Where to Worship

Witnesses of faith

ST. ANDREW BY-THE-SEA OFFERS TWO CAMPUSES FOR WORSHIP

AMY COYNE BREDESON

The Rev. Dr. Robin Dease wasn’t sure what to expect when she arrived at St. Andrew By-The-Sea United Methodist Church on Hilton Head Island in July 2021.

Being the first Black woman — and the first woman in general — to lead the mostly white, elderly congregation was a little daunting.

The people of St. Andrew were used to a different style of preaching than Dease brought to the pulpit. They had grown accustomed to their pastor of 14 years, the Rev. Neil Yongue, who was almost 20 years Dease’s senior.

Coming from a charismatic African-American church background, where there’s clapping, dancing, hands raised in the air and shouts of “Amen,” Dease has had to learn to control her cadence a bit.

With a ring in her nose and a great sense of humor, Dease was pleasantly surprised by the warm welcome she received from the congregation at St. Andrew.

“They don’t even know about my tattoos and motorcycle,” Dease said with a giggle.

Part-time associate pastor Rev. Frank Lybrand has helped Dease understand the ethos of the church. Dease said the two offer a good balance.

“It’s been a blessing,” Dease said. “It’s a wonderful, wonderful community. I think part of it is because St.

Andrew is an anomaly in the South Carolina Methodist denomination because it is a church that is diverse. And when I say diverse, they come from all over the world, which is not the case in other Anglo white churches in South Carolina, where many of them are South Carolinians. St. Andrew has a more diverse experience and background.”

Dease also brings a different leadership style to the church. She tries to be “hands off” as much as possible, allowing the church to lead the way.

“I want the congregation to own the decisions,” Dease said. “And we can pivot if we need to. I see the congregation being empowered. It is through that that we see God at work.”

Prior to taking her new position at St. Andrew, Dease served for eight years as the superintendent of the Hartsville District of the South Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church.

Dease earned a doctorate in stewardship from Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C., and began her career at Wesley United Methodist Church on John’s Island, where she served as senior pastor for 10 years. She was later senior pastor at John Wesley UMC in Greenville for more than four years. She was a professor at Claflin University in Orangeburg, where she chaired the Department of Philosophy and Religion.

While the Hilton Head campus of St. Andrew serves mostly an older population, its second location in Bluffton caters to a younger crowd. The Rev. Daniel Burbage and his team offer a contemporary service in Bluffton. He was appointed to St. Andrew By-The-Sea in June 2012 to help create the first multi-site campus in the South Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church.

St. Andrew By-The-Sea is located at 20 Pope Ave., on Hilton Head and offers services at 9 and 11:15 a.m. Sundays, with the second service live streamed for those who cannot attend in person. The church’s Bluffton campus is located in suites 203 and 204 at 39 Persimmon St., and offers services at 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Sundays, with both available by live stream.

For more information on St. Andrew By-TheSea United Methodist Church, visit hhiumc.com or call 843-785-4711.

WHERE TO

MICHAEL ANTHONY’S OFFERS POPULAR COOKING SCHOOL

By Jessica Farthing Photos by Madison Elrod

Delicious dishes

Michael Anthony’s Cucina Italiana has been a Hilton Head institution for 20 years, a one-stop, self-described culinary destination.

It’s a place to eat fine Italian food, visit a casual café, shop for Italian goods or attend a cooking class taught by trained chefs in the gourmet instructional kitchen. It’s also the place that Open Table gave a Diner’s Choice award in 2022.

The cooking school is popular on the island, offering both hands-on and demonstration-type classes.

For a demonstration class, around 30 people are seated in the classroom with a glass of Prosecco as one of the restaurant’s talented chefs prepares food.

Guests may sample the Lemon Lovers Class: Tagliatelle with lemon, chicken limone and lemon and buttermilk panna cotta.

Or it could be the “Hooked on Shrimp” demo with shrimp creole and shrimp and grits. Every seat in the house has a great view, a flat screen TV focused right on the pan, making sure everyone can see methods of preparation, the desired colors of sauces or cooked ingredients.

Guests are happy to sample each course with a glass of wine, savoring the delicious dishes.

“It’s kind of like Food Network, but you get to eat,” says Ian Mason, General Manager.

