New Menu Highlights Roof-to-Table Concept 1856 – Culinary Residence, a MICHELIN-recommended upscale restaurant inside The Laurel Hotel & Spa in Auburn, Alabama, has unveiled a newly curated dinner tasting menu featuring refined dishes with elevated ingredients. The restaurant operates on a "roof-to-table" philosophy, sourcing fresh produce from the rooftop garden of Auburn University's Tony & Libba Rane Culinary Science Center. The menu rotates seasonally and is led by Chef in Residence Joël Antunes, who previously earned a James Beard Foundation award as Chef-Partner at the MICHELIN-starred Les Saveurs in London.

Teaching Restaurant Model Beyond its role as a refined dining destination, 1856 functions as a living classroom.

Students from Auburn University's Horst Schulze School of Hospitality Management train alongside Chef Antunes while preparing and serving lunch à la carte and dinner tasting menus. The restaurant's Master Sommelier in Residence, Thomas Price, offers optional beverage pairings.

Menu Offerings New dishes include seared scallops with saffron and fennel sauce alongside creamy farro, and wagyu NY strip with confit baby potato, caulini, and black garlic vinaigrette. Petit fours include blueberry macaron, mango macaron, passionfruit bon bon, brown butter banana bon bon, and chocolate-covered pecans. The beverage program features cocktails such as Quiet Sonora (Estaca Bacanora, watermelon, strawberry, and Domaine de Canton), Tangi's Empress (Empress Indigo Gin, blueberries, brown sugar, Cointreau, and Fee Brothers Fee Foam), and Nightfall in Bali (Brugal Anejo Superior Rum, Caribbean pineapple, lime, and Ariel Non-Alcoholic Cabernet Sauvignon).

Hours and Location 1856 – Culinary Residence is located at 205 S College Street in Auburn and operates lunch Tuesday-Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and dinner Tuesday-Saturday from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Why It Matters

The restaurant model—blending fine dining with hands-on culinary education and direct relationships with university agriculture—represents a growing operator interest in transparency, local sourcing, and workforce development within upscale dining.

For more insights and trends in the food and beverage sector, check out more articles in The Food & Beverage Magazine family of publications.

Written by FBM Publications Editors