Welcoming guest chefs into our kitchen offers a moment of exchange.
An opportunity to learn from new perspectives while sharing the ethos that guides our work at Herons.
Through collaboration, connections form and expands the way we think about the craft, together.
Scenes captured by @annarouth from our recent @thesaltymag_ collaboration dinner with chefs @jennertomaska and @paologriffa
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#heronsnc #theumstead #collaborationdinner #restaurants #chefs
Farm Friday Week Six: A look at our One Oak Farm Tour Menu
This micro-seasonal menu reflects the rhythm of the farm, evolving frequently to highlight ingredients at their peak.
In steady collaboration, Chefs @devereauxgreene and Spencer Thomson are in constant communication with the farm team, shaping together what is grown and how it’s used. This creates a menu that responds directly to what the land gives us.
Enjoy this tasting experience during dinner at Herons.
📸 @annarouth
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#heronsnc #theumstead #oneoakfarm #farmfriday #tastingmenu
Spring is bursting in the kitchen, and with new images we can share a bit of what is being crafted with you.
Here, beets are complemented with rhubarb, toasted rice, and clarified whey, then finished with lemon sorrel oil. It’s a study in contrast—earth, acidity, and texture brought into balance. Our One Oak Farm-grown salanova lettuce rounds out the dish, bringing dramatic height and a crisp freshness to each bite.
Swipe through for how we harvest these delicate leaves.
📸 @annarouth
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#heronsnc #springmenu #theumstead #northcarolina #ourfarm
We’re pleased to introduce The Point of View of Water, a new exhibition by North Carolina-based artist Clem Bedwell.
Inspired by the shifting nature of light, movement, and reflection, Bedwell’s work explores the surface of water as a constantly evolving canvas, where landscape and atmosphere are reimagined through abstraction.
Join us in the Art Gallery, where the collection will debut immediately after it is installed, offering a first look at the work and a chance to engage with the artist.
Tuesday, May 13 6:00–8:00 PM
$35
Wine and passed hors d’oeuvres will be served.
Reservations can be made by phone or through the link in our profile.
Farm Friday Week Five: a look at the pollinators supporting the season ahead at One Oak and Appletree.
This year, we’ve introduced two hives at Appletree and two at One Oak, supporting both pollination and future honey production across the farms.
Bees play an essential role in the health and productivity of our crops, and their presence allows us to continue building a more balanced and resilient growing environment.
As Adam shares, “The goal is to create a system where everything is working together. The bees are just one part of that bigger picture.”
Alongside the hives, we are interplanting a mix of annual and perennial flowers throughout our production spaces.
This approach is designed to attract and support native pollinators, creating a landscape where honeybees and local species can thrive together.
As the season continues, we look forward to seeing increased activity across the fields, with pollinators contributing to the growth and quality of what we bring from the farm to the kitchen.
📍 The Umstead Hotel & Spa | Cary, North Carolina
✨ Some places don’t just host you… they reset you.
🌿 This five-star, five-diamond, independently owned hotel feels like a quiet escape where art, nature, and design exist in perfect balance.
🎨 Every corner is thoughtfully curated, with fine art woven into calm, elegant interiors that invite you to slow down.
🛏️ Spacious rooms, serene woodland surroundings, and a sense of stillness that stays with you long after you leave. ✨
#CarolinaCharm #VisitNC #VisitRaleigh #BrandUSADestinationImmersion #VisitTheUSA
Dichotomies by Frank Campion has been extended through May 13.
Join us for lunch, then take a moment to wander through the gallery and experience his striking abstract works.
Each piece explores balance and contrast through layered color and movement, with palettes that feel at home in a variety of spaces.
With Mother’s Day just around the corner, it’s also a thoughtful opportunity to find something truly unique, whether for someone special or for your own home.
On view in The Umstead Art Gallery through May 13 and can be purchased through The Umstead Gift Shop.
A look back at the seasons that brought us here.
From last spring through this winter, each menu was shaped by its moment, all guided by the land and what each season offered.
Our spring menu is here. Photos coming soon.
📸 @annarouth
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#heronsnc #theumstead #seasons #springmenu #northcarolina
In service.
Small moments that often go unseen: finishing a plate, checking a detail, moving between the kitchen and dining room.
Part of the routine that shapes each evening at Herons.
📸 @annarouth
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#heronsnc #chefs #theumstead #ncrestaurants #northcarolina
This week, we visit the greenhouses. For many of our plants, they get their start here.
Chef Greene explains “the farmers take the best tasting fruits and vegetables from the season, and collect the seeds to produce next year’s crop, which results in a more delicious and more nutritious yield.”
The Culinary team works in harmony with the farm team to create dishes that are delicious, artful and perfectly-timed for the season. Taste the magic on this season’s menu.
On Earth Day, we’re reminded that every small detail makes a big impact.
For Herons, that often starts less than a mile away at our own One Oak Farm, a three-acre garden where much of what arrives on the plate first sprouts.
Using regenerative and organic practices, the farm provides up to 70% of the produce used during the height of the season, shaping the menu in real time.
That same intention extends beyond the farm. A small garden on property supplies fresh herbs, while partnerships with producers like Larry’s Beans, Oyster Carolina, Dawnbreaker Farm, Chapel Hill Creamery, Bradford Farm, and Anson Mills help define the rhythm of the menu.
What remains returns to the cycle through composting initiatives taken right from our Hotel and regenerated into organic nutrients for the soil for our farm.
Alongside this mission, thoughtful systems are in place throughout the hotel from energy management to in-room recycling and refillable water stations.
Not a single moment, but a continuous practice: one that connects the land, the kitchen, and the experience, every day of the year.