The hands-on experience is more intimate, with a 10-person limit and individual instruction from the instructor. Attendees might learn professional knife skills or make recipes like veal Valdostana or rosemary pork tenderloin with peaches step by step, then sitting down together for a family-style meal with their finished dishes.

“Once the knives come out and we start drinking some wine, it can be quite a party,” said Mason.

Two chefs oversee the cooking school events, working to teach the recipes and answer any questions. Both are highly knowledgeable in different types of cuisine, working in other restaurants and earning degrees from respected culinary institutions.

Chef Trey Place earned his diploma from the Culinary Institute of America while Chef Kenny Warthen’s degree came by way of Johnson & Wales University.

Regulars come week after week for the experience, enjoying the ever-changing schedule of classes. New students are encouraged to sign up for whatever beccomes available, as the slots regularly sell out.

Mason said, “These guys get along with the customers so well and each other. They have such a nice chemistry between themselves.”

The cooking school doesn’t limit itself to just Italian food, though that’s the most popular choice. They may sample French or Spanish cuisine, instruct guests how to debone a chicken or inspire cooking as a healthy gourmet. One of the classes that’s quickest to sell out is the holiday dinner party, with ideas for the schedule leading up to big, traditional meals.

Fall is a hot season: the locals in town keep the cooking school busy.

“Sometimes we put new classes out on e-blast, and they are full within 10 minutes,” Mason said.

Signing up for the emails is an easy option on Michael Anthony’s website, allowing subscribers to be the first to know about new offerings. If a group is large enough to do a private class, the restaurant offers that as an option as well. A call to the event coordinator can get that scheduled for any class in their rotation.

Mason knows his chefs work hard to keep the school fresh.

“The big challenge now is finding new recipes because we often have the same people coming week in and week out,” he said. “You have to build these things from scratch, and it’s like a full- time job to research new recipes and put concepts together. We’re always looking for new ideas.”

In his opinion, personal connections are the reason that Michael Anthony’s school is special.

“The connection that people make with each other is different than a typical cooking school. People come in, take classes and hang out with each other afterward,” he said, “They visit the class just to say hello to our chefs. It’s picking their brains, hearing the stories about restaurants that people love."

For more information and pricing, visit michael-anthonys. com/cooking-school.

INGREDIENTS: • 3 1/2 pounds shrimp, with shells and heads • 2 1/2 cups basic seafood stock or water • 1/4 cup bacon fat or vegetable oil • 2 1/2 cups finely chopped onion • 1 3/4 cups finely chopped celery • 1 1/2 medium finely chopped green peppers • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter • 2 teaspoons garlic minced • 1 bay leaf • 2 tablespoons plus 2 tsp. Cajun magic seafood magic • 1 1/2 teaspoons Tabasco sauce or Crystal Hot Sauce • 3 cups peeled and finely chopped tomatoes • 1 1/2 cups tomato sauce • 2 teaspoons sugar • 5 cups hot cooked rice

Michael Anthony's SHRIMP CREOLE

Michael Anthony’s Cucina Italiana hosts hands-on and demonstration cooking classes. A recent class focused on shrimp recipes. Here’s a creole recipe that was taught to the class.

SERVES 4-6

TOTAL TIME: 30 MIN

METHOD: • Rinse, shell and devein shrimp (reserve heads and shells to make stock if you choose). • Heat fat over high heat in a 4-quart sauce pan. Add 1 cup of the onions and cook over high heat for 3 minutes, stirring frequently. • Reduce heat to med-low and cook stirring frequently until onions caramelize, about 3-5 minutes. • Add the remaining onions, celery, peppers and 2 tablespoons of butter. Cook over high heat until celery and peppers start to get tender, stirring occasionally. Add garlic, bay leaf and seafood magic and stir well. • Add Tabasco sauce and 1/2 cup of stock. Cover and cook over medium heat 5 minutes to blend seasoning and for the vegetables to finish browning, stirring occasionally while scraping bottom of pan well. • Add tomatoes and reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and scraping bottom of pan.

Stir in tomato sauce and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add remaining stock and the sugar, simmer another 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. • Add the shrimp and cook just until pink and plump, for about 3 to 4 minutes. Serve with rice.