W/E Dec 1st A VERY short week

Well, it is that time again. Families congregate, cooking ensues, stories are told, and memories are made. We invite you to bring your families along to visit us this week. We'll only be open Monday through Wednesday for lunch and Tuesday and Wednesday for dinner. I am hoping that you'll find some time to squeeze us in. Wednesday evening would be an excellent time to escape cooking dinner and joining us for a relaxing evening.

It has become quite traditional for each of us to share aspects for which we are grateful. While many wonderful parts of my life are an open book, there are many things I am privately grateful for, as well. In the public realm I am continually grateful to have created A La Carte Cafe with Jon and had the chance to share it with a community of people who respect and appreciate what we have brought forth. Each day I read the food industry headlines and am appalled by the blatant poisoning happening by various large-scale corporations in the name of profits. Seeing some of the lists of ingredients in foods presented by these corporations and suppliers leaves me proud of the fact that we go out of our way to keep said ingredients out of the foods we serve.

During the three plus years we have been open, we have met an amazing array of wonderful folks. Even though we ran a company with a national market, and I have done art shows from New England to Florida and points West, we never had the opportunity to get to know, over a longer term, so many dynamic and wonderful people. I think, because you see us when you are hungry or relaxing, we see a different side of you than many others might. We see the YOU that is pretty fundamental. How lucky for us. When you are here you tend to let "your hair down." That allows us to see more than your "work" side, more than your "family" side, more than your purely "social" side. We like that. You are a pretty spectacular group. We are proud to know you.

While being grateful, I would be horribly amiss if I didn't do a big shout out to the fabulous staff that have joined us at one time or another. Currently, with the exception of Jon, it is all female. Do you have any idea how rare it is to have a restaurant where the entire creative staff is female? Especially since we are neither East  nor West coast. I am proud of the talent we have. Amy has boucoup experience in addition to stellar training credentials. She brings with her a love of good food as well as a vegetarian sensibility. Her creativity is allowed to be scratched and her efforts are extraordinary. As someone who considers herself an artist first, I understand the value of being able to be allowed creativity within your job. If you can't be rich, at least be rich in your ability to feed your creative soul. I am proud to have created an environment where this is not only possible but expected. I treasure the individual creativity each staff member brings to their jobs. No one here is exempt from any job. From dishwashing to creating lunch specials, to devising better ways to do something, everyone gets to contribute.

We know the next few weeks are  likely to be filled with many, many activities. Hopefully, you'll find some time to wind down a bit and join us for a meal or few. We do plan to be closed over the end-of-year holidays. So plan ahead. This year Jon and I will actually make it happen to be with our children and grandchildren. We'll do an early Christmas with Mom here and leave her in the capable hands of the folks at Shady Oaks whilst we feast on the love of our younger kin.

Now here is our short week of lunch specials and dinner specials~~

Monday~ Black bean and potato tacos with chips and salsa $7.29
Tuesday~ Chicken pad Thai $7.79
Wednesday~ Hungarian chicken paprikash $7.79

Seafood Entrée~ Garlic shrimp with wild rice pilaf $14.99 Large shrimp sauteed with garlic and green onions and red pepper flakes. Serve over a pilaf of wild rice, white rice, parsley and lemon.

Flavor Journey~ Beef Stroganoff~~ Traditional Beef Stroganoff made from beef tri tip roast, mushrooms, wine, sour cream and served over egg noodles. $13.99

Have a joyous week. Surround yourself in the love of others. Share your richness of being. Be engulfed by gratitude.

~~Susan et al

w/e July 27, 2013 Getting the most out of A La Carte Café

W/E July 27 2013

Getting the most out of A La Carte Café

Each week I post my ramblings in hopes that you’ll find something that motivates you to join us for lunch or dinner this week—or both. Beyond my intentions of feeding you and providing a livable wage for our staff and ourselves, I am hoping to give you the opportunity to experience opportunities to step outside of your daily norm and experience something exceptional. In our decision to operate this café, I made the choice to emphasize local sourcing and in-season produce. This requires a higher commitment to seek out what is fresh and available. We are now buying from as many as 10 local growers and food producers. Some of them are specifically seeking us out and wanting to know what specialty produce I am in search of.

