All about rhythm and changes thereof

This week marks the rhythmic transition from summer to fall—school starts this week for many. We recognize that you may be somewhat distracted this week, but hope we see you anyway.  Gone will be the days of scorching hot sun and a perception of available time. Schedules will be kicked into high gear and a certain amount of frantic-ness might occur. Time for a deep breath and maybe a healthy lunch or dinner.

Many of you took the time to congratulate us last week and to add your encouragment on our growth. Thank you. That feedback is quite vital. We have been pleasantly surprised at the speed of our growth of late. While we try to keep up the quality of our food, you are helping to get the word out. We are keenly aware that word-of-mouth recommendations are the best way for us to grow. We know you might prefer to keep us as your little secret, but our sustainability depends on your sharing. We are all about sustainability!!!

Before I dive into this week's specials and flavor journeys, I need to mention that party season will be on us before we know it. We are already getting requests for holiday catering and use of our private dining room. So if you have in mind you'd like us to cater your holiday party or host your event in our space, don't put it off. In order to give your event the time and effort it deserves, we will limit our bookings.

Gordon Johnston will join us again to entertain on Friday. You may remember his easy-to-listen-to keyboard renditions of Van Morrison tunes or the locally-sourced themes of his own tunes. Gordon lives in Poplar Bluff and makes the trek out of a love of playing. Please tip him well. We want him back.

Last week we flew fresh, wild-caught Pacific Coho salmon in from Alaska. I hope you were among those who got to experience the incredible fresh flavor of this fish. Over the weekend we took one whole salmon and wood-fired it. You'll see it on the Tuesday lunch menu in the form of salmon tacos with pineapple mango salsa. There are about 12 orders available. $8.00

Tuesday night will usher in this week's Flavor Journey—our country of origin will be Vietnam. We'll do an appetizer of stuffed rice paper called summer rolls. The rice paper (like wonton skins but made with rice) will be filled with cellophane noodles, mung beans, thin sliced pork roast, carrots, cucumber & cilantro. Unlike wonton skins, these are served cold.  A dipping sauce will accompany. The entrée will consist of a Vietnamese beef salad topped with an Asian marinated flank steak, red onion, mung beans, cilantro, cucumber and shitake mushrooms. The dressing will be a light rice vinegar one.  It is totally gluten free!!!!  $11.99

Wednesday I'll bring out the Antipasto salad. This salad has a strong following. On top of a bed of Romaine I'll add provolone cheese, kalmata olives, red and green bell peppers, pasta, ham, fresh basil, Juliet tomatoes and red onion. These extra ingedients will all be tossed with a dressing made with lemon juice, oregano, olive oil, mustard and Worchestershire—aka 1905 dressing. The salad will be through Friday. $6.99

The seafood dinner entrées this week—please notice two seafoods of note~ first is fresh rainbow trout from Rockbridge. I'll simply pan-fry it and serve it with a saute of zucchini and fresh tomatoes plus a starch of buttered linguine or garlic mashed potatoes. As always, accompanied by a side salad. $14.99

The second seafood will be a shrimp and scallop manicotti in alfredo sauce. I'll use that lovely black pasta to make the manicotti. With a side salad, of course. $14.99

Thursday lunch will be the Couscous Salad with curried turkey, almonds and raisins. It is served over a bed of Romaine and is somewhat sweet. It is probably the coconut milk in the curried dressing that makes it so. One of the crowd favorites for hot summer days. $7.50

Friday lunch will be shrimp and scallop shish kabobs over a lemon rice. Simple, luxurious and yummy. $8.00

Desserts this week~~ I made a luscious New York style cheesecake topped with sweetened sour cream and drunken berries. $5 We are continuing to grill our poundcake with fresh fruit and serving it with our homemade vanilla bean ice cream. Also, I am playing with fresh figs. One of our customers brought me a couple of pounds of them. I am thinking fresh fig tart with goat cheese as an appetizer or maybe a fig and mascarpone something. Still creating....wait for it.....

I hope you have a glorious week~~

~~Susan

The Vidalias are IN!

