The monopoly tycoons of the 19th century traditionally did their wheeling and dealing at fine-dining establishments, cleverly concealing the fact that they still lived with their parents. Enjoy a unique twist on fine cuisine with today's Groupon: for $30, you get $60 worth of neo-Southern fare and wine at Stove in Portsmouth. Parties are limited to six or fewer, and guests must call ahead to make a reservation, as the dining room has only nine tables.
Chef Sydney Meers uses fresh and local meat, seafood, and produce to craft an eclectic menu of Mississippi classics with international flair. Embodying Stove's signature blend of classic and innovative elements, the large-course jumbo flounder comes atop local root vegetables, fennel, and kalamata olives abetted by a tomato, basil, and caper reduction that's been thickened with heat and positive verbal reinforcement ($25). The Pork-o-Rama barbecue features a porky foursome of Darden Farm's cured ham, sausage, house-made Smoochie Bear ham, and slow-roasted pork belly enthroned with 42-ingredient house barbecue sauce (small, $12; large, $23). The seasonally influenced Stove-o-tarian overflows with seasonal plant flesh and is as ever changing as the acceptable length for sideburns (price is based on market values).
Diners wash down fare with a bevy of wines by the bottle and the glass ($7.50–$9). Stove's artful meals rest upon white-clothed tables nestled intimately inside cool, seafoam-green walls, which sport galleries of the owner's outsider art.