Food Favorites for Fall

Wow! How do we follow up on last week? So many things went so nicely.

First of all—again, thank you for supporting our bringing in the fresh fish from Montauk, NY. Golden tilefish had not been on my radar previously. I think you'll agree that it was a nicely textured, mild fish with a very sweet taste. I enjoyed cooking it both in the curry broth and pan-searing it, then laying it over puttanesca and pasta. The scallops were an exceptional treat for me. They are my favorite seafood. These were huge, had never been in any solutions, and the texture and flavor were true.

I got the pumpkin mousse cornucopias with pecan praline sauce made last week but somehow never found time for the crepes with mascarpone and lemon sauce. They will be a priority this week along with a dessert featuring local wild persimmons. We are fortunate to have these local fruit and although most of us may have never tried a ripe persimmon, they have a reputation for being precious and delicious. So I invite you to expand your palate in dessert direction this week. Rick will also make another New York Style cheesecake. Thanks for the feedback on this concoction.

The Flavor Journey is back this week with a return of Beef Bourguignon. I made it last spring, and many of you really enjoyed it. Look for it at dinner starting Tuesday. I'll pair it with a baked potato and my seasonal stir-fry. Right now the stir-fry includes garlic, yellow onions, red cabbage, tat-soi, and zucchini. In case you hadn't noticed, that changes week to week depending on what is in season and available. Mary Badiny keeps me in fresh greens, and they change regularly. The beef bourguignon is sauteed with onions, mushrooms, carrots and, of course, burgundy wine.

We have wood-fired the remaining 5 filets of golden tilefish, and they will show up on the lunch menu as an upscale fish taco and on the dinner menu served over linguine with a roasted red pepper sauce. When they are gone—they are gone...until next time. I expect I'll bring in fresh fish again after Thanksgiving.

This week much attention and energy is going toward the beer tasting on Wednesday evening. I am happy to tell you we have sold out the 45 places we had available. We'll be pairing national craft beers (small batch specialties) with various appetizers. Although it isn't a meal, I expect by the time you have tasted the 7 beers plus the accompanying appetizers, you'll be full. In case you are not, we'll offer a 15% discount on your dinner that night.

Music returns this week with Gordon Johnston. His piano renditions of Van Morrison and similar songs, as well as his own tunes, are a customer favorite. Welcome him back and tip him well, please.

Let me introduce you to some of our staff. This week our senior dinner server, Ashley Romans, gets the highlight. This wonder-woman mother of 4 is going to nursing school and will graduate next spring. With the oldest kid under 8, she maintains an energy level I can only marvel at. She is superb at diving in and figuring it out while smiling and keeping a wonderful attitude. How fortunate we are to have her as a part of our team!

Here's the lunch menu~~

Tuesday~ Fish tacos made with wood-fired golden tilefish, plus side  $8.50
Wednesday~ Chicken alfredo over penne with side salad  $7.50
Thursday~ Spinach mushroom quiche with side salad  $7.50
Friday~ Baked potatoes topped with broccoli, Cheddar and wood-fired chicken with side salad  $7.50

Soups: Start the week with a chicken noodle soup that features our wood-fired chicken. Toward the end of the week I'll change over to posole—another customer favorite.

Seafood~ Available starting with Tuesday dinner until gone~ wood-fired golden tilefish served on top of linguine with roasted red pepper sauce. Soup or salad.  $14.99

Flavor Journey~ Beef Bourguignon served with baked potato or garlic mashed potatoes plus stir-fry of seasonal veggies. Soup or salad.  $14.99

As always, I hope you have a lovely week. Notice the last of the fall color as it tumbles from the trees.

~~Susan

Withered and seeking cool relief

The month of July has gotten off to an August-type start. We moved up here to escape the Texas weather! Luckily we grew up with this weather and know the value of a) staying inside in the cool, and b) foods that can make it seem a bit cooler.

In case you are chomping at the bit to see us this week, be aware that we are remaining closed until Thursday. It just didn't make sense to come in for a single day...when we need the rest. But I am using this resting time wisely to get ready for what comes next.

Thanks to the really wonderful support we got from our customers, there was only a single fish left from the sockeye salmon we flew in. I filleted it and Jon lightly cooked it on the wood fire. (I then froze the cooked meat.) I'll use it in 2 dishes this week for as long as it lasts. I expect to get about 8 servings of each dish. The first will be a lunch dish—wood-fired salmon tacos on corn or flour tortillas, with a peach- mango salsa. The last time we made them, they flew out the door. If you didn't already see the color of this fish's flesh, you'll be amazed at the depth of its redness.

The evening use of this salmon will be in a roasted red pepper, wood-fired salmon pasta. The sauce will be cream-cheese based. It'll be topped with fresh chopped local Juliette tomatoes and basil. It is my personal favorite seafood pasta. Of course, it'll come with a side salad, or for an additional $2.50 you can upgrade to a Caprese salad made with fresh local heirloom tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and fresh basil topped with extra-virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper.

Have you tried my Solstice salad at lunch yet? It starts with the ingredients of the Caprese (as above) but is served atop a bed of Romaine plus a serving of wood-fired chicken for $6.99.

Friday night the service was slower than I'd like to be known for. To the end of remedying that, we are moving Rick up to the kitchen to assist in food prep on Friday nights. His many years of experience in this arena will make my job much easier and get your dinners out faster. As has always been our policy, we are not trying to turn the tables, merely get you fed in a reasonable amount of time.

To keep things cool we are bringing out some refreshing desserts. Our newest dessert uses fresh peaches. We are grilling sour cream pound cake  and fresh peach slices in butter and cinnamon.
The plate gets a drizzle of vanilla cream. Then we top it with the grilled poundcake and slices of peaches. Then we add natural vanilla ice cream, caramel syrup and sliced almonds. Oh my!!! $5.

The next dessert is a key lime bar that has coconut, white chocolate and real key lime juice and lime zest. We'll serve it with our own coconut ice cream, whipped cream and lime zest and almonds. $5.

