John Bryant

Bistro by the tracks wins 2nd place appetizer!

The elegant surroundings of the new Bistro by the Tracks, with its vintage portraits of what look to be everyone’s great grandparents, continues to inspire memorable evenings. Executive Chef John Bryant was born in Johnson City and trained at Johnson and Wales University in Charleston, South Carolina. He ran a catering business in Johnson City for eight years before joining Bistro by the Tracks three years ago. He is committed to sourcing from local farms. “When we grew up, everything came out of the garden,” says Bryant. “My parents grew everything—corn peaches, beans, grapes, berries.” Cityview Publisher Nathan Sparks brandished the $500 Chef’s Knife from Cosby, Tennessee, that will go to the winner of the Top Chefs competition.

Adam Cook, chief development and public affairs officer for the Dolly Parton Children’s Hospital, said the name-change had been announced just one week earlier. “Our hospital has some half a million patient encounters each year in 20 locations across 16 counties,” said Cook. “We serve 88 of Tennessee’s 95 counties and every state in the US. It takes one million dollars a day to keep our doors open. Sixty percent of our patients are on Medicaid or TennCare. We fill a huge need.” The appetizer featured hand-rolled spring agnolotti bathed in house ricotta and North Carolina blue crab with radish, spring peas, radish, and Meyer lemon. The 2023 ZD Chardonnay from Monterey, California, added notes of ripe apple, citrus blossom, and balanced acidity.

The main course was a perfectly pink American Wagyu center-cut Delmonico with Yukon potato pavé, spring greens, beef tallow hollandaise, and black garlic shoyu (soy). It was double-paired with a 2021 Spottswoode Estate Cabernet Sauvignon from St. Helena in Napa Valley, California, balancing the beef with notes of dark cherry, cassis, and refined tannins and a 2021 Spottswoode “Lyndenhurst” Cabernet Sauvignon with hints of red fruit, cocoa, and supple structure.

For dessert, the chocolate peanut butter pie featured Nutella whip, benne peanut brittle, and graham cracker streusel crust. The sweetness was well balanced by the Domaine de Rancy Rivesaltes Ambré, from Languedoc-Roussillon, France, with its suggestion of caramelized nuts, dried fruit, and warm spice.