Break Bread With Us

Journey to Wellness:

Sourdough Class with Whole Home Hannah

Autumn is upon us, friends! At the Pinner House, we plan to celebrate one of the most beautiful and transformative seasons by breaking bread with loved ones with a steaming cup of apple cider.

To continue our Journey to Wellness Workshop Series, we will be learning to ferment and bake sourdough bread with Hannah Newton from Whole Home Hannah.

I can hardly think of anything more satiating for mind and body than enjoying sourdough made by my own hands and shared with friends and loved ones. I can just imagine myself beaming with pride walking into my thanksgiving dinner party with a beautiful, golden brown loaf of sourdough I made to contribute to my hostess’ table.

Hannah has been baking sourdough for a decade and she will be sharing her passion and expertise in a Sourdough 101 Workshop.

During the class, Hannah will cover the health benefits of sourdough, demonstrate how to maintain a healthy sourdough culture, walk you through the steps of mixing two basic sourdough bread loaves and teach you how to artfully score and bake your loaves. 

She will also cover how to store sourdough bread, what to do with your starter when you go on vacation, types of flour to bake with, "discard starter" recipes, working sourdough into other recipes and more. 

Our favorite mobile coffee trailer, pH Coffee Bar will be popping up to serve you specialty lattés! You’ll also enjoy gourmet sourdough toast with toppings of your choice!

At the end of class, you will feed your sourdough starter for the first time and begin your baking adventure!

We are so looking forward to baking with you!

Brewing something special with pH Coffee Bar

If you were in attendance of events at The Pinner House in 2020 and 2021, you may have noticed a wafting smell of espresso brewing from a cute little trailer with a black and white striped awnings with scalloped edging. If so, you’ve experienced Pinner House’s most recent business venture- pH Coffee Bar!

We are ecstatic to announce that pH Coffee Bar is now officially available for bookings at venues outside of The Pinner House and will be popping up around Hampton Roads!

pH Coffee Bar was born out of a Craigslist impulse-buy from husband, father and Pinner House resident bargain hunter, Allyn. He set his sights on rehabbing a vintage Coca-Cola concession trailer with no specific purpose in mind. This is until September of 2019, when owner and Pinner House visionary, Kris felt inspired to make French crêpes, a staple in her childhood household, for “The Taste of Suffolk”. A vision was set that Pinner House would offer a full-service specialty coffee bar and crêperie, catering everything from weddings and workshops to our bi-annual Artisan Market. The trailer was then outfitted with a custom paint job, a La Spaziale espresso machine, and some delicious coffee from local roaster, Town Center Cold Press.

Stop by and say hello to Melody, expert barista and owner of pH Coffee Bar, who is here to make all your coffee dreams come true!

You can find pH Coffee Bar at The Peanut Crossing Apartment Complex Saturdays, 8/21, 8/28 and 9/4 from 7am-11am,

as well as The Taste of Suffolk downtown event on 9/11.

Follow our instagram to stay up to date on pH Coffee Bar schedule and menu offerings.

@phcoffeebar

On select events, pH Coffee Bar and Café Geneviève have teamed up to bring you the most amazing French macarons made by Geneviève herself!

Our Favorite Local Eateries

A running joke among locals in Downtown Suffolk is the city’s marketing tagline from years ago, “Surprising Suffolk” - that is as true a description today as it was years ago. Even after 27 years of living in Downtown Suffolk, I am continually and pleasantly surprised by the quality of restaurants appearing on the downtown scene.

Food itself is tied directly to the identity and culture of a geographic area. Everyone knows that Key Lime Pie is better in the Florida Keys and Peach Cobbler is best in Georgia. As a visitor, I think you’ve missed a whole cultural experience if you don’t partake in the hard-work and creativity Suffolk’s chefs put into their dishes.

The best of the restaurants we have to offer in Suffolk have weathered months of lockdown and come out the other side stronger, more nimble and with a deepened commitment to hospitality. For that, I think it is more important than ever to devote our patronage to local establishments and direct my guests to the finest and freshest foods around.

Here’s a brief list of my all-time favorite local eateries in Suffolk.

Harper’s Table

Harper’s Table serves locally sourced Southern cuisine just walking distance of The Pinner House. What we love about Harper is attention to detail that is prevalent in the incredible dishes and the intimate and timeless ambiance he has curated in his establishment. In addition, we LOVE working with Harper as a private chef catering our own events hosted here at The Pinner House. Just as we believe in telling your story through event design and hospitality at The Pinner House, so does Harper Bradshaw root his passion in story.-telling and honoring local traditions through food and gathering at the table.

Sushi AKA

Sushi Aka is one of our favorite local spots for many reasons. You will be absolutely blown away by quality of authentic sushi Chef Mike prepares. Every vegetable is grown and harvested right here in Suffolk and the fish source globally for the freshest seafood. Chef Mike has honed his craft of traditional sushi preparation for years under the influence of renowned experts. You’ll find unique and exotic dishes here that is unparalleled to any other Asian restaurant in Hampton Roads.

The

General Public

All of our favorite restaurants so far have locally sourced food featured on their menu crafted with care, including The General Public. This establishment is also just a short walk from The Pinner House, located right next to our local brewery, Nansemond Station. Serving a casual, hearty and rustic menu, Chef General Lewis’ cuisine is inspired by his love for cooking at home with his mother and backed by 21 years of experience. With exceptionally friendly and attentive staff, you’'ll have nothing short of an amazing dining experience at GP. In addition to The General’s local eatery, they offer catering services that are to-die-for, that you’ll see regularly featured at Signature Pinner House Events.

Amici’s Pizza Cafe

Let me tell you- you literally can never go wrong with Amici’s Cafe. Conveniently located on Washington Street and with ample parking, you’ll find creatively delicious topping combinations on their New York style brick oven pizzas, amazing pastas and even a weekend brunch. Amici’s is a flagship establishment for Downtown Suffolk eateries, having been in operation for over 10 years. You’ll feel right at home with a casual, warm and welcoming vibe. I love their patio seating enclosure and the feature exposed brick wall extending the length of the restaurant.

The Mod Olive is the new kid on the block of our Downtown restaurant scene, but you’ll find it reminiscent of it’s sister-eatery, The Plaid Turnip whom we love as well. The Mod Olive has a quirky vintage style and an endearingly eclectic menu. Owner, Ed Beardsley does it again by serving up a delicious, creative and seemingly endless menu in Suffolk.