It is always a thrill for me when the Vidalias show up in big bags at the grocer. I can't help myself. I always buy at least five pounds. Sometimes ten. I like onions in most forms anyway, but the Vidalias are pretty special. They are grown only in a twenty county region of Georgia. The soil in which they are grown has a very low sulphur content resulting in a very sweet root. As with most produce that has a short season, the vidalias are quite tender and don't have a long shelf life. Each layer of the onion can be as thick as half an inch, indicating mucho moisture. I love them sautéed with a bit of garlic and thyme and maybe a mustard seed or two. Yum. I am using another variation to accompany dinners this week. I am making marinated and roasted Vidalia onions, whereby the onions are first marinated in balsamic vinegar, olive oil, thyme and other seasonings. Then they are oven-roasted to bring out their sweetest content and sprinkled with Parmesan cheese. I hope you enjoy this once-a-year treat.

After a long wait and several false starts, we will finally have mussels this week. I am getting in only 10 pounds of them—so I expect they will disappear really quickly. These are real PEI fresh mussles. PEI means Prince Edward Island- where they grow. They won't be here until Thursday. I'll saute and steam them in white wine, garlic, shallots and a bit of parsley. They'll come with a side salad, green bean and toasted Israeli cous-cous salad with pickled onion and the roasted Vidalia onions . $16.99 I HIGHLY suggest you call in a reservation and order so that they are there when you want them. If this goes well, I'll order a larger quantity later.

The black sea bass was absolutely gorgeous and everyone who had it raved. It was more of a challenge than I expected—arriving just as they came out of the water. I was expecting 1-2 pound fish and most were 2.5-4. Yikes! Thankfully, Steve Smith was around with his scaling and filleting skills. He did a nice job filleting with little waste. We still lost quite a bit of money, though. Between netting only 2 8-10 oz fillets per fish and a highly distracted customer base, we had some left over. I have frozen the remaining fillets and hope to bring them back soon.

We are bumping our lunch prices a bit to align more with current food costs and local fare. Each time we eat out we are shocked to discover how much higher most places' prices are. We only went up 50 cents. Add in the Lunch Bunch card and we still have some of the lowest prices around. Yes, there are a few places with lower prices but they are mostly using canned ingredients and get most of their sauces and dressings ready-made. We make our salad dressings and most breads from scratch—assuring that we don't use MSG, hydrogenated oils or excess gluten in places it isn't needed. We wood-fire almost all of our chicken, tilapia and corn. This is a labor-intensive activity that can't be done during regular business hours.  And we experiment a lot. This translates to an ever-changing menu that will keep your tongue and tastebuds happy. By utilizing the most timely ingredients, I am able to keep the menu seasonally-driven and fresh and most-of-all LOCAL.

Please be a part of our growth~ share us with a friend.

Tuesday~ Pulled pork with Cajun home-fries $6.75
Wednesday~Italian Shrimp Salad- lots of shrimp mixed with rice and parsley in a mustard/lemon/ olive oil dressing. A classic. $7
Thursday~Chicken in green sauce with pumpkin seeds; served with corn pudding $7
Friday~Anjou pear salad with spinach, gorgonzola, toasted walnuts, Vidalia onions and raspberry balsamic vinaigrette. $7.50; add grilled shrimp $3; add wood-fired chicken $2.5

Seafood~ Tuesday and Wednesday~ Pan seared Rainbow Trout served with jasmine rice and marinated and roasted Vidalia onion; side salad $14.99
Thursday and Friday only this week~ garlic and wine steamed Mussels served with green bean and toasted Israeli cous-cous salad with pickled onion; roasted Vidalias $16.99
Flavor journey~Stir-fried chili beef with bell peppers and snow peas; served with salad and jasmine rice plus roasted Vidalia onions.$13.99





 

Local is better

This past Sunday was Earth Day. I thought I'd give you a bit of insight into what we are doing at the cafe to keep our carbon footprint as small as possible.

