Backwoods Crossing promotes farm-to-table cuisine.
Photo submitted by Rikki Bell
Backwoods Crossing is a modern restaurant crafting new American dishes from local ingredients. Tyler and Jesse Rice own it.
The brothers opened Backwoods Crossing in 2016 at 6724 Mahan Drive, just went of the I-10 exit. The brothers wanted to grow their own produce for their creative dishes.
Jesse Rice started a local pizza shop and then Backwoods Bistro was born. The Rice brothers opened up Backwoods Bistro in 2012. This restaurant is located on East Tennessee Street at Gadsden Street.
They formed a power team to expand the Backwoods brand to include farm to table dishes at Backwoods Crossing. The chefs at the restaurant are using locally caught soft shell crab, duck, sausage and blueberries. The garden creations menu changes every week as local producers supply their seasonal food.
The restaurant has a full-fledged 3.5-acre farm supplying an abundance of fresh farm vegetables and fruits. Backwoods Crossing includes a chicken coop built on the backside of the property.
The coop holds 73 hens that produce 18,000 eggs a year. This restaurant also sources local fruits, vegetables, and meats from area producers. The Rice brothers want Backwoods Crossing to become a self-sufficient restaurant.
At Backwoods Crossing I ate the truffle bruschetta, which consisted of seasonal mushrooms, wilted spinach, baby arugula, crossing ricotta and truffle vinaigrette on house bread. This meal was delicious and everything tasted so fresh.
Next time, I plan to try a meal called the Crab Trap. It contains garden kale, arugula with roasted red peppers, fire roasted corn, shiitakes, onion silver and aged Parmesan topped with a crab cake. This sounds delicious if you love vegetables and seafood.
The atmosphere was upscale but calm at the same time. Backwoods Crossing gives guests the option to eat indoors, on the patio or outside. The customer service is great and the employees were friendly. Backwoods Crossing has live music every Thursday from 7-9 p.m. for customers to enjoy.
Customers are allowed to have events at the restaurant such as parties, wedding dinners or meetings. Overall, this is a great place to go on a date, bring family or just hang out with friends.