Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05
February 8, 2007 issue
High Country Valentine’s Day Events: Not Just for Couples
Compiled by Kathleen McFadden
Valentine’s Day happenings in the High Country run the gamut from special menus at area restaurants to efforts focused on assisting local nonprofits. Not just a day for couples, Valentine’s Day offers a great opportunity to get friends and family together to celebrate close ties and just have fun. Lots of area venues are having special Valentine’s Day celebrations, so take your pick, grab your sweetie or your friends and make a day of it.
Gifts
Be a Sweetheart...Help Fight Hunger with the Mast Store This WeekendOne of the most popular Valentine’s Day gift is candy, and the Mast General Store is hosting the annual Be a Sweetheart...Help Fight Hunger event. For each pound of candy purchased at the Mast Store on Saturday, February 10, and Sunday, February 11, the store will match it with a pound of food donated to a local food bank.
“The Be A Sweetheart food-raiser could not occur at a better time, as the majority of the donations we received over the holidays have already been distributed,” said Compton Fortuna, executive director of the Hunger and Health Coalition. “More food is distributed during the winter months, and this additional food will help keep the pantry stocked and meeting the needs of the area’s hungry on into the spring.”
Fred Martin, vice president of the Mast General Store commented, “Over the last three years, our Be a Sweetheart…Help Fight Hunger event has resulted in 6,000 pounds of food to the food banks serving our local communities. This year we have added another day and are looking forward to matching even more pounds of candy with food.”
Mast Store shoppers are also encouraged to bring donations of canned food and peanut butter with them on Valentine's Day.
For more information about how you can Be a Sweetheart, call the Hunger and Health Coalition at 828-262-1628 or the Mast Store at 828-963-6511.
Eats
16th Annual High Country Heart Breakfast February 14 Appalachian/Brian Estates and The Hastings Company that operates Hardee’s of Boone announce that the 16th Annual High Country Heart Breakfast will be held on Wednesday, February 14, from 7:00 to 9:30 am. The event will be held at Appalachian/Brian Estates, 163 Shadowline Drive, just off Blowing Rock Road across from The Shops at Shadowline. Plenty of parking is available, with overflow parking available next door at the old Shadowline plant, if necessary.
All the proceeds from the breakfast will stay in the High Country and benefit Watauga County Healthy Carolinians. Watauga County Healthy Carolinians is a coalition of members that partner to address health and safety issues at the community level.
The suggested contribution of $6 or more will entitle attendees to enjoy the best breakfast in town among friends at Appalachian/Brian Estates. Takeout will be available for those on the go. Purchase advance tickets at Appalachian/Brian Estates or call 828-264-1006 for ticket delivery. Show your “heart” by supporting “healthy hearts” at the High Country Heart Breakfast!
Valentine Peek-A-Boo Giveaway at The Mountain Tavern and Grille The Mountain Tavern and Grille in Banner Elk is sponsoring a Valentine Peek-A-Boo giveaway from now until February 13. Have dinner at the restaurant and receive a special Valentine’s Day Peek-A-Boo envelope containing one of six prizes. You could receive a $50 gift certificate, a $25 gift certificate, free dessert, free appetizer, $10 discount towards your next meal or a $5 discount towards your next meal. For more information and reservations, call 828-898-8887.
Valentine’s Dinner at Ciao Bello! Ciao Bello! at Meadowbrook in Blowing Rock is offering a special Valentine’s Day dinner featuring themed dinner specials and live music. Hours are 5:30 until 10:00 p.m. Call 828-295-4300 for reservations or more information.
Bandana’s Valentine’s Special Choose a delicious ribeye streak or chargrilled salmon with salad bar and your choice of side dish, beverage and dessert at Bandana’s Bar B Q and Grill on Highway 105 in Boone. The cost for this special meal is just $29.95 per couple and reservations are suggested. Call 828-265-2828.
Two for One at Mile High Sub on Valentine’s Day With the coupon in this week’s edition of High Country Press, visit Mile High Sub on Faculty Street in Boone to get two subs for the price of one on Wednesday, February 14. For info, call 828-263-8141.