When we started this cafe we knew we would be doing things a bit differently from the get-go. Among the founding policies was to use as much locally produced foods as possible. That translates to using foods that have traveled the shortest distances and therefore used the least amount of fuel to get here. As the cost of fuel goes up, you'll see those costs translated into food costs. Hopefully, our approach will keep our prices more reasonable along the way. We have far less waste and scrap than most restaurants—utilizing as much of the fruits, veggies and meat scraps to make soups and broths. What does get wasted usually gets separated into compost. We have several customers who regularly take home our composting veggies for their compost heaps.

We added screen doors to the front and back. On days when the temperatures are moderate and the humidity low enough, we keep the main doors open. I just love the sound of the front screen door when customers come in and out. My favorite sound is the low level chatter of guests. It sounds completely different when the doors are open. My hearing is somewhat impaired and the fact that the sound is impactful indicates just how important a sound it is to me.

 We've started using some microgreens and those have me tantalized. Each individual tiny plant has a distinct flavor. They may look like a garnish, but they pack a big punch. Be sure to try them next time you see them on your plate. Some are spicy, some very green, some just a lovely color with a mild flavor. They take about 2 weeks to grow to the point we use them.

A new change we've made on Friday nights is to start the music a little later—like 7pm. This has worked out well and allows us to focus on getting you served properly with food that is well prepared and hot. We close the kitchen at 8pm for the prepared meals but stay open until 9 and can serve from our tapas menu until then. These are sharable appetizers that are quickly prepared. Examples of these tapas items would include the pesto pizza, Tuscan brushetta, smoked catfish and chips, bacon-wrapped jalapenos, bacon-wrapped cream cheese and pistacio-stuffed dates and brushetta topped with basil goat cheese and fresh tomatoes. Our chips and salsa also make a great appetizer or snack to accompany your beer or wine choices. Don't forget we usually have fresh inhouse made desserts. But, you'll have to ask your server for the latest offerings.

And speaking of Friday night music, our own Jon Lumsden will be playing solo this week. He was teaming up with Greg Kwalume and Rick Brischetto, but Greg has been given a promotion and is being transferred to Atlanta. We wish him well but will miss his lovely guitar leads. Jon will play his own tunes as well as selections from the Great American Songbook.

I'm keeping the dinner specials close to home this week. The seafood will be from Rockbridge—just up the road off of State Highway 14. There have been several requests that we keep rainbow trout on our weekly menu and this just may be the debut of that. It will be available all week. The fillets are quite sizable—7-9 ounces. I'll lightly dust the fillets in flour with a bit of semolina flour and cornmeal plus a few herbs and spices. Then I'll simply pan sear in butter and olive oil. I'll serve it with our "Sea Sauce" plus rice pilaf, stir-fried seasonal Asian veggies and a side salad. Right now those seasonal veggies are tatsoi, Napa cabbage, green onions, red pepper and green beans. They will vary as the season progresses. $14.99

The "Flavor Journey" this week will also be from close to home. I am taking a pork loin, butterflying it and stuffing it with apples, sage, shallots and a bit of bread. It will be tied up and oven roasted. I'll serve it with side salad, garlic mashed potatoes and the previously mentioned stir-fry plus a bit of pan gravy. $10.99

Mary Badiny has done a fine job of keeping us in fresh produce. Unless you are growing your own, if you are not getting her weekly organics or the Semyck's fresh produce you are paying a high price for food that has been shipped across country and isn't as fresh. I encourage you to keep your dollars in the local economy and support these producers.

Now here are this week's lunch dishes~~

Tuesday~ Introducing our new wood-fired tuna sandwich. Jon is wood-firing the tuna fillets and then I am making that into a tuna salad. We'll keep it simple—tuna, mayo, mustard, pepper plus a little chopped red onion. We'll treat it like the Tuscan sandwich and add tomato and sprouts. It'll come with a side. It'll be available all week. If you enjoy tuna sandwiches, give it a try. $6.49

Wednesday~ Thai chicken noodle salad with peanut sauce. This has been a hit in the past. The base is a spinach salad with a rice vinegar dressing. Then chicken and noodles that have been dressed with peanut sauce top it. Sesame seeds and shredded carrots finish it. $6.75