We’ve come a long way in the three years we’ve been doing this. Initially, Mary and Skip Badiny with Maranatha Farm were our primary growers for locally sourced organic produce. We continue to buy much of our produce through them but have added in smaller producers who may only have a single specialty crop. (Mary and Skip have been and remain instrumental in helping to promote our café and in providing the most needed produce.) In addition to produce, we now are able to source local grass fed beef and lamb as well as free-range chicken eggs.

When I am planning the menu for the week I take several aspects into account. First, what is going to be available for this week only or for a very short time? This might be fresh produce, but it might also be an announcement that the Coho Salmon run out of Ketchikan, Alaska has just begun. Through Chef’s Collaborative and Sea-to-Table I am connected up with docks around the country that ship fresh-off-the-boat seafood overnight. The thrill is getting in the coolers of extremely fresh seafood, cooking it and serving it up. I could do it more often if we had just a smidgen more business on a regular basis. To make those fresh fish orders work we have to order 25 or more pounds from a particular dock. That’s a lot of fish! Or crab! Or shrimp! 

The daily lunch specials allow us to showcase in-season freshness while allowing individuals on our team to strut their creativity. For the first couple of years this fell mostly to me with a few notable exceptions like Bruce’s tamales. Since early this year we have had in place an exceptional team of gifted and creative cooks. They are now responsible for the specials on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while I continue to produce the Tuesday and Thursday specials. As I am cooking the dinners on Tuesday through Friday, I am still making those decisions.  Often, the quantity of a given ingredient is limited and rather than skip it entirely I am content to make it only available in a small batch. This flexibility would never be allowed in a chain restaurant.  Over time, our customers have learned that if they want the scarce items it behooves them to call in and have it reserved for them.  We are happy to do so. I am not apologetic that we don’t make enough to feed everyone the specials. We can try to make more when there is a known favorite, but I would rather make too little than too much. It is all about sustainability, and that includes reducing waste. We even compost much of our vegetable waste or make flavorful broths during the winter months.  

Creating exceptional food is an on-going goal. It starts with quality, fresh ingredients. I like to expand beyond the expected to include multicultural cuisines and ad hoc improvisations. Generally, this provides that opportunity for you to step outside your safe box of flavors and expand your palate in a new direction. In the somewhat insular locale in which we reside, many people have not experienced other cuisines beyond local fried stuff, Tex-Mex or American-Chinese. Our customers who seem to appreciate us the most are those who have traveled extensively and know what the world has to offer. To them we create a whiff of the world at large.

This week we’ll be venturing all over the world in a whirlwind tour of flavors. On Monday, Vincent reprises his portabella tacquito. Vincent is great at presenting Latin inspired dishes. Tuesday we’ll have Chicken Pad Thai. Wednesday Amy will remind of us why this region is famous for cashew chicken. Thursday we’ll celebrate the first of the local tomatoes with a panzanella salad, and Friday Amy delights us with Bangkok shrimp. That is just the lunches. Of course, our daily menu is always available for more predictable fare.

For dinner we’ll head back to Italy for Cioppino, (pronounced chuh-pee’-no) a hearty seafood stew made with rockfish, shrimp, octopus, calamari, clams and scallops.  The broth alone is worth the visit. This special will include a special side salad and lots of freshly made bread to sop up the juices.

I’ll also do an Italian beef roulade. That is made with local grass fed beef flank steak filled with fresh herbs, cream cheese and rolled up, then cooked and sliced. We’ll serve it with summer stir-fry and garlic potatoes.

Were you aware that we cater small events? Private dinner parties, board meetings, staff meetings, recruitment dinners. Our annex is available for private events. Ask me about availability and costs.

We have not scheduled any musicians this week. Reservations are still recommended. It allows us to stagger your visit so that you have the shortest wait for your food.