Casa Rustica—Make Your Valentine’s Day Reservations Early Celebrating 25 years of excellence in the High Country, Casa Rustica on Highway 105 in Boone suggests that diners make their Valentine’s Day reservations early. The restaurant opens at 5:00 p.m. Call 828-262-5128.
Fireside Grill and Bar in Banner Elk For Valentine’s Day, the Fireside Grill and Bar, located in the Best Western in Banner Elk, is serving prime rib and lobster. Reservations are recommended. Call 828-898-7567.
Sushi for Valentine’s Day at Makoto Take your sweetie or a group of friends to Makoto Seafood and Steakhouse of Japan for a Valentine’s Day sushi experience, or to enjoy any of the other fine food served at the restaurant. For info, call 828-264-7976.
Sorrento’s Welcomes Valentine Diners Sorrento’s in downtown Banner Elk invites folks to have their Valentine’s Day dinner at the bistro. Call 828-898-5214 for reservations.
Valentine’s Dinner in 18th Century Home February 14 For Valentine’s Day, the Great Hall of Fort Defiance will be transformed into a one-of-a-kind romantic scene for a very special dinner on Wednesday, February 14. Seating is limited to 24 couples with two seatings available—one at 6:00 and one at 8:00 p.m. The cost is $125 per couple and includes dinner, wine and champagne in your very own take-home logo flute. Dinner is a choice of beef tornados or wild game hen and trimmings with 18th-century elegance. Music and entertainment will add to the ambiance of the evening. This unique Valentine's dinner will help raise needed funds for Fort Defiance’s general operating expenses and upkeep. How often will you have the opportunity to dine in such a unique and historic setting? Fort Defiance a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation, restoration and promotion of the restored 18th century house and grounds through educational programs. Fort Defiance is located south of Blowing Rock in Caldwell County, 5.5 miles from U.S. Highway 321 on N.C. Highway 268. To make reservations, call 828-758-1671. For more information about Fort Defiance, click to www.fortdefiancenc.org.
The Gamekeeper—Open for Valentine’s Day The Gamekeeper restaurent is open Valentine’s Day, February 14, and Presient’s Day, February 18, for romantic dining. Call 828-963-7400.
Pepper’s Valentine’s Special Choose from ribeye steak, shrimp or teriyaki chicken, salad bar and side, tea or coffee and a piece of carrot cake to share. The cost is $35.95 a couple. Make reservations now by calling 828-262-1250.
Blowing Rock Grille Special Dinner The Blowing Rock Grille invites patrons to check out the restaurant’s special Valentine’s Day dinner and have a true romantic experience. Call 828-295-9474.
The Bistro of Boone—A Valentine’s Day Favorite Celebrate the most romantic evening of the year at the most romantic restaurant in town. The Bistro serves French-Italian cuisine perfect for Valentine’s Day, and dinner is served Monday through Saturday 5:30 p.m. until…Call 828-265-0500 for reservations and more information.
Valentine’s Day at The Green Park Inn The Green Park Inn will serve a special dinner at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 10, and Wednesday, February 14. The elaborate menu features starters such as tempura okra with green onion mayonnaise and a mixed green salad. Guests may choose between an entrée of sliced London broil with a burgundy mushroom sauce or pan-seared chicken breast with a mushroom marsala sauce. Dinner rolls and butter will also be provided. Dessert is either apple walnut cake with a cinnamon vanilla sauce or chocolate decadence cake with a raspberry puree. The cost is $25.95 per person plus seven percent tax and 18 percent gratuity. Advance reservations are required. Music and dancing will be available starting 7:00 p.m. Private dining is available on request. To make reservations, call 828-295-3141.
Crestwood Valentine’s Party Join the Inn at Crestwood in Blowing Rock for Crestwood’s Valentine’s Party on Wednesday February 14, with live music, a special Valentine’s Day menu, a dessert buffet, theme cocktails and much more. Dinner service begins at 5:30 p.m. The special menu will continue throughout the weekend. Be sure to make reservations early by calling 828-963-6646.