Survey time!~~
I want to get back to creating some special "Flavor journey" meals. It is nice to be able to add a special that takes your taste buds on an adventure but it is nothing like a whole meal geared around a specific cuisine. Recent reading has presented me with menus based in Corsica, Portugal and even Somalia. I know it would be fun to create an evening of any of these cuisines. The challenge becomes WHEN? In the past we participated in a "dinner club" that met occasionally and we did exactly that—served a full ethnic cuisine. I was able to share a bit of the history of the foods as well as why the specific foods are part of their cuisine. I think this group faded out. I'd like to bring back the concept. To do it right we'd need to dedicate an evening to JUST that MEAL. So my survey question is—what night of the week, except Friday, would you most likely be available for such a feast? We'd be bringing in special ingredients and the cost would be appropriate—probably about $30 per person, plus wine. So part 2 of the survey is—would you be willing to pay for such a feast?  We would promote it at least a month in advance and take reservations. There would have to be a minimum of 20 participants to make it worthwhile, and you would have to make a committment. Please let me know via Facebook, email, or fill out a survey card while dining at the cafe. Depending on your response, we'll be planning the next Flavor Journey soon.

So here's the short version of this week's specials menu for Thursday & Friday~~

Lunch~ (both days) Wood-fired salmon tacos with peach-mango salsa $7.50;  Pork bahn mi sandwich with side $6.99

Dinner~ (both days) Wood-fired salmon pasta with side salad $12.99, or upgrade to Caprese salad +$2.50
Italian seasoned slow-cooked pork chop served with eggplant parmesan and black-eyed peas and side salad.  $11.99 (Salad upgrade also available.)

As always, I look forward to your feedback, comments and your smiling, hungry face. Have a great week; we'll see you Thursday & Friday!

~~Susan

They are here!!!!!!

As promised, we have flown in fresh stone crab from Florida. By the time you read this they will be available. We expect to serve them primarily at dinner, but if you have a hankering to give them a try at lunch, you may at $4.50 per claw. We'll serve them at dinner for $18/ for four claws; 22.50 for 5. At dinner, I'll serve them with a nice side salad, baked potato and fresh green beans served in an Asian style. The claws will be served either cold or lightly steamed (your choice) and with a side of clarified butter for dipping. This is the last chance to get Stone crab until October as the season ends this week. Knowing we have the audience to bring in this remarkable seafood gives me great pleasure. To my way of thinking, stone crabs have the sweetest meat. Please let me know early in the week whether you need me to save some for you. We only have 25 lbs. and I expect them to go rather quickly. I certainly wouldn't wait until Friday for your fix. These are brought in via overnight shipment from Florida where the boat is docked.

Assuming we have no trouble selling all the crab, I will be bringing in Red Snapper next week. It'll come from the vessel Hired Gun out of Destin, FL. There is nothing as secure as knowing, not only that your food is wild, line-caught but also knowing the vessel itself. I feel very priviledged to be a part of the Chef's Collaborative. It is the organization that connects up chefs with sustainable sourcing of ingredients. It has given us a niche in the local market that is pretty much ignored by other establishments and allows us to bring you the freshest of ingredients.

Last week we initiated "Girls' Night Out." What a fun evening! We made a White Sangria we sold by the glass and most thought it a lovely addition. Sangria combines wine with fresh fruit. Also, we have now added Moscato to our wine list. It is a fairly sweet wine that many ladies have asked about. As before, we'll have smaller sized portions of our seafood and Flavor Journey. These will be regular features of our "Girls' Night Out." We'll also have some special appetizers just for you. I love hearing the background chatter in a full dining room and it certainly was chattery on Thursday!  It looks like this could be an enjoyable new tradition. Bring out your girlfriends, your mom, your daughters and join the blast.

As I mentioned last week, we are taking over the space next door. This means that we'll have more room to spread out, both at lunch and dinner. We don't have it all painted and primped yet, but we'll make the space available when needed. We still need to invest in some more tables and chairs. This week we added items the fire department inspection reminded us we needed to include. Also, after burning out 2 hand-mixers in the course of less than a year, we have purchased a new Cuisinart heavy duty hand mixer. Fortunately, we already had a good stand-mixer.

NEXT week~ Renee Wood Trio returns with jazz for your dining pleasure.

The flavor journey this week will be an Elk Meatloaf. This very flavorful, lowfat meat makes a wonderful meatloaf. We source our elk locally—it is raised in Dora. I'll top it with a hoisin sauce to give it a bit of an Asian flair. We'll serve it with a salad, garlic mashed potatoes, fresh green beans. $10.99

Here's this week's lunch menu followed by the dinner menu~~
Tuesday~50 cents off Trout Romans
Wednesday~ Thai chicken lettuce wraps with a sweet and sour rice plus side; $6.75
Thursday~Chicken Cordon Bleu tamales (stuffed with chicken and ham) with Swiss cheese sauce and asparagus risotto. $6.75
Friday~Spinach mushroom quiche with side salad $6.75

Seafood~ Fresh stone crab claws served with a side salad plus baked potato and Asian green beans. $18/4 claws, $22.50 for 5; add'l claws at $4 each.
Flavor journey~Elk Meatloaf; salad, garlic mashed potatoes, fresh green beans $10.99

