I finally have the Filipino Flavor Excursion dinner menu somewhat finalized. There may have to be last minute modifications based on ingredient availability, but I already have most of it. I have now sent the menu to my wine guy and he is working with his experts to pair up 4 wines to accompany the courses. We still have 4 slots as of this writing. The cost is $60/pp and includes the wines. It'll be happening on Saturday February 23rd at 6 pm.
Amuse bouche~fresh summer roll with nuoc cham dipping suace
Appetizer~ Chicken satay with peanut dipping sauce
Soup~Chicken soup with coconut
Salad~ Green papaya salad
Seafood~ Filipino paella-shrimp, mussels, octopus, calamari, mahi-mahi
Fresh Fruit~ papaya, mango, kiwi and lychee with Salabat ginger tea
Meat course~ Pork adobo with rice noodles
Dessert course~Cashew custard in meringue
The Valentine's dinner is this week. We will be open regular hours and the full dinner menu will be available. However, I have put together a special Valentine's dinner available in limited quantity. The oysters are a variety called Fanny Bay and are being flown in from the Pacific northwest coast. Fanny Bay Oysters are found in the nutrient rich waters of Baynes Sound on the eastern side of Vancouver Island, BC. The flavor profile description is medium salty and firm texture with a pronounced cucumber and fruity finish. When you make reservations you may select your time frame. The cost for the special dinner is $28/pp. Here's that special aphrodisiac menu~
Oyster shooter~chili rimmed glass, fresh oyster, vodka, cocktail sauce, lime
*
Oysters on the half shell with fresh remoulade
or Oysters Rockefeller- cooked on the half-shell with bacon and bread crumbs
*
Spinach and arugula salad with feta, strawberries, marinated figs, pomegranates
and walnuts topped with our sweet sesame dressing
*
Mussels in a light curry sauce over freshly made black squid pasta
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Palate cleanser~cucumber ice cream
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Roasted garlic-studded beef sirloin roast with creamy horseradish sauce and duchess potatoes
*
Raspberry tira misu or chocolate cheesecake
We hope to have some Asti and champagne available as well as our usual lineup of wines.
We've begun planting some of our fresh herbs and sprouts. The pea sprouts will be the first to come out and hopefully you'll see signs of them on your plates soon. I love how spring is a slow build up of energy here. It is palpable. Even before the bales of soil go out in the feed stores' parking lots, plans are bring made for seed swaps and discussions fill the air over which varieties to plant. Now, more than ever, avoiding seed in your food plot that has been genetically modified is a big topic. GMOs are creeping into our diets more insidiously than a runaway kudzu. It is hard to believe you actually have to seek out seeds that have not been modified to work with "round-up". We prefer to buy our produce from folks who are paying attention to these issues and support their choices. During the winter months we buy much of the produce that goes into the stir-fries from Maranatha Farm. Mary and Skip Badiny are committed to growing organically and we love what they bring us. They also produce much of our summer tomatoes, herbs and fresh veggies.
We get our mushrooms locally from Willow Mountain Mushrooms—buttons, portabellas, and shitakes and occasionally oyster mushrooms. Our eggs are from an Amish farm in the Seymour area. They are free range, antibiotic-free and very tasty. I often find double yolkers. If you know anyone raising Aracana chickens please tell them I'd like to buy eggs from them. They come in with shells already a lovely greenish blue—almost the color of our walls. I just love peeling them for the spinach salad. We now have staff that are ardent gardeners themselves and the peelings and produce trash that doesn't make it into our weekly veggie broth goes home with them for their compost heaps.
One of our newest additions to the staff is Amy. She comes with an impressive experience history that includes several years of working in a vegetarian restaurant in Lawrence, Kansas. She also spent time in a cafe much like ours where the quality of the food was a high priority and visiting with customers an important part of her job. We are excited to have her as a part of our collaborative team. She brings a fresh level of passion and excitement to the game. We plan on starting to open for Monday lunches around the beginning of March and Meatless Monday lunch specials will be her personal contribution. Watch for it.
More and more we seem to be becoming something of a community hub. We are proud of that and want you to know that if you have a group that likes to meet casually on a weekly or monthly basis, we are happy to host it. We currently often have knitters meeting about 10 am in the annex on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings. Even though we are not open for business, our tables are available for a quiet meeting space. Did you know we also have free WiFi? Our password is LunchBunch. All one word with the L and the B capitalized.
If you want get our weekly blog with the upcoming menu specials, be sure to sign up with your email address at the counter. Alternatively, you can find us on Facebook—A La Carte Cafe WP. If you liked our food please tell the world via Facebook or one of the rating sites like Yelp.com. We always are seeking your feedback, good or bad. We listen and try to keep up with your desires and preferences. We know we can't please everyone—but we wish to be more inclusive than not. Our commitment is to producing fresh real food from scratch using as much local sourcing as possible. We let the food speak for itself and thus far have grown almost entirely via word of mouth. Now in our third year, we have an ad in the Buzz to help build the midweek dinner "regulars." Please continue to share us with your family and friends. The comment we most frequently hear from newcomers is "This is here in West Plains? I feel like I'm eating at a place I'd only find in a big city." Thank you. My personal creative mission is to expand your palate by presenting a variety of foods not generally found in the local dining establishments. This might translate to using a wider variety of vegetables in your salads or stir-fries, or acquainting you with the foods from a foreign cuisine. Sometimes we just flat out get experimental. It is all about having fun and really enjoying your meal-time. In this fast-paced world we invite you to take a few moments to breathe, visit with friends and family and enjoy the flavors passing over your tongue.
Now to this week's lunch and dinner specials~~
~~Lunches~~
Tuesday~ Crab and pimento cheese quesadilla with all the fixings-sr cream, guacamole, salsa, chips $7.99
Wednesday~1905 salad—Adapted from the Columbia Restaurant in Tampa, FL—Romaine, Swiss cheese, turkey, tomatoes, Romano cheese, Kalamata olives and the 1905 dressing which has strong lemon and Worchestershire flavorings.**customer favorite heads up!$7.75
Thursday~Valentine's Day~De-constructed chicken pot pie—crepes with creamy chicken filling plus a variety of fresh mixed veggies and a side salad.$7.99
Friday~Swiss Chard, fennel, bacon and muenster cheese quiche with a side salad $7.99
~~Dinners~~
Flavor journey~~Lemon chicken pasta plus soup or salad. Made with fresh lemon juice,olive oil, capers, fennel sprigs and garlic plus linguine. $12.99 Available all week.
Seafood~~ Available Wednesday through Friday~~ Havana Mahi-mahi $19 Papaya and mango Mojito glaze, Caribbean kimchee, served with a citrus and arugula salad, pencil asparagus, and jasmine rice. You asked for good seafood...
Also available Wed- Fri or until gone—Flown in fresh from the Pacific northwest! Fanny Bay oysters on the half shell. Half dozen $16, dozen $24.
As you can see, we are starting to have some real fun. I love having the additional collaborative energy. I've always wanted to have this be more than the sum of its parts. There is some serious synergy starting to happen. I am really tickled to get to share a bit of our creativity via the Flavor Excursion. Thank you for the amazing level of support you have shared with us. It keeps us motivated and excited about what comes next.
Hope this week is a grand one for you. Don't forget to take care of your Honey!
~~Susan
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