Kitchen Tour Offers Variety

With new additions, Miss Ruby’s Kitchen Tour promises to be bigger, better than ever before

Annual tour scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 16

Miss Ruby’s Kitchen Tour has annually impressed participants with grand kitchens inside some of the area’s most stately homes, but for a special treat this year, two additions will show the commercial side of cooking, as well.

Participants in the 8th annual Miss Ruby’s Kitchen Tour on Saturday, Nov. 16, will see seven local kitchens in Pawleys Plantation, Debordieu and Georgetown that vary in purpose, size, features and appliances. Two of them will be commercial kitchens: Indigo Bakery and Indigo Mercantile, both in Georgetown.

This kitchen was featured during a previous tour. (Photo courtesy of Miss Ruby’s Kids)

A kitchen is defined as “a room or part of a room used for cooking and food preparation in a dwelling or in a commercial establishment.” The main functions of a kitchen are to store, prepare and cook food, as well as to complete related tasks such as dishwashing.

Michael Caldwell, co-owner of Indigo Bakery with Melanie Hein and co-owner of Indigo Mercantile with Hein and Richard and Gwen Heusel, said they are looking forward to opening these two commercial kitchens for people to see during the event. He described the Mercantile kitchen as a large one that is available for use by event caterers.

Indigo Mercantile will have its commercial kitchen open for viewing during the tour. (photo provided)

“It has a full line of fryers, ovens, ranges, bread ovens, prep stations and individual work areas,” Caldwell said. “One of the reasons we built the kitchen in the Mercantile is that if you are a caterer that has an event at the Kaminski House Museum or Maritime Park, you can come in and use our kitchen, instead of bringing in already-made items.”

He described the Indigo Bakery kitchen as “purpose-built” and much more compact.

“It has one working prep table in the middle with sugar, flour and other basic ingredients on it,” he said. “It also has a double-stacked oven for baking and a clean-up area.”

Tour-goers will be able to see the kitchen at Indigo Bakery. (photo provided)

The self-guided tour begins at 10 a.m. and goes until 4 p.m. Tour packets can be picked up from 9-11 a.m. at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Pawleys Island, where delicious smells from an Apple Dumpling Festival will welcome them. Tour tickets are $35 in advance and $40 the day of the event, while they last.

“It is a lot of fun, and it is for a good cause, helping children in our community,” said Lisa Haas, director of operations for Miss Ruby’s Kids. “What a great price to go and see some really interesting kitchens and homes.”

Proceeds will support Miss Ruby’s Kids, a non-profit early literacy program serving families living in Georgetown County. Through its three programs – the Parent-Child-Home Program, the Family Childcare Program and the Education Mentor Program – Miss Ruby’s Kids provides services to more than 150 local children and their families.

Modeled after the National Parent-Child Home Program, Miss Ruby’s Kids has grown from a pilot program serving five families to a well-respected, community-supported organization fostering educational preparedness and providing high-quality educational books and toys to low-income families throughout the community.

Haas said Groucho’s Deli on Front Street in Georgetown is also offering to donate 10 percent of its lunch sales during the day to Miss Ruby’s Kids. 

One of the homes on the Kitchen Tour is the East Bay House in Georgetown, which is available for rent through Vacation Rental By Owner (VRBO). Kevin Jayroe, the local contact for the property, said people may have seen the house on other tours, including the Prince George Plantation Tours and the Georgetown Library’s Yuletide Tour of Homes.

The East Bay House is also on the tour. The kitchen was recently remodeled. (photo provided)

“We are excited because the Kitchen Tour is a great way for people to come out and see some great properties and see some beautiful kitchens,” Jayroe said. “The kitchen in the East Bay House was once a garage, but it was redone in a contemporary way with high-end appliances, white quartz countertops, white lacquered cabinetry and a huge center island. It is a perfect kitchen for entertaining.”

He said he is also glad to support Miss Ruby’s Kids by being part of this event.

“That organization offers wonderful opportunities for a lot of people who need their help,” Jayroe said. “They do great things for the community.”

For more information about the tour, visit www.missrubyskids.net, view its Facebook page at www.facebook/missrubyskids, or call 843-436-7197. The check-in station is at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, located at 65 Crooked Oak Drive (on U.S. Highway 17) in Pawleys Island.

– By Clayton Stairs / tourism manager for the Georgetown County Chamber of Commerce