So here’s the actual line-up in a simplified form~~

Lunches—

Monday~ Portabella Tacquito with chips and salsa $7.99

Tuesday~ Chicken Pad Thai $7.99

Wednesday~ Cashew chicken and rice $7.99

Thursday~ Panzanella salad $7.99

Friday~ Bangkok Shrimp $7.99

Dinners—

Flavor journey~ Italian beef Roulade with summer stir-fry and garlic potatoes $14.99

Seafood Entrée~ Cioppino—Italian Fish stew with salad $15.99

Pasta Amatriciana~ Pasta, pancetta, oven roasted tomatoes, pecorino cheese, parsley and basil. Served with  a side salad $14.99

I hope you find the time to visit us this week. You make our efforts a pleasure and rewarding. Between the rain showers it should be a comfortable week to enjoy dining al fresco.

 

~~Susan

   

 

 

Time to Celebrate!!!!

It is hard to believe that last year at this time Jon and I were quaking in our boots. We had this little dream we hoped would solve our financial challenges and the tiniest bit of courage leftover from our days of cavalier youth. To that end we purchased a food trailer and decided to try out our concept. To our delight, you embraced it; thus giving us the larger level of courage needed to tackle the next level. We wound up celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary painting the interior of our current cafe location. Some people celebrate anniversaries by renewing their marriage vows. We just signed a lease and committed to going to the next step in our dream— a manner of celebration that demanded courage and determination. You have made it worthwhile and we thank you.  Cue the fireworks!

During this last year I found that getting local produce is not always very simple. Thankfully, Mary and Skip Badiny have always had SOMETHING available. They carried us through our first hot summer/ fall with wonderful tomatoes and peppers. Do you remember that wonderful bowl of fresh peppers we had sitting on the wheel housing of the trailer? We thought we'd be able to produce much of our own herbs and we've been able to produce SOME of it. As I am sure you have noticed, I am not the world's finest gardener/ plant Mommy. But we usually have enough fresh herbs to incorporate them into our foods. A few of you have listened and actually brought me your bounties and I appreciate that more than you'll ever know. Believe it or not, we actually have ENOUGH cucumbers and basil. I'm almost afraid to say that in case you don't bring me other things I do want right now.  I was very nearly embarassed in June when I had to go all the way to Jonesboro to their farmers' market in order to get fresh, relatively local veggies for a banquet where I had committed to serving fresh local produce.

I really hope that the concept of a farmers' market here can go beyond baked goods and jellies and more folks will support it. From the feedback I've gotten, people are willing to buy at the farmers' market if there was anything fresh to buy. My visits have almost always resulted in my walking away wanting. I grew up in Dallas and that farmers' market is superb. In recent years the four huge pavillions there have been refurbished and it is standard procedure for Dallas' chefs to make the rounds. I am sure St. Louis's market has similar support. West Plains is sadly lacking. Considering how many good gardeners there are locally, I hope many will make the decision to take their goods to the market so the rest of us can enjoy the fruits (and vegetables) of their labors. Like artists and musicians locally, most farmers have to take their goods to bigger markets to make the effort worthwhile. How sad.

One of the options I have connected with is "Sea to Table," a collective of fishermen who provide fresh seafood directly from their docks. There are 4 different locations—Atlantic, Pacific, Gulf and Asian. Each one has a minimum of 25lbs of combined orders from each dock. In the Gulf coast location alone I have access to a vast selection of fresh, usually line-caught or skim (surface) netted items. Here is a partial list: Amberjack, gulf white shrimp, pink snapper, red grouper, red snapper, red swamp crawfish, sheepshead, vermillion snapper and yellowfin tuna.  Why am I telling you this? Because, if we had a stronger following for seafood, I could purchase directly from these fishermen and we'd have the freshest seafood in the region. To that end, let me know if you want any fresh seafood in any quantity. Maybe we can pool our needs and wind up with enough for an order. Each location has quite different varieties available. Each is sustainably harvested and in direct following of guidelines for maintaining sustainable seafood levels. All the quoted prices include shipping. Here is a link. fish@sea2table.com Interested? Email me to let me know or tell me when you are in the cafe. What is your favorite fresh seafood?

