Spain in Asheville: Chef Katie Button Talks Cúrate

There are as many cautionary tales about working with family as
there are about opening a new restaurant.
Fortunately, chef Katie Button, of the family owned and operated Cúrate Bar de Tapas, has
never been afraid to turn a narrative on its head.

Button was on her way to a PhD in neurosciences when she changed
course completely and took a job as a server at José Andrés’ Café Atlántico
in Washington, DC. With an eye towards
the kitchen, this led to stints at his Los Angeles restaurants, a pastry
internship at Jean Georges with chef Johnny Iuzzini, and most famously, a stage
at elBulli. It was there that she found
herself in the middle of someone else’s story, figuring prominently in Lisa Abend’s
The Sorcerer’s Apprentices: A Season at Ferran Adria’s elBulli.

It was a leap of faith Button couldn’t have taken
without her family – parents Elizabeth and Ted Button and husband (then fiancée)
Félix Meana – and they all came together to open Cúrate
in the Asheville, NC in 2011.

“The idea of opening a family restaurant was really special
to [my mother]. Particularly since my
husband was also in the restaurant industry – he worked at elBulli in the front
of the house for five years,”explains Button. “We realized that each of us in our
family had a piece of the puzzle and if we came together we could probably make
it happen.”

It was Elizabeth who thought of the name curate, with its
connotations of preserving tradition, that her Spanish son-in-law Félix
read as cúrate or ‘cure yourself’. Deciding they liked it both ways, the name stuck.

They were soon drawn to Asheville. “The music scene, the art scene, the
local farmers, the mountains, everything the city has to offer for the
population size is just unbelievable,” Button said. “A lot of people who move here, move
here to seek out their passion which I think is really special and unique.”

Given Button’s training and Meana’s
background, they decided to open a tapas bar serving simple, product focused
Spanish dishes. “If we’re
going to be authentic, we want to bring what modern Spain is, what Spain is to
us, what Barcelona is all about,” Button said.

Next, what the future holds for Button and Cúrate… [pagebreak]

To capture that atmosphere, they incorporated a 20-foot long
marble bar into the design so patrons are never far from the action in the
kitchen. “That vibrancy
reminds you of being in the frenzy of service and seeing all the food that’s
being prepared in the moment brings up the energy of the whole place so you
feel like you’re walking through the Boqueria,” Button said.

Standbys like patatas
bravas, gambas al ajillo, and fried eggplant drizzled with
wild mountain honey and rosemary have become favorites but there is always room
for innovation. Their take on guisantes
con jamón is made with razor clams, fava beans and serrano ham
served with a fish stock fumée to amplify the flavor. A vegetarian version of migas comes
with brussel sprouts, cauliflower, and a celery root and yogurt mousse. White asparagus is served with an airy
mayonnaise espuma. Taking the
place of Spanish calçots, seasonal ramps are grilled
and served with romesco sauce.

Finding a balance between their past and present, the menu
combines authentic Spanish ingredients, like the unmistakable cured hams from
black-footed Iberico pigs,
with locally sourced and sustainable products from the surrounding area.

This February, the family opened Nightbell, a
speakeasy-style nightclub. They started
developing the idea soon after opening Cúrate when
customers asked where they could get a drink beforehand or go dancing
afterwards. “I love the idea of
moving from one place to another to keep your dining experience dynamic,” Button said. It was also an opportunity to
try new twists on classic American bar food and craft cocktails.

With so many new stories to tell, Button has started work on her
debut cookbook due to be published by Flatiron Books in 2016. The Cúrate cookbook
will explore the connections between Spain, Asheville, and the Blue Ridge
mountains they’ve discovered. Button
and Meana will take a group from Cúrate to Spain
this year. “The only way to get
inspired is to travel and to see the different regions and to be there,” Button said.

Their efforts have been well received. “It felt like the entire Spanish
community of Asheville came out of the woodwork because they wanted a piece of
home,” Button said. They’ve
also been embraced by the larger food community. Button has been a James Beard Rising Star
Chef Semi-Finalist for the last three consecutive years.

“We’re just kind of working hard at what
we’re doing and what we love and trying to create something
unique for Asheville and for ourselves,” Button said.