2025 in Retrospect

Go to  https://www.yesweekly.com/foodanddrink/ to see my end of the year column. That is the link to the current issue (12/31/2025), on stands until January 4. If you are seeing this after that week, use this link instead: https://www.yesweekly.com/foodanddrink/a-chow-down-2025-review-with-john-batchelor/article_8c762403-a97e-4dc2-8e5c-8a84fbfbbe0c.html.

Key point: I name two Restaurants of the Year:

Betty on Burke (1016 Burke Street, Suite D, Winston-Salem 27101, 336-999-8866, bettyonburke.com) has one of the prettiest interiors I have ever encountered. And I use the feminine terminology deliberately. It’s a delicate look, but not frilly, a function of owner Jennifer Smith’s good taste. Jay Pierce, whose work I have admired for decades, is Executive Chef-Partner. The name of the restaurant pays tribute to the owners’ grandmothers, both of whom were named Betty. I think my favorite dish here was Sweet Potato Gnocchi, puffy-tender, richly flavored in their own right, plated with shredded duck meat, also cooked soft. Throw in locally grown mushrooms, and you get a rewarding result.

The Gaslight (126 South Main Street, Suite G, Kernersville 27284, 336-497-4025, thegaslightonmain.com) is the creation of chef-proprietor Daniel Zbiegien, in able collaboration with Maja Popovic. They formerly worked together at Jolo and Rayson wineries. His style frequently takes on familiar dishes, then adds variations that elevate them to another level. Everybody else has Shrimp and Grits, for example. The Gaslight has Shrimp and Polenta, deepened with Parmesan cheese, surrounded by tender, deveined shrimp, all resting in a smoked bacon jus. Roasted Brussels sprouts edge one side, a sweet, oven cured Campari tomato glowing bright red in the center.