Well that's it, folks. We hope you have a lovely week and even more that you get a chance to join us this week.

~~~Susan

Calm before the storm...

Wow! Last week was really something! It started off with Bruce calling in sick for the first time in a year. Then Jon's back went haywire. We had events scheduled all week and in spite of all the craziness, things went well. In fact we had our strongest week ever. Thank you!

We love getting the calls from the doctors' offices requesting we cater their tech meetings. To our delight, several have begun requesting our food, telling us it provides about the healthiest and tastiest options in town. Yeah, us! I really have tried to keep the dining options ones that make you feel good about your meal decisions. Too many times, I, myself have ordered something at a restaurant and thought, oh what have I done? Later, my body is trying to handle the results of too much fried foods. Tasty food is easy to order. We want to make healthy food just as tasty and easy to choose.

Friday night last week was a hoot! Rick Mize and Dustin Collins took us to the Emerald Isle with rollicking Irish folktunes. Thank you for joining us. We had a blast! You'll be seeing more of Rick as he is helping us out in the cafe both at lunch and dinner. His experience should help expedite getting your meals on the table faster and keeping your glasses full.

I continue to be delighted with the fresh fish we have been able to serve Wednesday through Friday evenings. This week we will have FRESH mahi-mahi. Since there are no commercial fish farms raising mahi-mahi we can be sure it is wild-caught. This brilliantly colored fish swims close to the surface eating shrimp and small fish in warm tropical waters. You may have heard it called dolphin or dorado. It is not the porpoise, a mammal we often call dolphin—like Flipper. This light flavored, pink meated fish has some of the sweetest meat in the fish world. We are thinking tropical here in our treatment. Macadamia Nut Crusted Mahi Mahi is first par-baked then finished with a slathering of coconut milk, melted butter, panko bread crumbs and ground macadamia nuts. We'll pair it with rice that has been cooked with coconut milk to give it a soft finish and our stir-fry made with various Asian vegetables. For a first course you will be given a choice of soup or salad. $14.99 FYI~ we usually only have about 10-12 servings available for the week. If you really want it, I encourage you to call in with a reservation and a request that we hold a serving for you.

I've been all over the map (pardon the pun) with regard to this week's Flavor Journey. I finally decided the Flavor Journey this week takes us to France—specifically the Burgundy region. We'll experience the well-known French dish Beef Burgundy or Boeuf Bourguignon. The meat for this dish is a beef rump roast that is cut into bite size pieces and marinated a long time in a good quality red wine. In this case we are using Traver Home Winery's Chambourcin from just up the road in Willow Springs plus a bit of brandy. It may remind you of a good beef stew but the marinating in wine for many hours gives a distinctive flavor to the beef. Cooked in a braise of carrots, onions, beef broth and herbs for several hours, the result is gentle on the tongue. The dish is finished with butter-sautéed mushrooms. We'll pair it with our red-skinned garlic mashed potatoes. You'll get your choice of soup or salad, as well. $11.99 Are you hungry yet?

Here's this week's lunch menus~~
Tuesday~ 50 cents off the Winter Salad. We're running out of time for this yummy salad that begins with your choice of arugula or spinach, red onion, chunks of tomato, feta cheese, avocado and red grapefruit, pomegranate and almonds and served with our honey mustard dressing. Don't miss it or you'll have to wait until next year.
Wednesday~ Empanadas~ at the request of one of our customers (Phil, this is for you!!) we are bringing this dish back for an encore. We are doing the Argentinian version here by wrapping meats and veggies in a blanket of pie crust and baking it. Served with a side salad $6.75
Thursday~Sweet Italian sausage tamales, marinara and rainbow rice. Bruce's melding of cultures is always a delight and his home made tamales are sure to fill you up. $6.75
Friday~Chicken pot pie. We'll make it all from scratch using fresh veggies and our own pie crust. Served with a side salad. $6.75

Update on the license—step 2 is the paperwork to change the sales tax number to the LLC. That should be done by Wednesday and the final package to the state should go out this week. I have spoken to the person on the state level who will be handling our application. She seemed optimistic that we might have it in the timeframe we're hoping for— St. Patrick's Day. Fingers crossed!

Have you noticed the bright yellow mums on the tables? I love how they brighten the place. Spring is so close I can taste it!

As always—we are here because you are letting us know that what we are doing, while unusual in these parts, is what you are looking for. We thank you for sharing your love and energy with us. Your feedback, input and ideas mean the world to us and we look forward to what you have to tell us. When we get it right, we love to hear about it. When we miss—we need to hear about it, too.

Have a warm early spring week!~~

Susan

EEWWWWWW! The smell of spring is in the air!

As one who is a transplant to the Ozarks from the lower South, I am keenly aware of the building excitement that precedes the bursting forth of Spring. To me the first harbinger of Spring is the smell of skunks in the air. Getting into West Plains presents a virtual black and white slalom. But the scent of skunks is the trigger that tells me that Spring is really approaching quickly. So I am already getting excited. As happens each pre-spring, I am thinking ahead to what I might successfully plant. I think I'll stick to mostly herbs this year and a few flowers, since I only get to use the containers. I think this will be their best use. I am not a terrific plant Mommy. Survival of the fittest marks success in my garden. For the first time, my rosemary has actually survived the winter. I am hoping my lemon grass has as well. We use lots of mint, oregano, rosemary, parsley and marjoram around here; so they will get my first priorities and biggest pots. I'll also do lots of jalapeno peppers and nasturtiums. They make pretty container plantings and produce lots of usable fruit.

Our new dinner service is going fairly well. For me it has been a real skill expander. Learning to cook items to order and have the timing of several different meals come out at the same time has been my biggest hurdle. I'm MUCH better at it now than I was 3 weeks ago. Bruce was already a master of the sauté pan. He's been teaching me. On Friday nights he mans the stove top while I handle the other end of things.

This week the fresh seafood is fillet of sole. The sole is a flat fish that skims along the bottom of warm seas. Bruce will be stuffing the fillets with crab and shrimp, a bit of cheese and bread crumbs. This fish has a very delicate texture and equally delicate taste. They will be baked to order, so they are a nice low-fat option. Available Wednesday—Friday, it is served with a choice of soup or salad and accompanied by stir-fried bok-choy and aromatic veggies (garlic and onions), plus a bit of white rice. $14.99