Music
Valentine’s Day Concert Features Jazz Stylings of Todd Wright and Friends This Valentine’s Day will be oh so sweet thanks to the musical talents of saxophonist Todd Wright and other musicians. Wright, along with guitarist Andy Page, bass player Joe Crosswell and drummer Rick Dilling will present Ballads, Bossas and Burners! on Wednesday, February 14, at 8:00 p.m. in Broyhill Music Center’s Rosen Concert Hall at ASU. Admission is free. They will perform a program of jazz favorites selected from the following: “Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight” by James Taylor, “Falling In Love With Love” and “My Funny Valentine” by Rodgers and Hart, “Makin’ Whoopie” by Walter Donaldson and Gus Kahn, “You Must Believe in Spring” by LeGrand and Bergman, “Feel Like Make Making Love” by Eugene McDaniels and “My Cherie Amour” by Henry Crosby, Stevie Wonder and Silvia Moy.
Wright is an associate professor in Appalachian’s Mariam Cannon Hayes School of Music and directs the jazz studies program. Page is an adjunct instructor of jazz guitar and Dilling teaches jazz percussion in the music school. Croswell plays in the Todd Wright Quartet and played in popular jazz/rock groups in the ’70s and ’80s.
Mountainhome Music Present’s Valentine’s Day Concert Valentine’s Day is one of those days you either hate or love. Either way, those who choose to spend their Valentine’s evening at Heartstrings: A Mountainhome Valentine will hear something that affirms their romantic perspective.
The Heartstrings concert will feature world-class harpist Jacquelyn Bartlett and folk singers Randy and Deborah Jean Sheets, as well as a special performance of Joe Shannon’s new children’s book, Tennis Shoe Love, by the Blowing Rocket Youth Players from the Blowing Rock Stage Company.
Jacquelyn Bartlett is well known locally to classical music lovers, but she is also well known, perhaps even better known, on the international stage. She is a member of the Mallarmé Chamber Orchestra that performs regionally, nationally and internationally. Her most recent project, Concerto for Harp and Orchestra, was recorded live in Prague and directed by Trevor Kirk of the London Symphony. In addition to touring and performing, Bartlett teaches harp at ASU, at UNC-Greensboro and at the North Carolina School of the Arts.
For this special concert, Bartlett plans to perform the love themes from Dr. Zivago and Romeo and Juliet, as well as a couple of Puccini arias, “Clair de Lune” and some Celtic airs with Joe Shannon.
Randy and Deborah Jean Sheets will share an Appalachian perspective on love that is both serious and silly. Their songs describe real people and real relationships, but, as is often the case in mountain ballads, they also poke fun. The Sheets are also well known locally, through frequent guest appearances on local radio shows and performances at local and regional festivals. The have also performed at the National Folklife Festival and at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
Shannon’s newly released children’s book, Tennis Shoe Love, has been adapted for stage by the Blowing Rocket Youth Players. The book describes the trials and tribulations of a young boy when he decided to send his Valentine on the toe of his tennis shoe. He wants to keep it a secret, but, as might be expected, all of his classmates and his teacher quickly burst his romantic bubble. After a pleasant surprise, the boy is left wondering: “Is there something more to love than a note on a shoe?”
The concert is Wednesday, February 14, at 8:00 p.m. at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in downtown Boone. Tickets are $12.50 in advance and $15 at the door. Tickets for college and high school students are $10 at the door only. Purchase tickets at the Mast Stores, Rydell Music Center, Pandora’s Mailbox in Blowing Rock and Fred’s Mercantile on Beech Mountain or online at www.mountainhomemusic.com. For more info, call 828-964-3392.
Dance
Valentine Square Dance February 10 The Avery Arts Council invites the public to a Valentine Square Dance on Saturday, February 10, in the Cooper Building—the Old DAR dorm—on the campus of the Crossnore School. The dance will run from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Lawrence and Larry Wiseman of Avery County will provide the music, and the dance caller will be Senator Joe Sam Queen who represents the NC 47th District, the counties of Avery, Haywood, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, and Yancey. For more info, contact the Avery Arts Council at 828-898-4292 or averyarts@lmc.edu.
