April Showers Brings Quality

With the start of Spring comes fresh ideas and fresh, ripe products. Revamping a menu and creating new dishes is always on the mind of a great Chef, and with out a doubt, a season change can make ones head spin. So much to be added and tried, so much to narrow down to actually be on the menu. Which item will be paired with that item? What flavors do I want to bring out from this particular product? Thinking about that sort of thing would keep a Chef up at night....

Freshy Fresh Pasta

Now that is a sight to behold. Fresh pasta, made everyday, from scratch. I don't think there is a more relaxing thing than working with the dough and creating different types of pasta. Feeling the cool, soft dough working into a thin sheet, or rolling it out until the desired thickness is reached. The favorite of mine is making ravioli, which is a daunting task, especially when a egg yolk is place in the center of a goat cheese 'nest'. These small things can make or break a restaurant. Time taken to make your own pasta not only saves money, but gives you quality, fresh product. Now pair with other quality products in the sauce, and not only have you hit a home run, but a grand slam. Stay Freshy Fresh Pasta, heard that!

That Prep List is Swollen

When I arrive in the morning, 8 a.m. usually, I have the privilege of getting to stare down a daunting task of a thing called a prep list. This usually determines how good of a day I will have. Some are short, some are long, and some are just 'for the love of God, why do I work here.'

While working at the current restaurant, which I have for the past two years, I have one of the best schedules in the restaurant business. 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Working breakfast and lunch, all the while prepping for the entire restaurant and creating a 'Family Meal' which is lunch and dinner for the staff of the restaurant and hotel.... yes we are a hotel/restaurant combo. The young man in the first picture is Marcus. He has been labeled prep cook/family meal. He bangs out prep and the meal 5 days a week working well over the usual 40 hours a week. On top of that he isn't 'classically' trained. He will definitely tell you what is on his mind, and how he feels. Which you can understand peeling 400 pounds or more of potatoes a week, gets him a little cranky... But we all chip in and bang out what we love to do, make food great. The stressful life of a cook or chef is not for the light hearted.

Best Burger.... Ever?

Seriously, I have never found a better burger than this Bison Burger from Proof on Main. Tillamook Cheddar, Smoked Bacon, Frissee Lettuce, a healthy portion of ground Bison meat, all atop a Challah Bun. House-made fries and a house-made 'Jezebel' sauce accompany this mouth watering burger.

Danielle's

The first real restaurant job that I had. Not only did we have the atmosphere of a fine dining establishment, our food was out of this world. Sadly it closed as 70% of all restaurants do in their first year of operations. We had some fun though...