Thursday~ Florentine tamales. Made with poached chicken and spinach with a parmesan cheese sauce. I think he is serving it with a risotto. $6.75

Friday~Pesto pizza with smoked chicken sausage, mozzarella, chopped tomato and mushrooms. Served with side salad. $6.75

I hope you have a chance to get out and visit us. Have a lovely week.~~
~~Susan

Changes in the wind

This time one year ago, Jon and I were quaking in our boots. Our 40th anniversary was imminent and we were celebrating by committing to leasing space for our cafe. Throughout the month of November we focused our attention on getting this space remodeled into a working kitchen/ cafe. A year later, we are still here and are on the verge of some, hopefully, significant changes.

First of all—this Saturday we will be open. This is an exceedingly rare event. We'll be open because it is the first weekend of deer/gun season and there is a tradition in these parts for the women who aren't hunting to be out shopping, instead. Kathy and Frankie at Simply Chic clued us in to this phenomena and were the ones who suggested we might be open. So we will be. If you have not been able to join us previously because of your work schedule, or know of those in that category, this would be a lovely time to experience our lunch menu. Perhaps a few of you will be among those out shopping and can make us a part of your shopping spree. We'll be open from 11a.m.-2p.m. I know Kathy and Frankie have some pretty spectacular deals going for this annual event, too.

Next—This Friday we will host Renee Wood Trio. It will be the last Friday night we will be open this year. Between now and Christmas the café will be available for private parties during the evening hours. We will close entirely for 2 weeks immediately following Christmas. We'll be seeing our kids and grandkids whom we have not seen in two years. When we return January 9th, we expect we will have our beer and wine permit. This will allow us to serve beer or wine with lunch, catering or at our Friday night dinners.  Our focus will remain on local/ regional fare and this will extend to the beers and wines. We'll plan on hosting tastings and, hopefully, educate our palates along the way.  I have much to learn about pairings and celebrating regional wines. We can all learn together. I think it'll be a fun adventure.

Then—we are looking at revamping some of our Friday nights. We are currently surveying for feedback for a once-a-month-fine-dining experience. We would be creating a meal of magnificant delicacy, multi-coursed and splendid. The cost would be in the realm of $25/person. Pairings with wine or beer would be available. It would give me a chance to bring out the fancier ingredients—fresh seafood flown in, unusual meat sources, high grade cuts, etc. Because this would not work for just a few, we would have to have a high enough participation level to keep it up. I would love to explore various ethnic cuisines, sharing the lore behind the dishes and acquainting you with a more worldly palate. This would, most likely, replace open mic night on the first Friday. The note cards on the table are for your feedback and to let us know your favorite regional beers and wines. We really do want to structure our cafe around your needs and wants. So pipe up!

The holiday catering is already heating up. We will be producing several office holiday lunches for various staff around the county. Hopefully, we'll be preparing foods that are familiar while allowing you to have new taste experiences. If you have a staff luncheon planned, please give us a shot at preparing it. I'm betting your colleagues will thank you.

We are exploring more custard type desserts as the season heads toward the colder temps. My first one that I am excited about will be coconut cream pie with meringue. Of course, pumpkin will be in the mix as well as lemon curd, and various creme brulee. I can't wait to learn to use the torch to melt the sugar on the creme brulée. Bruce has brought back his tira misu. It will be available most days. As far as we can figure out, we are the only place in the region to make a real tiramisu. We use real mascarpone, a dozen egg yolks, real lady fingers dipped in real coffee liquor and real whipped cream. Recently, one of our customers had us make one for his girlfriend's birthday. She wrote to tell us how she used to eat Tiramisu while living in Italy and this was the best version she had had since leaving there. I'm not sure if Bruce's head will fit through the door on Monday...or perhaps it is just that he is floating 3 feet above the ground.  While I love creating fusion fare that mixes up the cultures somewhat, bringing you authentic foods created without shortcuts, using quality ingredients continues to be a big part of our mission. So many options these days begin with "I need a faster way." There are simply times when faster isn't better.

