Twenty seven years after first reading it in a textbook, I can still easily recall a phrase a Harvard professor used to describe Thomas Jefferson. It was a phrase which I borrowed each time I would teach about our 3rd President and author of the Declararion of Independence. He referred to Mr. Jefferson as “consistently inconsistent.”
With Jefferson espousing his noble ideas of all men being created equal and everyone possessing certain unalienable rights while at the same time owning dozens of slaves, the phrase seemed to fit. It also perfectly described Jefferson’s leadership of the Anti-Federalist party, his strict interpretation of the Constitution, and his strong support of states rights up until he was elected President when those views were conveniently put aside time and time again. Like, for instance, when he arranged for the doubling of the size of the United States through the Louisiana Purchase: an act of unprecedented federal power and overstepping clearly not granted to him in the Constitution.
When I think of Jefferson’s flip flopping, Dana Carvey’s Church Lady comes to mind…”Well, now…Isn’t that conveeeeenient?”
With all that being said about Mr. Jefferson, the opposite can be said of the destination we are recommending this week: Michie Tavern. The food, the atmosphere, the transporting of your mind, soul, and belly back to 1794 is consistently…good. Whether you go in the cold of winter after Christmas or during the blazing months of summer, you will have a dining experience that will linger for some time to come and when you return, which you will inevitably do, it will be just as good as you remembered.
The fare at Michie Tavern is simple really: chicken, black eyed peas, sweet tea, mashed potatoes, biscuits, cole slaw, and green beans. But the recipes are from Jefferson’s era and well, they are delicious.
While I was eating and savoring every bite, I imagined Jefferson an ocean away in Paris for those years during and after the Revolutinary War being wined and dined and besmitten by France’s delectable cuisine, yet longing for the simplicity of home cooked meals from Virginia.
Sitting there in these modern times eating and enjoying every single bite, knowing that it’s very likely many of these recipes came in part or in whole from African-Americans living in Charlottesville at the time, I had to do some research. As often happens with historical research, you start with one question like, where did these recipes come from? And you end up with many more questions and learning about unexpected and fascinating connections.
There is an incredible story many do not know about James Hemings (yes, one of Sally’s brothers) who was a cook, a slave, and eventually a free man from Monticello. Jefferson arranged for James to come to France in order to learn more about French cuisine and to serve Jefferson as chef at his home on the Champs-Elysees. Jefferson also arranged later, in 1784, for Sally to come to France as well. Her arrival there as a teenager and her subsequent negotiations with Jefferson for the future freedom of their children is mind blowing history which we will dive into in a future essay about Monticello. Meanwhile, back to her brother’s lesser known story.
James Hemings’ life journey is fascinating. For starters, he and his sister Sally, were actually free while in France. They could’ve remained free and stayed and lived out their lives in Paris but instead negotiated with Jefferson to return to Virginia with certain freedoms and privileges so that they could be reunited with their family. When James returned to the United States, he would introduce America to macaroni and cheese, whipped cream, and many other dishes we still savor today.
However, James’ return was not a pleasant and triumphant one. Even though he became a free man and moved to Philadelphia, he took his own life just a few years later. Learning about James and his culinary gifts left me with more questions than answers for sure.
Imagining the impossible choices and often difficult lives of people from another era is one of the many layers of dining at Michie Tavern: a place with so much history within just a few short miles. Compared to so many who lived before us, our current ailments can suddenly seem quite trivial. Knowing what they’ve been through gives us more reason to say a quick blessing over “the food we are about to eat.” A wonderful meal that comes at no real cost to us except for maybe the exorbitant amount of money being emptied from our wallets to pay for it…Michie Tavern ain’t cheap!
The next time you are near Charlottesville, Virginia make sure you drive up the hill and make a lunch reservation at Michie Tavern. They’re open from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. While you’re there, enjoy an incredible meal and see what questions you can ask about the past and Mr. Jefferson’s complicated legacy. I promise you, when you start to search for the answers, you will not be disappointed with the stories you will find.
I can’t wait to take the kids to visit and eat here!! When my sister got married we all stayed the weekend at the Clifton Inn and that was owned by Martha…Thomas Jefferson’s daughter. Actually I’m not sure she owned the house ..but she did own the 300+ acres that the house was built on.(I have to do my research)Needless to say THAT food was absolutely not delicious lol. We were concerned if the cake was actual cake as opposed to the grainy unsweetened corn bread shenanigan it tasted like.This was many years ago and we still talk about how awful the food was …it became like aninside joke. The rooms there were absolutely amazing each one was different in the coziest setting ever.My Mom loved Thomas Jefferson and we all got to hear stories she had learned during her 35 years as a teacher:) I loved reading this because it brought back so many memories. Thank you for always sharing the best stories ever!❤️❤️❤️