Ashley Christensen Restaurants

Take the next step in your career! We are hiring multiple positions and experience levels at AC Restaurants. Join us on Tuesday, July 24th to learn more about our open positions and apply on the spot!

We are closed July 16^thfor our annual staff appreciation day. While we’re away you can still enjoy our food, by using recipes from our cookbook, Poole’s Recipes and Stories from a Modern Diner. There are so many great recipes to choose from, but this time of year we’re particularly fond of making the watermelon salad. It’s one of our favorite recipes and it’s perfect for a hot summer day.

Enjoy this recipe and we’ll see you on the 17^th!

Watermelon Salad with Avocado, Chèvre, Basil, and Sweet Onion Vinaigrette

SERVES 4

Ingredients:

4 (2-inch-thick) slices of ripe watermelon

Sea salt

Black pepper in a mill

2 ripe avocados

4 ounces chèvre

8 fresh basil leaves

¼ cup Sweet Onion Vinaigrette (recipe follows)

Place a watermelon slice on each of four plates and season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Cut each avocado in half, remove the pit, and carefully remove the peel. Thinly slice the avocado halves, leaving ½ inch at the top so that they stay together. Gently press at the center to form a fan. Season each half with sea salt and coarsely ground pepper. Place 1 avocado portion on top of each watermelon slice. Crumble 1 ounce of the chèvre over each plate. Tear the basil leaves into pieces and distribute over the four plates. Drizzle the vinaigrette over each plate and serve.

For the sweet onion vinaigrette: In a mixing bowl, cover 3 table­spoons minced sweet onions with 1/3 cup champagne vinegar. Let marinate for 15 minutes. Using a whisk, stir in 2 teaspoons honey and a pinch of salt. Begin whisking the vinegar mixture in a circular motion. Slowly drizzle 1 cup neutral vegetable oil in a thin, steady stream, whisking continuously until all of the oil is added to the bowl and the mixture is emulsified. Season with salt to taste.

Nothing makes us happier than to welcome our fellow bartending friends from other cities to hang with us at Fox, so we are seriously excited about what’s in store on July 10^th.

Alba Huerta, owner of the incredible bar, Julep, in Houston, Texas, will be joining us as a guest bartender for one night only at the foxhole. We’ll be featuring several cocktails from her new book, Julep: Southern Cocktails Refashioned, for the entire evening, with Alba herself behind the bar from 6 to 9 pm. We’ll also have copies of the book available for purchase.

This event is free to attend. Join us!

As you make your Independence Day plans, please keep in mind some holiday hours at our restaurants.

Beasley’s & Chuck’s will be open for regular business hours on July 4^th.

Poole’s Diner will be closed on July 4^th

Death & Taxes will be closed on July 4^th

Fox Liquor Bar will be closed on July 4^th

Please also note that ALL of our restaurants will be closed for business on Monday, July 16^th to allow our hardworking staff to participate in our staff party.

Reminder: Negroni Week is June 4-10!

During this very special week, bars and restaurants all over the world offer a version of the Negroni cocktail—which traditionally features gin, Campari and sweet vermouth--and donate to a portion of the proceeds from the drink to the charity of their choice.

We’re proud to be participating at three different locations and donating to No Kid Hungry, which works to end childhood hunger in America.

Next week, head to Poole’s Diner for the Strawberry Sbagliato, made with strawberry-infused Campari, Dolin Rouge vermouth, and sparkling wine.

Fox Liquor Bar is turning gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth into the boozy slushie of your dreams with the frozen Negroni.

And at Death & Taxes, the  Lautner’s Lilly is a spin on a white Negroni, and features floral-spiced gin, Cardamaro and Dolin Blanc vermouth.

The rest is simple: You drink a Negroni, we donate to No Kid Hungry. See you at the bar!