The Flavor Journey for dinner this week takes us to Indonesia and the Philippines. Adobo is the acknowledged national dish of the Philippines. While we may associate adobo as that sauce that is in the can of chipotles, the Filipino version is quite different. The word adobo is Spanish for sauce. In this case the basics are soy sauce, cider vinegar, garlic cloves, bay leaves and pepper. This version also uses coconut milk in the braising liquid.  I am using skin-on chicken thighs as they are most flavorful and the skin, after being crisped, is craggy enough to hold onto the sauce. It will be served with  choice of soup or side salad and accompanied by my stir-fried bok-choy medley and white rice. $9.99

A new option for the dinner menu is the Coleman Natural grilled chicken breast. These chickens are raised totally without growth hormones or antibiotics on small farms and allowed much more space than most commercially-raised chickens. I am delighted to have this option available for you. We'll have 2 versions. The first is a simple grilled breast topped with olive oil and herbs. The second, we'll call Chicken A La Carte, is topped with goat cheese, sun-dried tomatoes and a basil lemon butter sauce. Both will come with a choice of soup or side salad. The simple grilled version comes with garlic mashed potatoes and the daily stir-fry (10.99 for a single breast, add a second for $3 more). The "A La Carte" version will come with pesto linguine (12.99 for a single breast; add a second for $3 more).

The soups this week~ We'll start out with the roasted root vegetable soup. By Wednesday we'll also have French onion.

Now onto the lunch menu for the week~
Tuesday~Celebrate Mardi Gras! We'll have red beans and rice cooked with andouille and boudin sausage. Laissez les bons temps rouler (Pronounced:(Lay say lay bohn tohn roo lay)~ Let the good times roll! A big bowl for $6.75.
Wednesday~Lemon chicken pasta salad served over a bed of arugula. $6.75
Thursday~Chicken gumbo tamales with buttered orzo $6.75
Friday~Arugula, mushroom and tomato quiche served with a side salad $6.75

The music this Friday night is the duo of Rick Mize and Dustin Collins aka Chief Wahoo and the Electric Tonic. The sound is Irish Folk and it is fun and bouncy. We had lots of great feedback when they joined us last time.

Regarding the "Tavern License", the city council will review our application this Tuesday. We expect to receive approval on Wednesday. Then we have to submit our packet to the state. We have most every particle for that submission ready to go. Our target is to be ready to serve beer and wine by St. Patrick's Day. Not sure we'll make that target, but that is what we are shooting for.

Thank you for sharing this journey with us. Every day we are learning something new. Our relationship with our customers and our suppliers is as important to us as the food we prepare. We welcome your feedback and input. I have been especially appreciative of the warmth with which our new dinner menu has been received.  Remember~ the "Buy one-Get one" dinner special is only available until the end of the month. Pick up your coupon when you are in for lunch.

Have a lovely near-spring week~~

Susan

Developments

After reviewing how long it looks like the tavern license is likely to take we decided to jump into the dinner game a bit earlier. So, starting Tuesday January 31st we will serve dinner 4 nights a week. Here's the general game plan—we will close out Mondays (sorry gang we only have SO much energy) and be open for both lunch and dinner Tuesday —Friday. Initially, we will probably close between meal services. After we get that darn license we will probably remain open from 11a.m—8p.m. I say probably because you are the ones who will eventually dictate that.

I am currently designing the dinner menu. It will include many of your favorites plus regular entrée type dishes. We have worked out an alliance with a local grocer to have access to fresh, never frozen seafood weekly. We also will add wait staff to take your orders and provide your table service. In other words, we will be like most other restaurants instead of the hybrid we've been cobbling together for Friday nights. You will no longer be limited to three entrées. Live music will continue on Friday nights and Thursday will allow for Open Mic. Tuesday and Wednesday we will have our usual light background jazz.

We have been hearing for a year now how we need to be open at night to expand our customer base. The trick has been doing it without wearing ourselves out. We THINK we have a grasp on how to make it work and I know there will be a learning curve. I expect it will actually be much easier for me in that I won't be rushing to get all the meals ready at once for Friday nights.

We are also working to expand our marketing through social media and the first benefit of that for you will be to give you a "buy one, get one free" dinner. This only applies to dinners and only in the month of February. This way you can give us a try and save money at the same time. It will be available to those who receive our weekly email updates. So if you haven't signed up, please do so. Also, if you will "like" us on our Facebook page you will know when we offer these great deals. Sometimes they may include free desserts or reward you for bringing in new customers. We are very aware that you are our greatest asset for marketing. We would not be here today had it not been for your warm response and willingness to help spread the word. Thank you.

Before I get into the flavor journeys this week, let me remind you that Jon Lumsden will be the  music this Friday night—with a new twist. Jon has just joined forces with guitarist Greg Kwalume, who will join him on lead guitar this Friday! They've just begun to work on some tunes together, including learning some new songs. Their gentle laid-back jazzy style will carry you along. The mellow 7-string rythym guitar creates a warm foundation, and Jon's sweet vocal tones will take you on a very gentle journey through the Great American Songbook. His own tunes shine a quiet light into his soul. You'll enjoy the ride. Reservations strongly encouraged.

Here's information about this week's Flavor Journeys—

• All Week~ Winter Salad will be on sale; 50 cents off @ $5.99. Made with spinach or arugula, red onion slivers, chunks of tomato, red grapefruit, avocado and feta cheese and topped with pomegranate and almonds. Honey mustard dressing made to accompany.
• Soups~ we'll start the week off with French Onion—the soup that made Bruce famous; I'll add in Creamy Bisque of Roasted Garnet Yams made from organic Garnet Yams—like a sweet potato but sweeter and creamier; Bruce will finish the week with Beef and Vegatable soup.
• Desserts~We'll start off with White Chocolate Cheesecake. I plan to make a Carrot Cake and a gluten free Walnut/ Blueberry Tart.
• Monday~Pimento Cheese Quesadillas. A crowd favorite made in-house with fire roasted red peppers, cheddar, cream cheese plus a touch of jalapeno and spices. Served with trio of sides~salsa, sour cream and guacamole plus tortilla chips. $6.75
