Well, right now let's head over to Halifax.

That's become quite the foodie destination, and we sent Bob Garner to check out The Hen and the Hog.

- [Bob] The Halifax Resolves were signed nearby in April, 1776.

North Carolina's Provincial Congress instructed its Continental Congress delegates in Philadelphia, not only to concur on independence from England, but to urge other colonies delegates to do the same.

North Carolina was the first of the colonies to take the step leading ultimately to the Declaration of Independence and the state's claim of first in freedom.

Halifax Native Patterson Wilson, a veteran restaurant designer, had her own resolve, to run a place with a name reflecting her years of fascination with British pubs.

- I was thinking community gathering place, you know, The Crown and Thistle, different sort of names for British pubs.

And then my significant other said, "Well, The Hen and the Hog.

That's so North Carolina."

And I said, "Oh my god, that's it."

[Patterson laughing] So that's how we got The Hen and the Hog.

But I guess I'd been away from home enough that I had completely forgotten everyone was then gonna think it's a barbecue restaurant, and we do have chicken and pork on the menu, but it's not a traditional barbecue restaurant.

- Weldon Mills bourbon from the neighboring town is featured in the restaurant's signature old fashioned cocktail.

For me, a pre-meal tasting and a popular dessert you'll hear about.

Hmm.

And I imagine I'll hear more about it.

Yeah, that's great - At dessert time, you will.

- That's terrific.

But for now, on to some of the starters and entrees.

Pimento cheese fritters with pickled okra and a red pepper jelly.

A classic wedge salad with pimento cheese dressing in place of blue cheese.

And a fabulous sweet and tart pork belly presentation with pickled apples and bacon onion jam.

I'm gonna go a little bit out of order and start with the hog part first because I want to talk about this pork belly appetizer topped with pickle apples and bacon onion jam.

Oh it's sweet.

It's perfect.

This is a pimento cheese fritter with some red pepper jelly.

And then to kind of balance that out, pickled okra.

[upbeat music] Mmm.

The red pepper jelly really cuts the the fat of that, nice crunchy panko breadcrumbs, and a little sour to go with it.

Here at The Hen and the Hog, we had the hen, we have the hog, and we have something that is neither, but which is wildly popular here.

We have a chicken skewer with a tomato gastrique.

We have some scallions.

We have some pickled onions, some corn, all over the house, cheddar grits.

Maybe some people thought fried chicken and barbecue.

Uhuh.

It's different here.

Let's have a little look at the hog.

This is pulled pork with sweet potato slaw and their own sort of sauce.

I have eaten a lot of pork over the last 25 or 30 years, but I can honestly say I've never had anything remotely like that.

That is terrific.

Neither hen nor hog, the house vegetarian lentil chili is served over a split sweet potato and topped with crispy fried onions.

It's a consistent favorite entree.

I may have heard that dish mentioned more in reviews I read than any other dish here.

I've had shrimp and grits all over the place, and I've come to the conclusion that you gotta keep trying shrimp and grits 'cause it's just such a classic and people love it.

So we've got North Carolina shrimp.

We've got tomatoes.

We've got and andouille sausage in there.

The cheddar grits.

Oh yeah, divine.

To start off dessert, sweet potato pound cake with pecans.

And we will end where we began with Weldon Mills whiskey bourbon ice cream with caramel sauce.

[upbeat music continues] This really is no kidding, one of the most unique restaurants I've ever been to in one of the most historic towns in North Carolina.

You gotta love it.

[upbeat music continues] - Cheers - Cheers y'all.

- The Hen and the Hog is at 16 King Street in Halifax, and they're open Tuesday through Saturday.

For more information, give them a call at [252] 583-1017, or go online to thehenthehog.com.