Recently, one of our customers commented that she thought the salads would be improved by the addition of a form of bread to accompany the meal. To that end, I have begun including a cornbread muffin with the Navajo salads. I am trying to figure out just the right flavor to add for each type of salad. What would go best with the Oriental sesame chicken salad? The Greek salad would be fine with pita but what about the Fuji chicken salad? I am happily awaiting your feedback and input. So speak up!

It is often a challenge to refine my menu. I try to add new flavors as the ingredients come into season. It would be so easy to jump in several directions. But it is important to have a level of consistency and expectation. I can't do really hot dishes as it would scare most off (including me). Last week, at Jon's urging, I included a chicken taco. It was made with our wood-fired chicken breasts, a chipotle-based sauce, and a slaw with a dijon beginning. The feedback was quite good. As before, with the pizzas, I am not trying to create items you would see at the local Mexican restaurant. This week (Friday) I am making a soft taco with pulled-pork shoulder. I'll use the same sauce and slaw as the chicken. I look forward to your feedback.

I am bringing back the Antipasto salad all week. If it has an Italian connection, it is probably in the salad. On a bed of chopped Romaine I'll have salami, turkey, ham, pasta, tomatoes, bell pepper, roasted red peppers, provolone cheese, parmesan cheese, red onion, black olives, portabellas, fresh basil and oregano. It will come already dressed with a lemon based herb/olive oil mixture and most likely, with some kind of fresh cracker or bread—no decision at press time.

Special for Monday will be a Waldorf chicken salad. It was first presented at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in 1893, this all-American Waldorf salad recipe includes chopped apples, celery, grapes, and walnuts with chicken and mayonnaise. I use some fresh herbs, as well. It will be served on a bed of lettuce.

Tuesday brings Bruce's creative forces in the form of hand-built tamales. This week he is making a

chicken florentine tamale with a parmesan cheese sauce, and a mushroom risotto

Wednesday I'll serve stir-fried pork tenderloin with shitakes, shallots and ichiban eggplant. This will be accompanied by fried rice.

Thursday I'll bring back the pizzas with a pesto-based pizza topped with shitake mushrooms, Juliet tomatoes, fresh basil, red onions and black olives plus mozzarella and brie. It'll be served with an heirloom cucumber salad.

Friday I'll serve those pulled pork tacos I mentioned earlier in the post. The dijon slaw adds a light crisp note.

Now for Friday night—
First of all, the entertainment will be Open Mic. Have you been working on something you want to share with us? So far, we have a couple of folks lined up and expect a few more. This night, although unpredictable, is always entertaining and often raucus. We usually fill up, so don't wait to make your reservation. The food should be pretty awesome. 

The seafood will be trout meuniere.Your meal will start with a melon salad made with watermelon, feta, onion, mint, basil, and jicama.  The pan-seared rainbow trout is finished with a sauce made from white wine, butter, shallots, garlic, lemon and capers. The trout is local from Rockbridge and you know how good that is. How about some garlic parsley potatoes to go with that? $12

The "meat" dish will be chicken pad thai. I'll keep it pretty authentic, but low key on the spice. You can boost the heat, if you wish. This rice pasta based dish features typical Thai ingredients like fish sauce, lime, peanuts, egg, Thai basil and poached chicken. $12

The "vegetarian" dish will be a veggie quiche packed with squashes, onions, mushrooms, spinach, corn and dill plus lots of Monterey jack cheese and fresh local eggs. I'll add a zucchini fritter topped with tzatziki sauce and a Roman roll. $10

We'll have all sorts of things we'll do during the month to celebrate our being around for a year. Next week on the 12th, Jon is the performer and everyone attending will get a free copy of his CD- a $10 value! If you like a mellow, bluesy-jazzy sound, you'll really enjoy his CD!

Thank you for making the trek with us this far. We hope you'll go the whole journey with us.

~~Susan