Here's the week's menu—
Soups~ all week French onion soup. A batch takes almost 10 pounds of fresh onions that are cooked down for hours to release their sweet goodness. Later in week~smoked sausage, kale and potato soup

Monday~Tuna Romans are on sale at $6.99 This tuna steak is seared to order and served on a Roman bun (made inhouse) with wasabi mayonnaise, tomato and spicy sprouts. Served with chips.
Also~Antipasto salad is $6.50 containing lettuces, salamis, ham, turkey, bell pepper, red onion, roasted red pepper, black olives, swiss cheese. Hefty!
Tuesday~ Sweet and sour chicken tamales with a confetti rice. Bruce's specialty! $6.50
Wednesday~Chicken Pad Thai $6.50 We've got the real deal made with tamarind, lemon grass, rice noodles, egg, sprouts, lemon...yum!
Thursday~ Turkey casserole. I know...we need a better name for it. It is made with fresh turkey breast, fresh and canned tomatoes, mushrooms, bell peppers, onions, mostaccioli (a form of macaroni) and lots of parmesan cheese. We'll serve it with a side salad. $6.50
Friday~ To celebrate Pimento cheese month, eat our pimento cheese quesadilla. Made from scratch, the pimento cheese is mostly chopped up cheddar cheese, plus roasted red peppers, some real mayonnaise, a jalapeno or two and finely minced onion. As the insides of a quesadilla—marvelous! $6.50 with a side.
Friday night dinners~
Seafood~Pan-seared rainbow trout, roasted root veggies, sautéed brussels sprouts plus side salad $12
Meat~Pastitsio. This authentically made Greek casserole of layered beef and noodles has both a tomato layer and a creamy cheese sauce layer. Served with a side salad and warm bread. $12
Vegetarian~Whole wheat noodles with broccoli, red peppers, carrots, shitakes, onions and garlic. With a side salad and warm bread. $10

Fall weather brings colorful foods

The pomegranates are in! To me, this marks the official sign that fall has arrived. I just love adding the little jewels to our chopped fresh fruit. This time of year we are pairing them with apples and pears—many local. You'll see them used as garnishes, too. If you are unfamiliar with pomegranates, they originate in the Mediterranean region and are a fruit that is about 3-4 inches across. To eat it, one peels away the outer skin to finds lots of jewel-like kernels. They almost look like ruby corn kernels. There IS a seed inside, but it is so small that most people simply swallow them. The juice is very refreshing and healthy. Thanks to recent marketing campaigns by POM, they have become a sought-after addition to salads, beverages and and even desserts. I grew up eating them, and we even had a pomegranate bush in our yard in Dallas.  My brother, Bill, and I loved to harvest and eat them straight from the bush.

Our flavor journeys this week are not centered on any one area. The South is represented by the southern corn chowder that I'll be serving all week. The tamales are traditional southwest as well, as is the pazole. Then we jump across the pond to enjoy a curried couscous salad. Thursday my Pizzas are simply Italian and Friday's lunch comes back to the US with  a Club Salad. France gets the nod with the trout and Italy again with the Fri. night lasagne.

This would be a great week to be adventurous in seeking your Friday night entertainment. We have Andy Roose coming from St. Genevieve. Jon had a chance to hear him on-line and really enjoyed his style. He classifies himself as an Americana singer/songwriter. Coming this far is an act of faith on his part, and we want to make it worth his while. So often, I think, locals feel they have to go elsewhere to hear music that is new to them. This time the "elsewhere" is coming to us. If you want a chance to hear him before committing you may do so by going to www.reverbnation.com/andyroose. But I have come to trust Jon's taste in musicians and feel confident you will enjoy Andy's music. As we have grown in popularity for Friday night, we are slowly building a following that appreciates expanding their concept of what is entertaining. We take that role pretty seriously and the trust you have given us. Please help support our efforts to bring you fresh talent by joining us Friday night. By building an appreciative audience base, we can continue to delight you with new sounds and experiences. I'll continue to expand the flavor journeys. Just another attempt to take you beyond the "Same ol', same ol'."