• Tuesday~Bruce's tamales go Italian with chicken florentine~ that translates to chicken and spinach filled tamales with a spinach sauce and mushroom risotto. $6.75
• Wednesday~Herbed crepes with wood-fired chicken in a tarragon cream sauce with mushrooms, broccoli and shredded parmesan. Served with a side salad. $6.75
• Thursday~Molletes Pizzas. In Mexico they are made on small rolls. We'll use a pizza blank as a base. I'll add black bean frijoles, grilled onions and peppers plus a few jalapenos and top with monterey jack cheese. All this gets melty and gooey in the broiler. Accompanied by a side salad. $7.00
• Friday~Wood-fired Elk Burgers. They are back by popular demand. Served cooked-to-order on a Roman bun with melted gruyere and sauteed mushrooms and onions. Accompanied by spicy oven roasted potatoes. $8.00
• Remember: The new dinners don't start until January 31st. This week is the usual Friday format.
• Seafood Entrée~Pan-seared, wild-caught Pacific salmon with an Asian-influenced sauce and mango salsa served with sesame sautéed noodles. Starts with a side salad  $13
• Meat Entrée~Chicken O'Brien. Grilled chicken topped with basil, sun-dried tomatoes and Fontina cheese. Served over buttered noodles. Starts with  side salad  $13
• Vegetarian Entrée~Stir-fried broccoli, onions and shitaki mushrooms in a teri-yaki sauce served over sesame sautéed noodles. Starts with a side salad. $11
• If you prefer not to eat one of the above entree offerings on Friday night, you may call in before 1pm Friday and request one of our signature salads. The servings will be larger with more meat and be accompanied by a biscuit. The cost is $10.     

As we start this new year we are made very aware of just how fortunate we have been to share your business, your warmth, encouragement and support. We strongly feel that you are what shapes what we become. We not only enjoy your input, we relish it and rely upon it. Thank you~~

~~Susan

Volatile week ahead—better seek comfort food

The weather this week will be all over the temp and rain guage. We'll start out warmer than last week then plunge into the cooler ranges toward the end. Might even have to dodge some rain.  Sounds like time for foods that have some stability and comfort.

We are having some challenges in keeping out the flies with the screen doors. The wind blowing through tends to open the front door just enough to invite them in. Grrr. I have purchased an additonal spring and hope to tighten the existing one. Bear with us on that.

I've been looking for recipes that use edamame (fresh soy beans) in more ways than simply cooked in salted water. I have found an edamame hummus recipe that sounds quite interesting. I'll make it by mid-week for your appetizing pleasure. I'll serve it with sliced, toasted Romans.

Thank you, again, for your input on the surveys. The information you share gives us the umph we need to make this a destination you keep high on your priority list. It allows us to tweak your ideal scene without making expensive mistakes. We've been able to learn that the most frequently listened to radio stations of our customers are NPR and 88.1. We've also learned, over time, that the most common demographic of our customers is that they are well traveled. That tickles me, no end. It is those who have been to other places, tasted yummy foods and know what has been missing here, locally, that seem to appreciate what we do. Yeah!!!!

We'll start the week out with a French onion soup and salad special that will run all week. I even made some nice rolls to serve with it. Bruce makes the BEST French onion soup and he uses tons of onions. We'll top it with toasted croutons and parmesan rounds.

I have not done sushi in quite a while since the new Chinese buffet has done a pretty good job of that. But I have had several requests for sushi and will honor those requests. Monday I am doing spicy tuna rolls served with a cucumber/seaweed salad. It will come with a cup of soup (French onion) for $6.50

Tuesday Bruce will awe us with his hand-built tamales. This time he is going Italian with a sweet Italian sausage to stuff them, covered by his homemade marinara and rice. $6.50

Wednesday, the weather drops the temps and I think a classic beef stew is in order. Lots of beef, potatoes, carrots, onions in a rich broth, cooked until it falls apart. Paired with a small side salad and dinner roll for $6.50.

Thursday, the pizzas turn white with an alfredo sauce base topped with artichokes. With a side salad—$7.00

Friday, more comfort food. Grilled pork chops with garlic sauce, yellow squash casserole, fresh green beans and a side salad for $7.00

Desserts during the week will include a peach/nectarine galette (kind of a free-form tart) and a Boston Cream Pie made by me. Bruce has whipped up a new dessert based on the classic Bananas Foster. It is a layered vanilla pound cake with bananas foster-type filling and a cream cheese frosting. QUITE tasty!

Friday night will be an entertainment delight. Nancy Fohn will take the stage to sing songs from the Great American Songbook. A long-time music teacher who has taught in both Winona and West Plains, this gifted vocalist will strut her stuff accompanied on guitar by Jon Lumsden. I have heard them rehearsing and know they will provide a high level of entertainment.

I think the food Friday night should be just as exciting. We're definitely going on Flavor Journeys this week. It is time to give your taste-buds a travel treat.

We'll head south. The seafood entrée will be shrimp rellenos. They'll be served in little corn husk boats accompanied by a citrus-seasoned slaw, bacon-wrapped stuffed and grilled jalapenos, refried black beans and Spanish rice. Oh my! $12

The meat entrée will be another Indian dish—Chicken Saagwala. This spicy dish features lots of Indian spices but not too much heat. Key flavors include cinnamon, garam marsala, ginger, tumeric, garlic and cayenne. The main ingredients are chicken and spinach. This dish will be paired with Chapatis—a freshly made Indian flat bread, white rice and a salad called Kachumber which showcases tomatoes, cucumber and onion. You don't even need your passport. $12

The vegetarian entrée heads south, as well. It will be Sweet corn tamales with adobo sauce, tomato carpaccio with tomatillos, avocado and fresh herbs and classic white rice with plantains. $10

I highly suggest you each order something different and share! No charge for extra plates.

Overall, I think this will be a fun week. Please join us. Don't forget to give us a review on Yelp.com. We appreciate the input!
~~Susan

Satisfaction!

Last week ended on a very satisfying note. Despite a roller coaster that was nearly as crazy as last week's stock market, we ended the week in good shape. The response to the fresh Coho salmon we flew in was very exciting. I am pretty sure everyone enjoyed their dinners. This is very encouraging and we'll plan on getting in fresh seafood once a month, for now. As far as I know, we are the only place within 100 miles to serve FRESH seafood. Your support and expanded palates allow this option. We have access to docks on all the coasts. If I know you have a hankering for a particular variety of fish, I can know what to look for. A few people have let us know that they'd be happy to participate in a co-op buy. This would allow us to reach that 25 pound minimum more readily. If you are a fresh seafood fan and want to be able to participate either as a consumer of seafood or purchase it as it comes from the dock, let me know!!!

