Of the more than 500 food service establishments in Moore County, only two have won the Diamond A Award every year since the Moore Healthy Dining Program was established.
 Chef Warren's restaurant in Southern Pines and Lady Bedford's Tea Parlour & Gift Shoppe in Pinehurst were recognized earlier this month for having a 97 percent unadjusted sanitation grade, providing a smoke-free environment and offering clearly marked healthy menu items.
An unadjusted sanitation score is a score that does not include the two extra points for completing a Serve-Safe food handling course.
"It's an honor, but it's also a testament to the hard work that we and our staff put into it. It's affirmation that we're performing at a consistently high level," says Warren Lewis, head chef and co-owner of Chef Warren's with his wife, Marianne. "These are our friends and neighbors that we're feeding. We take that responsibility seriously."
Marian Caso, owner of Lady Bedford's, says she has been told that winning every year "is quite a coup."
"It's a pretty big deal, but most people don't even know about the awards program," Caso says. "I'm excited that we've won three years in a row. It feels great. We always strive to be upscale and better than the norm. The award is just the icing on the cake."
The Moore County Health Department established the innovative program in July 2008 to reward local restaurants and food service establishments that meet high standards in nutrition, food safety and nonsmoking seating.
"I know of no other program like it in North Carolina or across the country," Lewis says. "It's one more progressive thought coming out of Moore County. No wonder everyone wants to move here."
In addition to this year's Diamond A Award winners, 12 establishments received Platinum A awards and 52 garnered Golden A awards.
"The program is designed to encourage food service managers to exceed standards and expectations regarding food safety," says Scott Bullard, who chairs the department's board of directors. "Food safety is an important part of the county health department's effort to protect the public."
Chef John Swain, who runs the kitchen at Lady Bedford's, says a clean kitchen is "always" the goal.
"I don't do it for awards," Swain says.
Lady Bedford's offers breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea every Tuesday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. It also hosts special occasions such as baby showers.
"We do a lot of bridal showers and bridal luncheons. Special occasions account for about one-third of our business," Caso says.
The healthy menu items include the Scottish breakfast - fresh fruit, yogurt and granola parfait - and the Duchess salad for lunch.
"Our clientele is 90 percent women and they tend to eat salads year-round," Caso says.
Chef Warren's also caters to its customers, especially those with food allergies, medical concerns or special diets.
"No matter what's on the menu, we can basically cook your food to order," Warren says. "Everything on the menu has the flexibility to be healthy. For example, if you're allergic to mushrooms and they're in one of our sauces, we'll alter the sauce for you."
The Lewises also grow 20 to 25 varieties of herbs and about 70 different vegetables at their Southern Pines home for use at the restaurant, which has been nonsmoking since it opened in 1998, well before the state law banning smoking in restaurants took effect.
"We print a new menu almost every day," Marianne says. "Growing our own food allows us to give something back. Healthy eating dovetails into a healthy community. It's a tie that binds.
"There's also an intrinsic value that you can't put a number on."
Contact Ted M. Natt Jr. at
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As seen on thepilot.com (click here to see the original article)
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