The Creative Process...

scallop-chanterelle terrine, sunchoke puree, artichoke chips, micro arugula, pear-bacon salad
roasted grape-rhubarb vinaigrette(top)
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moularde duck, pumpkin croustillant, smoked ice cream, tongue confit,
black currant-syrah gastric, quince (bottom)



snake river farms wagyu rib eye, crosnes, thumbelina carrots, apple butter
french horn mushrooms, red wine apples, fig-balsamic essence



menu thoughts...
valrhona manjari-foie gras dome, persimmons, caramel, pear sorbet, almond macaron (at bottom)
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We have heard that phrase so many times before. "The creative process". Where does it transcend from? Where does it manifest itself from there? How does it affect our work and our drive? Our passion? Our success and failures? Our psyche? Our confidence and moxy as a human? Without it, we are dead...lifeless...stagnant...robotic and dumbed down. Stale and sterile we become. With too much of it, we can have the tendency to become self centered, selfish and overconfident, unrealistic, difficult to work with and "out there". I believe we need to keep it in check, yet at the same time let it run free. Without it, our work becomes quite dull and boring. It is what can separate one from the corporate monotony and offer something truly unique and personal...uplifting...wild and intimate for both recipient and artist. A handbag made from the purest of materials with a very personal pattern to it. An ornate home made for only one person in mind and of a certain style and look like no other. A painting that perhaps only the artist themselves could truly see. And in this case...a dish and menu that takes on the personality of the chef. Nobody else may really gets it as the artist does. The vision is usually embedded deep within the minds, hearts, soul of the creator. It is truly more of a feeling and one that is extremely difficult to try to explain. But one thing is for sure...it better taste soigne! Nobody buys a second crappy painting. Don't be afraid to go out on a limb. Break out of the four-walled world you live in and put yourself into your work. Do it today! These are just a few renderings of a recent wine dinner we did. The creative process was in the works far before the food hit the plate, and yet still...the food took on a slightly different look and feel the moment it did.