We seldom give up our days off as they are so vital to our re-juvenation. But we made an exception for Blackberry Winter's CD release party on Sunday. What a lovely affair. It was wonderful to hear them in person. Boy! Are they polished! Great support by the community, too. I think there were in excess of 50 folks out to hear them and purchase their new CD. We are so proud of them and delighted they chose our venue for their party. We are trying to see if we can book them for a Friday night. Would you like that?

The menu this week will be fairly simple. On Monday I have Peri-peri. That is a South African dish. It begins with oven roasted chicken breasts. I chopped and sauteed them with onions and peppers and eggplant. This is mixed with a sauce that begins with apricot jam. So it has a bit of a sweet side. But the Peri-peri is actually a small bird chili that can be extremely hot. Fortunately it is used in a very small dose. The flavor is somewhat sweet and spicy leaning toward hot without the burn. This is served over egg noodles. It is probably not traditional with the noodles but was the direction I took it. I'll serve it with a side salad.

Tuesday Bruce will be building his tamales using the wood-fired chicken that Jon does so well. He'll top them with salsa verde and an avocado puree. One of our customers brought us tomatillas—to our delight! You gotta have tomatillas for authentic salsa verde. Those are the things that look kinda like green tomatoes with little paper bags on the outside. They also look a bit like a Chinese lantern. Mexican wouldn't be Mexican without this vital fruit. They will be served with a side of black bean frijoles.

Wednesday I'll make another lettuce wrap. This time the dish is "Singapore noodles in lettuce wrap." The rice noodles carry the flavors of the Orient along with strings of carrots. This should be a tasty as well as fun dish to eat. Lots of fresh while getting the fill of the noodles and the spice of Asia.

Thursdays, the pizzas have gone quite well. I have a fresh batch of both portabellas we will smoke and shitakes we can serve fresh. We get those locally from Willow Mountain Mushrooms in Tecumseh. I'll top the pesto base with fresh onion, smoked sausage and lots of mushrooms and mozzarella. This is my personal favorite combination.

Friday lunch will feature pork chops topped with garlic jelly. I did a similar dish in June using the strawberry/chipotle jelly. This time I'll use my garlic jelly to season it. This jelly is made with Maranatha Farm's organic garlic. I'll pair the pork chop with garlic/ parsley potatoes and a side salad. Just the right size for lunch. The jelly is also available for purchase so you can use it at home or as gifts. $4/ 4oz or $7/ 8oz.

Friday night—
First of all, Renee Wood and Tom Rowley will be playing their sweet jazz numbers on saxophone and guitar. They always pack the house—so get your reservation in early.

The seafood entrée will be roasted red pepper pasta topped with fresh tomatoes and salmon. The salmon (frozen but from the batch we flew in) will be wood-fired and chopped. The red pepper sauce begins with fresh red peppers that are fire-roasted and peeled, then chopped and sauteed with garlic and onion. Then the mixture is blended with cream cheese and parmesan for a rich sauce. The fresh tomatoes will give it the signature finish for the season.  All will be served over a penne pasta that hugs the sauce. A side salad will accompany the dish. $12

The meat entrée will be chicken with mango and coconut. It has lots of coconut milk, lemon grass, ginger, shredded coconut and dried mango. Served over jasmine rice this Thai dish will feature less heat and lots of tropical flavor. You can kick up the heat with some Sarachi or habanero sauce. A side salad will start and fresh pineapple will accompany. $12

The vegetarian entrée will feature the Hatch chilis now in season. I'll be doing a Raja relleno dish that uses fire-roasted Hatch chiles combined with cheddar and cotija cheeses to make a thick casserole. This will be served with slices of fresh tomatoes (they are at their best right now), black bean frijoles and a side salad. $10

Bruce will be diving in with his luscious desserts and I'll plan to make the decadent white chocolate cheesecake by mid-week.

We hope your summer is going well. We know this is a busy time of year for many with school starting back up and many extra activities. Please remember we are here cooking up our best. Perhaps you could schedule a planning session around a leisurely lunch. If you are in a hurry, remember you can call in your order and we'll have it ready—for eat-in or take-out.

Have a glorious week—
Susan

Forsythias, redbuds and dogwoods! Oh my!



redbuds in our yard

 Oh, I love this time of year. Everywhere you turn there is a delight for the eyes. I especially get a thrill of returning flowers from trees and perennials. They are like old friends dropping by to add a touch of joy to your day. All too fleetingly they will go away. But while here, these raise your soul a touch, swell your nostrils with a glorious scent  and add color to a landscape that has been well...colorless.

It is also the start of a season of flavor explorations using as many local sources as we can get our hands on. I love finding new sources, new flavors, new textures and sizzles to the tongue.

We are having a blast! We started this adventure quite scared. It's not like we had never started a business before. We have. Several. But we have never done so where it was so vital that we make it pay from the very beginning. You ask most people and you will hear that the restaurant business is not a low risk game. So we have been VERY cautious. We have not used credit lines. We have paid for everything as we went along. That is why we still have plastic tables. But there have been a few upgrades as we have moved forward. The most recent upgreades were to the music system. Phil Orlikowski generously donated a PA system and older speakers. We traded the speakers in to get new smaller ones more appropriate to our venue size. We hope to have them properly hung by next weekend.

We recently added new blackboards for our specials. Thanks again to Bill O. for his efforts. If I can get a quiet moment I'll be able to fill out the new larger blackboards to fill the wall above the kitchen—easy to read, yet changeable as our menu chages during the seasons.

Our next upgrade will likely be new tables. We plan to replace the round outdoor ones with smaller 2-top ones that can be moved together or apart, as needed. This will allow us to seat more parties during the lunch hour and give us more flexibility. Plus we'll be wanting to move the round tables outside so you can dine al fresco.