Our desserts these days have been pretty exciting. Bruce has been experimenting again and last week created a new one. It is white chocolate covered cherry dream pie—oh my! It begins with a chocolate crumb crust and is filled with white chocolate, drunken cherries and whipped cream—as I said, "Oh, my!" Bruce also came up with a new cake—Pineapple right-side-up cake. Fresh pineapple, coconut and a yummy yellow cake base. Where does he get these ideas? Who knows? But he does it week after week. I personally get a thrill each time he does so. Even though he is Mr. Quiet, I think he gets a thrill, too. Please let him know how much you are enjoying his efforts.

Another area I am trying to expand our dessert repertoire is in the realm of gluten-free offerings. You'd be amazed to know how many people are cutting back on gluten. Gluten is the part of wheat flour that creates the structure that supports bread and cakes. By carefully replacing that tradtional ingredient with alternatives such as rice flour, eggs, and other less glutenous grains, we can help those reach their gluten-free goals. In the digestive system, gluten can often cause a mucous build-up that interferes with the body's ability to remove  and use nutrients. If you have ever known anyone with Celiac's disease, you know that gluten can cause all sorts of troubles. Many of our customers are referred to us by their healthcare providers that we felt we should be able to offer dessert alternatives that speak to them. But they are not in any way a compromise, flavor-wise. The completely decadent chocolate-hazelnut torte is an example. Eggs, chocolate (lots) and no wheat flour make a dense, rich dessert. Do you have other ingredients you are trying to avoid? Speak up! Even if you've found other local places can't accommodate your dietary needs, come in to see what we can offer you. But if I don't know, I can't try to help.

Just so you know, here are some other things we avoid here—We NEVER use hydrogenated fats like Crisco, nor packaged whip cream products like Cool Whip. We never use margarine—always butter or extra virgin olive oil. For the rare times I am pan-frying something, I'll usually use corn oil. The sweetener in the cornbread is honey. Our breads are made fresh daily using whole wheat flour or unbleached flour. The pizza bases are made with a combination of unbleached and semolina wheat flours. Our eggs are almost always local, farm-fresh and organic. My favorites are the Aricana eggs that I use in the spinach and egg salads—they have a naturally pretty, light green/blue color shell. The insides and flavor are the same as the brown or white but I love the drama of peeling the coloreds ones. We make all our dressing from scratch using extra virgin olive oil or real mayonnaise. Our broths are either made from scratch or MSG free—usually organic. The pie shells usually use strictly butter, but if I am making a non-vegetarian dish I'll sometimes use butter and lard. Nothing beats real lard for a flaky crust. The tamales are made with traditional lard and corn masa, from scratch and hand-built. Whenever we can find them, we use local produce. Gradually we are expanding our local resources for produce. Mary Badiny had done a superb job of keeping us in fresh herbs and greens. We get our milk and dairy from Hiland Dairy where their farmers have committed to not using BGH—bovine growth hormone. We are always looking for ways to bring you food that originates closer to home. We welcome your input and suggestions.

So the menu this week~
Soups~ all week Southern Corn Chowder; Tuesday Pozole; Wed + Creamy garlic , spinach and potato soup 3.49/4.99/5.49  or with entrée 2.50/ 3.50
Monday~Fall veggie deep dish quiche. this quiche is so loaded in veggies you won't even notice there isn't any meat in it. With side salad. $6.50
Tuesday~  Cumin rubbed pulled pork tamales with a salsa verde cheese sauce and Spanish rice $6.50
Wednesday~Curried Turkey and Israeli couscous salad $6.50
Thursday~ Pesto pizza with smoked sausage, bell peppers, and portabellas with side salad $7.00
Friday~Hefty club salad with turkey, ham, swiss, hard boiled egg, plus red onion, mushrooms and bell pepper. $6.50

Fri. night dinners~ Seafood~ Rockbridge Trout Meuniere with wasabi mashed potatoes and stir-fried fall veggies and side salad $12
Meat~Beef lasagne with side salad $12
Veggie~veggie stuffed manicotti,  baked acorn squash, side salad $10

