Sharons’ Half Day Cafe (SHDC), a new breakfast and lunch eatery in Townsend, Tennessee, is a partnership between Oldham Hospitality (Dancing Bear Appalachian Bistro, Peaceful Side Social and more) and Benton’s Smoky Mountain Country Hams & Bacon. Both are rooted in Appalachian food traditions and committed to quality and consistency.
Many in East Tennessee know Benton’s Smoky Mountain Country Hams & Bacon or are even die-hard fans. Chefs across the country and beyond feature their products. Rooted in a time-honored Appalachian tradition, the country hams are dry-cured with salt and brown sugar, aged from several months to more than two years, and smoked with hickory in a wood-stove smokehouse. The process gives Benton’s ham and bacon their distinctive character. There is no taste quite like it, and Benton’s products are a source of regional pride. Oldham Hospitality has equally earned a solid reputation for presenting quality Appalachian-infused foods and consistent quality from its Townsend-based restaurants, with culinary operations led by Executive Chef Jeff Carter.
Amy Campbell visited with Oldham Hospitality Executive Chef Jeff Carter to learn more about the new concept.
Q: Chef Carter, you are known for presenting Appalachian-themed foods in traditional and innovative ways. Can you let us know more about your background?
Carter: I began my career in East Tennessee, working at Blackberry under John Fleer, where I learned the foundations of Appalachian and Foothills cuisine. Later, I worked at the original Dancing Bear with Matt Alexander, further developing my approach to Appalachian cooking and its connections to Southern culinary traditions. I also served as corporate chef for Aubrey’s, overseeing catering events and special dinners, and I had the opportunity to return to Dancing Bear Appalachian Bistro with Mark, Sharon and Houston Oldham, who have a passion for this property and this area. So this is a blessing for me to be able to come back here and cook.
Q: Can you describe this partnership and how SHDC brings the two together?
Carter: In this partnership, we have endeavored to open a high-quality, fast-casual breakfast and lunch experience for tourists and locals that allows people to enjoy exceptional food at an approachable price point. This is the first time for both of us in a partnership. It is modeled after two Sharons, Sharon Oldham and Sharon Benton. I have so much respect for what they do, and what they bring to the table for this restaurant and the purpose behind this restaurant. There’s a lot of intent in everything that we do, from the interior to the intent to make a biscuit that Sharon Benton is proud of and can say, “Yes, I inspired that.”
The biscuits are inspired by Sharon Benton’s biscuits. And the inspiration from Sharon Oldham is fresh garden offerings. She’s a prodigious gardener, so we try to use things that she grows from her garden on the property. She also designed the interior of the restaurant. So with inspiration from those two matriarchs of both families, we’ve created, I think, an exceptional experience for our guests.
Q: What are some of the dishes guests can find that incorporate Benton’s products?
Carter: We use their 12- to 14-month ham for shaved ham, and the 8- to 10-month-aged ham for the griddled ham, the bacon and all three of their sausages—hot, mild and smoked. We also have a country ham panini with shaved country ham. The Smash Biscuit is our take on a smash burger, made with Benton’s sausage pressed on the flat-top and layered with two pieces of cheese and tomato jam. Guests can add an egg or griddled country ham.
Other offerings include buttermilk waffles and Yukon Gold potato hash roasted in Benton’s bacon fat with caramelized onions and peppers, crumbled Benton’s hot sausage, topped with a fried egg and served with red-eye gravy. Our fried chicken biscuit is tossed in hot sauce butter and served on a “Sharon” biscuit with house-made pickles, and we offer Benton’s smoked sausage gravy for biscuits and gravy. We also have a build-your-own breakfast option where you basically pick your biscuit or focaccia and add your choice of gravy, Benton’s proteins, egg, cheese or other add-ons.
For lunch, we make our own sourdough focaccia, used in our popular BLT—with avocado, Benton’s bacon, Bibb lettuce, tomato and Duke’s mayonnaise—and also in our turkey and country ham panini.
We want to highlight that we’re not just a breakfast biscuit joint. You can come in at 11 a.m. or noon and get lunch as well. We offer a couple of salads: our take on a garden Cobb salad with Benton’s bacon and the burrata salad features whole-milk burrata, fresh greens and shaved Benton’s country ham, served with grilled sourdough focaccia.
One thing that we tried to do with this restaurant is make everything in-house to try to set us apart from any other kind of breakfast place. We make our own chowchow, pickled red onions and all our jams and breads. So, yes, we’re not buying jams and apple butters and things like that. We are making all of that in-house. We also make all of our own biscuits and sourdough focaccia.
Q: What are some of the guiding policies that you go by with this partnership?
Carter: Breakfast is a less expensive meal, so we’re still trying to provide that quality and that elevated culinary experience, but at a value and a lower price point where people can enjoy those quality ingredients but not have to go out and spend $200 at a restaurant for dinner.
I remember one thing that Allan Benton said a year ago: “If we’re going to do this, it’s got to be top-notch.” I think that was what his word was, “top-notch,” and it resonated with me that, just like Benton’s, if they’re going to do something, they’re going to do it right, and they’re going to do it where they are proud of it.
Campbell asked Darrell Benton to describe what he hopes people will take away after a visit to SHDC.
“We hope people leave Sharons’ feeling like they’ve been genuinely welcomed and well cared for, just like they would at our home. Great food is certainly part of that, but more than anything, we want it to be a warm, comfortable place where people can enjoy a meal together and make memories,” Benton says.
For hours and more information, visit SharonsHalfDay.com.
Join Amy Campbell for this and other stories about Appalachian Foodways and Farming on “The Tennessee Farm Table Radio Broadcast and Podcast.” TennesseeFarmTable.com