I am tweaking the desserts. I got a bit of feedback and here is what I learned—during lunch you want simple tasty desserts but at dinner you want lavish ones that make breaking your rules worthwhile. I'll see what I can do about that. We've already planned tiramisu and panna cotta with pinola brittle for Friday night. Lunch will be more pedestrian—like the apple pie or strawberries, whipped cream and angelfood cake. So, I am not committing yet for the weekday desserts. But you'll LOVE the Friday night ones.

Here's this week's flavor journeys—

Monday~ trout ceviche served over a slaw with chips; also Reuben sandwiches
Tuesday~wood-fired tilapia and shrimp tamales with pineapple salsa and blackbeans; also egg salad sandwiches
Wednesday~Grilled Veggie Sandwiches~Zucchini, Red peppers and red onions grilled and served on our Roman bun with feta and a mayo based lemon dressing. Watch out!!!!
Thursday~ Curried chicken crepes with a side of fruit; also 1905 salad from the Columbia Restaurant in Tampa
Friday~Baby Artichoke salad; also stir-fried veggies over brown rice
Dinner~Entree #1 Linguine with white clam sauce. Served with a side salad and garlic bread
Entree #2 Macadamia Nut crusted trout with stir-fried veggies and rice
Friday desserts~ Tiramisu and Panna cotta with pinola brittle

Friday nights are becoming such a joy. We look forward to each one—even though it means a 14 hour day for us. The trout seems to be a hit and I am changing the way I serve it each week. I don't want you getting bored. Plus my pasta is usually the second entree and I am changing it each week as well. I know I can count on your feedback to give me direction.

New "comeback treat" this week. It's a secret.

Aah! The smell of skunks in the air! Spring is near by

Truly, one of the first harbingers of spring is the smell of dead amorous skunks. It not only reminds us that spring is VERY close but that love can be dangerous. Nature has it so perfectly timed to occur a week after Valentine's Day. Ironic, eh? I think I counted close to 30 of these love casualties on the road yesterday between Thayer and Springfield. I am pretty sure I noticed more of the white with black stripe variety this year. Or maybe the white stripes were just much wider. The fur was longer too. Makes sense when you think how cold this winter has been. Maybe the heavier coat slowed them down.

Are you ready for a continuation of a warm up? I am! It was quite thrilling to put tables outside, at last. As long as the wind isn't brutal, the spot in front of the windows can be quite comfortable.

A couple of updates for you—

• We are now making our own yogurt. It is the primary ingredient in the Tzatziki sauce on the gyros.
• I have made a new dressing option—Pomegranate Vinaigrette
• We now have a suggestion box where you can leave your ideas. We hope you will use it.
• We now have a sign-up list for getting our weekly emails about the specials. Check near the register.
• We are working on a new sandwich using our own buns. We may need you to test it out. Samples this week.
• We are growing our own spicy sprouts. This gives you an option in sprouts—alfalfa or spicy. The spicy sprouts have mustard, clover, radish, and onion in the mix. Kicky! 
• I've been experimenting in various bread options. Watch for them.

This Friday night Renee and Tom will join us for lovely saxaphone and guitar. This duo enchanted us a few weeks ago and packed the house. Plan now to make this Friday evening one to share with us. You won't be disappointed.

Now onto this week's menu—
Monday: White chicken chili, Italian Shrimp Salad.
Tuesday: Tamale Tuesday— Vietnamese Chicken Tamales with red curry and fried rice. Soup is Tom Ka Kai—the coconut chicken soup
Wednesday : French onion soup
Thursday: Sausage and mushroom quiche with soup or side salad; French onion soup
Friday: Lunch: Miso soup, cucumber salad and Vietnamese spring rolls with peanut dipping sauce
     Dinner: Pad Thai or beef and pepper mastacciolli (Italian casserole)

We are having so much fun creating new dishes for you. As you may have heard, it is one of my personal missions to expand your palate. At A La Carte Café, we make trying new flavors an adventure. We use as many fresh, local ingredients as we can find. Sometimes we make an ingredient run to Springfield or St. Louis just so we can have the authentic flavors. We hope you are enjoying the flavor journeys. So far, the response has been encouraging.

As the season evolves you can expect more salads and sandwiches and fewer soups. Let me know your favorites. We are planning on adding locally made pickles to our sandwich plates. Do you have favorites? We might even make them ourselves. I didn't grow up eating pickles, so I am somewhat slow to come around to this ubiquitous inhabiter of sandwich plates. Be sure to share your pickle thoughts! What makes a good pickle to you? Are you an adventurous pickle eater or only like one or two varieties?

I was delighted to get the feedback from several of you last week. If you missed the ceviche, fear not. It will return. Bruce's Kapusta soup got rave reviews and disappeared sooooo fast. The quiches are being well received. They will continue—especially since we will have farm fresh eggs, once again. I am now making my pie crusts from scratch. My Home Ec teacher would be so proud!

If you didn't try the over-the-top Blueberry Bread Pudding, you missed a truly decadent dessert. Also the Mayan Chocolate Pecan Pie got lots of attention. I'll bring those back. (The Mayan part is the chili in the chocolate.)

Thank you for making A La Carte Café one of your lunch options. We appreciate each visit you make. You are helping to make our dream come true. Thank you.

Enough with the snow, already!!!!

This weather has been insane! I know each of you has been affected in some way, so I'll stop my whining. But REALLY!!!!

The good news is that even if we are unable to put total predictability into your lunch we can at least tell you that when you come in, you'll walk out full, warm and happy. That is a promise—even if we are not sure each day whether we will be open. Call to be sure before you venture out—505-0302

All week we'll have our red tableclothes on the tables to help remind you that Valentine's Day is just around the corner—next Monday. It is so easy to get caught up in the rush of life that taking a few moments out to let your Honey know you really appreciate them can easily get overlooked. Please make it a priority. We had hoped to plan a Valentine's dinner but decided that we are not as prepared this year as we would like to be.We are still looking at getting that beer and wine license. (If you know someone who would like to purchase one of my quilts, it will go a long way toward getting that license.) and BTW—my hand-dyed silk scarves make lovely Valentine's gifts.

I am having a grand time choosing and cooking your lunches each week. Bruce has added his take on what tastes good. Everyone benefits. This week we'll adhere pretty much to comfort foods that will stick to your ribs and keep your insides warm. Bruce has made an awesome Minestrone and Tuesday will feature a new batch of the Italian Tamales. The flavors say Italian, the look says Latin. Your tummy will figure it out. We served this last Friday night and the response was terrific.

Assuming we can get in Monday, I have a great potato, smoked sausage and cabbage soup that is a family favorite.

