Keep Your Passion...

So very important to remember and keep focused on when life takes a turn that is viewed as an unsavory direction. It is easy to become jaded...distraught...distracted and off track. Your foundation gets rocked. Your thoughts and visions no longer clear and the goals you strive to achieve seem to be slipping away. Obstacles are merely that. They can be overcome. Work on your shit each day and conquer them. Your passion in your life and what you do is what inspires you and others around you. It is what keeps that glowing light in your eyes and steadies the course for that happiness that your friends, family and loved ones have come to enjoy and know that to be who you are. Without your passion for life and in your work, you lose that edge, that spark, that light that sets you apart. I have always stressed that one needs balance in your life between home and work. God knows I have not always walked the walk. It is hard as a chef or anyone with strong passions for their craft. The good things in life remind me to keep my passion. To all the fellow cooks and foodies out there...I dedicate this small piece of my passion and our work here to you...

white asparagus & morel salad, green asparagus bread, white asparagus gelato, crispy lomo
chive blossom vinaigrette

dungeness crab spring pea "cobbler"
honshimejii mushrooms, tarragon, savory bacon streusel, peas, lobster essence
chilled english pea "boisson", creme fraiche, meyer lemon oil

almond crusted local albacore tuna, fava bean tapenade, fennel-radish salad,
chorizo-tomato-green garbanzo sauce

grilled oregon lamb tenderloin, king trumpet mushrooms, truffle yogurt
garlic-eggplant-tripe "tartine", ramp pesto, garlic shortdough, lamb jus

cinnamon-caramel milkshake, chocolate pearls, vanilla bean

part two of dessert symphony...
lehua honey pot de creme, kumquats, kumquat sorbet, macadamia cookies
chocolate-pralione silk, smoked cherry wood ice cream, langue du chat wafer
strawberry-rhubarb crisp, tapioca, muscovado streusel, spruce tip ice cream
chocolate-peanut butter bar, blueberries, mint, chocolate sauce
buttermilk beignets, pecans, banana pudding, espresso ice cream

All That Remains...

A reference to a current metal bands name...a proclamation about the end of a circumstance or event...or perhaps...the substance which is left after something is finished, such as a magnificent meal. In this case of a tasting menu, it is the photos, memories and visions left behind by the crue and I. We plan and procure, we create and we craft, we execute and we cook, we converse and we clean. In the end, it doesn't even matter what we have done in the past, the successes of our history or what we intend to do in the future. It is about what we have just accomplished and what our guests thought about the experience. We are merely and only as good as our last meal. Sure it matters what we think about ourselves as we tend to be much more critical about our work than perhaps those of our guests. Hell, even on my best dishes or meals that have garnered the highest of accolades have I found my many flaws and been unsatisfied of what I had done. That is what is called a perfectionist. Always seeking, never achieving. Another story. Here are some of the dishes recently crafted. They were tasty, flavorful, exciting, and inspiring. All that remains...the quest and search for that next nirvana.

poached shigoku oyster, rhubarb gelee, cara cara orange, fennel
radishes, lemon oil, american sturgeon caviar

asparagus-lobster salad, truffles, asparagus bread, white asparagus gelato
farmer arugula, maple-bourbon vinaigrette

seared almond crusted foie gras, apple-duck-celery salad, viognier gel
grains of paradise laced rhubarb, olive oil-chocolate caramel, nibs

plancha grilled copper river sockeye salmon belly, kumquats
chive blossom-chive-yuzu aioli

sous vide wild boar loin, garbanzo-olive-almond tapenade, saba potatoes
garlic nettles, morels, fava bean pancake, green apple mustard sauce, brown butter

pre-dessert
coconut gel, blueberries, roasted pineapple, toasted coconut, lemon balm ice

seared fluke, quinoa, ramps, morels, peas, pea jus, meyer lemon olive oil

foie gras, alternate presentation

pistachio & saba crusted lamb loin, romesco potatoes
mushroom nettles, baby scarlet turnips, king trumpet mushrooms
garbanzo-parsley-lemon salad, spruce jus