Movies
Sleepless in Seattle at the Hayes Performing Arts Center February 14 The Hayes Performing Arts Center presents this funny romantic drama perfect for Valentine’s Day. Show times are 2:00 and 9:30 p.m., and admission is $5. Tom Hanks plays the recently widowed Sam, whose son Jonah puts him on national radio to find a new love. Hundreds of women write to Sam, but Annie (Meg Ryan) feels she cannot marry her fiancé until she knows that the widower is not her soul mate. After going to great lengths to meet Sam, Annie goes home determined to marry her current fiancé. Convinced that Annie is right for his dad, Jonah secretly arranges for the adults to meet on the roof of the Empire State building. Call 828-295-9627 for tickets or more information.
Roman Holiday at the Hayes Performing Arts Center February 14 The Hayes Performing Arts Center presents this 1953 romantic comedy just in time for Valentine’s Day. Show times are 4:30 and 7:00 p.m., and admission is $5. In her Oscar-winning role, Audrey Hepburn plays Princess Anne, a bored and sheltered girl who goes on a tour of Rome. While in Rome, she rebels against her strict schedule, and an American reporter named Joe Bradley, played by Gregory Peck, finds her asleep on a park bench. Bradley takes her to his apartment, unaware of her identity. The next morning, he rushes off to cover the Princess Anne press conference. Once Bradley realizes what’s going on, he promises his editor an exclusive interview with the princess. Professional turns personal, however, when the reporter falls for the princess. Call 828-295-9627 for tickets or more information.
Theatre
Moon Over Buffalo Opens on Valentine’s Day A fun date for Valentine’s Day is the opening of the comedy Moon Over Buffalo at ASU’s Valborg Theatre. Showtime is 8:00 p.m. and tickets are $10 for adults and $6 for student. Call 828-262-3063 for more information.
The comedy is set in 1953. Aging theatre stars George and Charlotte Hay are in repertory in Buffalo, N.Y. Spirits rise as famed movie director Frank Capra telephones, asking to see their performances in Private Lives and Cyrano de Bergerac to consider them for his new movie. Miscommunications, mistaken identities and mayhem ensue, and George lands in hot water when a company member unexpectedly finds herself “expecting.” Will Charlotte leave George? Will George be sober enough to perform? Is their daughter getting married or back on stage? Is there a clandestine affair with an ingénue? Will the show go on?
This performance offers lots of laughs, lots of slapstick, lots of coming and going and lots of romance.
Vagina Monologues Opens Valentine’s Day ASU is hosting the sixth annual performance of The Vagina Monologues Wednesday, February 14, through Friday, February 16, in Plemmons Student Union’s Blue Ridge Ballroom.
The Vagina Monologues, written by Eve Ensler, is a collection of women’s testimonials about their bodies based on real people she interviewed around the world.
The show begins at 8:00 p.m. All tickets are $10 in advance and $12 at the door. Tickets are available at the Farthing Box Office or the student union information desk. All proceeds benefit OASIS, A.S.H.E. (A Safe Home for Everyone), ACDA (Avery Citizens Against Domestic Abuse) and the V-Day Spotlight (Women in Conflict Zones). For info, call 828-262-7603.
Hike
Leader’s Choice Hike with a Valentine Lunch February 14 On Wednesday, February 14, the Chargers and Rechargers Hiking Club will take a Leader’s Choice Hike. After the hike, the group will have a Valentine’s lunch at a local restaurant. For more info, contact leader Curly Perzel at 336-982-8591.
Specials
Improve Your Eyesight for Valentine’s DayBlue Ridge Vision at the Boone Mall is having a special that will help you see your sweetheart in a whole new way. For the Valentine’s Day special, buy one pair of glasses at the regular price and get a free pair of single-vision sunglasses. For info, call 828-264-2020.
Roses, Roses, Roses at The Floral BoutiqueThe Floral Boutique is offering a variety of rose specials in anticipation of Valentine’s Day. Call 828-264-4151 soon for prices and options.
Watsonatta Offers Half-Price Sale for Valentine’s Get your western groove on at Watsonatta Western World’s half-price sale for Valentine’s Day. The store is located at 711 W. King Street in downtown Boone. Call 828-264-4540.