For Friday evening we are looking at 2 main entrees. The first is a Ukrainian dish that Bruce brings to the table. It features ribs that are braised until very soft. We'll surprise you with these flavors. Also we discovered that Blood Oranges are in season and we'll do a salmon with Blood Orange Salsa. If the weather holds, they will start out wood-fired.
Are you ready for some more chicken and sausage gumbo? John Rapier shared his recipe last month and I've doctored it slightly to my way of doing things. We sold out each day we had it. I'm thinkng Wednesday--assuming we can get there. The week's weather forecast is so bizarre.

Most of you know that prior to opening the cafe, I had never cooked in a restaurant environment. I had done some catering and lots of private parties, but nothing where I planned, prepped and cooked in volume every day. So, as our volume has increased, our purchasing of ingredients in larger quantities has expanded. You have no idea what a thrill it is to have a 50 lb. bag of yellow onions just awaiting some creativity. For me it is like having a new box of 64 crayons—or better yet, 120 colored pencils. Bruce used up 7+ lbs in just the last batch of French onion soup. I now buy my flours in 50 lb sacks. Oh, Momma! We still purchase our produce daily and plan to continue to do so.

We've put the Pesto Chicken Sandwich on the menu full-time now. Now that I have a year-round source for fresh basil, I can make it as needed. The sandwich is made on our fresh in-house breads. It begins with a nice smear of pesto and some slices of Jon's wood-fired chicken. To that we add Provolone cheese, slices of tomato and avocado and then finished with the crunch of some alfalfa sprouts.

One of my favorite benefits of being in the food game is getting to buy cookbooks. I have been on a buying binge and got several geared toward "Small Bites."  One of the recipes I found is "Meatball and pecorino soup with greens and carmelized onions." Doesn't even the name sound yummy? The meat balls are tiny and made from veal. The greens will be Mary Badini's organic kale. Pecorino is a Romano cheese, similar to Parmesan. I'm not sure when this week we'll serve it. We are having to coordinate with Mary and the weather to bring it to you.

Until the last week or so, I have been planning on a couple of "flavor journeys" per week. Since so many of you are coming multiple times per week, we decided that simply keeping the same specials all week might bore you. So I am now changing the flavor journeys several times per week. I am also listening to you regarding lower calorie options. As spring approaches, watch for many new salads and veggie choices.

Now I have a survey question for you. If we had more protein-rich items available in the morning, would you be likely to visit us for breakfast? If so, what time? Do you want quiche? Smoothies? So far I have prepared muffins a couple of times a week and often they are purchased by you at lunch time. How important is it to you for us to be open and serving breakfast items? Did you know we open currently at 8:00 am? We are here anyway doing prep and it would be easy to expand this area of our service.If muffins don't tickle your fancy, what does?

Warm foods for cold days

our grandson, John, gets his love for cooking honestly

Well last week was over before I even got to post. It was quite a whirlwind as we did a supper club dinner last Monday night. The theme was foods of the Greek Isles. You are going to have to wait for the details as I am now diving into THIS week. You got to sample several of the dishes at last Friday night's dinner— dolmades, spanikopita, baklava, etc.

Boy! Last Friday was something! Renee and Tom rocked the house and warmed our hearts with their saxophone and guitar, playing jazz classics. The Shrimp Alfredo was devoured with gusto. In fact, we sold out of most of our dishes by the end of the night. I had to make a special dish for Renee since we were out of most dishes by the time they finished playing. SUCH a problem! It was lovely to see so many of you and to note we are getting some Friday night "regulars." We are pleased you have added our good food and live music to your Friday night options. We'll try to keep you and your palate entertained.

We have changed out a couple of my quilts. The newest ones hanging are "The Energy of Hope", "Reconcilable Differences," and "Neon Cha Cha." "Reconcilable Differences" is all about focusing on "us" as opposed to "me." Pricing info on most of my quilts can be found on my website http://www.rebelquilter.com/. For the story on many of them, you might visit my blog http://rebelquilter.blogspot.com/.


This week we are changing up a thing or two. First of all—we'll have more variation in our soups during the week. Also, we are adding a couple of warm entrees to the mix. Since the opening of the new Asian buffet restaurant with its sushi menu built in, we have had fewer requests for my sushi. So, we'll skip it for awhile.

Bruce has brought many fresh ideas and great energy. I think our energy is feeding off each other and the synergy is palatable—literally! His insight, logistical understanding and quiet nature have given us gentle guidance where it has been needed. He is a gifted, creative cook with a thorough understanding of what is needed in a restaurant environment. We are glad he is here!

Here are this week's flavor journeys. We are taking you to the tropical latitudes.

Monday—Lentil and Smoked Sausage Soup  with cornbread
Vegetable Soup—carrots, onions, potatoes, corn, tomatoes in a veggie broth; with corn bread
Arugula Salad with jicama, pickled red onion, grapefruit, avocado, feta, & pomegranate $5.99; add wood-fired chicken +$1.50; add garlic shrimp +$3.00
Tuesday—Slow-cooked pork tamales over a warm mango puree complimented by a pineapple mango salsa and coconut rice. $6.25; add a bowl of black bean soup $9.99
Soup—Black Bean with queso fresco & cornbread
Wednesday—Chicken Curry with Coconut Rice & fruit $6.25 add side salad or cup of soup +$2.50
Soup—Beef & Barley Soup with cornbread
Thursday—Quiche Lorraine (bacon, onion & Swiss cheese) with fruit  $6.25; add cup of soup or side salad +$2.50
Soup—Creamy Garlic & Spinach Soup with garlic toast
Friday—LUNCH: Chicken Pot Pie with fruit $6.25; add side salad $2.50
Soup—Creamy Garlic and Spinach Soup with garlic toast
SUPPER: Beef and Sausage Lasagna with side salad and garlic toast $9.99
Chicken Pot Pie with side salad  $.9.99
Various tapas 
Soups—cup/ $3.49  bowl/ $4.99 16oz/$5.59

Thanks for being a part of our grand experiment in good food. YES! You DO prefer freshly made foods made with REAL ingredients.

Coming up—
This Friday night music will be provided by Jon Lumsden playing his 7 string jazz guitar and singing his tunes plus selections from the Great American Songbook
Valentine's dinner—February 14th Monday   Stay tuned for details of the menu. We will do only one seating and reservations will be needed.Our plan is a steak and seafood offering.
Earth Day Tasting Feast—April 29th Celebrate local sustainability and enjoy the fruits of regional producers. We are teaming with Chef's Collaborative, a national organization dedicated to local sustainability.

See you this week, we hope!