Thanks for joining us.
~~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

When it is hot— eat cool

I've been digging through my recipes for cool inspirations for salads to assist in keeping the heat out of the kitchen as well as out of your bodies! I LOVE summer salads that feature various cooked meats  chilled and sliced. My arsenal of cookbooks includes FRESH (from the pubishers of Fine Cooking), Chefs at the Market (published to celebrate the Dallas Farmers Market) and upteen zillion years of Southern Living Magazine Cookbooks. I have many more, but these are the ones I dig through on the weekends to inspire the next week's menus. This is the primo time of year for fresh ingredients. We are getting weekly deliveries of tomatoes, fresh berries and fruit, basil and other fresh herbs. Soon peppers  and squash will join the list. This week's menu will feature one major salad plus some interesting options for Friday night. Descriptions will follow deeper into the blog.

I am taking a few moments here to reflect on where we have come in the, now, 7 months we've been open at this location. Overall, the trend is on a nice long growth curve. We've managed to grow without expanding our debt load. Whew! We've even managed to show a modest profit and live off the proceeds. Nobody is getting rich but we are laying a nice solid foundation. People keep telling us that restaurants typically don't show a profit for 5 years. We didn't have that option.

I have been able to keep enough creativity in the menu to keep me satisfied on the creativity front. As an artist, there is no way I could just crank out a fixed menu, week to week and remain interested in what we are doing. Bruce has had his hand in the creative focus, as well. He is a master at taking an ingredient I put in front of him and say, "What can you do with this?" I hope he is having as much fun as I am in that realm. His tamales are always well received and his knowledge of pickles astounds me. He has almost photographic memory when it comes to recipes—subsidized, I am sure, by his innate sense of taste. We are very lucky to have his daily input creatively as well as his broad knowledge of the food industry. He just wishes I'd stop bringing more "stuff" up here that needs storing! Jon does too, but he gave up on that front years ago.

A big part of creatvity is fed by an allowance to fail. If you aren't always editing yourself, scared of failure, you can stretch and grow. As an artist I am keenly aware of that viewpoint. I try to keep that in mind when I try something new or encourage Bruce to do so. We won't always have successful creations. We know when something didn't work. But knowing it is okay to stretch beyond our comfort zone is key to our growth and expansion. It has given us room to try out improvisations using leftovers as well as seeing where a fresh ingredient will take us. The day our actions reflect a fear of failure is the day we start dying. Are we afraid? Sometimes! Does fear stop us? Not yet. When we started this cafe we were already staring at financial challenges. For us, non-action would have sealed that fate. Action, even a wrong one, was better than attempting to stand still. You can float on quick sand as long as you don't stand still. Fortunately, we have been able to build a fairly solid foundation under us while continuing to stretch and create. You have had a major role in this success. You have recognized that what we do isn't like everyone else. You have let us know that you appreciate our creative efforts and have supported them. You have forgiven us our less-than-successful attempts and given us feedback to improve them. You have a vested interest in our success and we can feel your love and support. Corny? So? Thank you for giving us room to fail!

Speaking of progress—we have finally paid off the back property taxes. That has been hurdle numero uno in keeping us from acquiring our beer and wine license. In Missouri, you can't even apply for a permit if you owe any back taxes. The next hurdle is filing our income tax. We don't anticipate that being a financial hurdle just a paperwork one. Being caregiver for Mom plus running this cafe has often taken more energy than we had to offer. Some things simply got put on the back burner. Filing the paperwork that didn't demand our attention was one of them. My target to have all that caught up is the end of August.

The tamales for Tuesday will be a mystery, thus far. Bruce took off for a couple of well-deserved days of visiting with friends and I failed to nail down his plan. Suffice it to say, they will be tasty. This week's menu takes advantage of the plethora of the grilling meats available. On Wednesday I am combining grilled sirloin steak with mint and cilantro to make a Thai Beef Salad. The recipe came from FRESH. I have made it once before and it was very well received. I love the light fresh taste of the combination of ingredients. The freshness of mint and cilantro add a lightness that might be missing with simply a steak salad.

The feedback on my pizzas has been a pleasant surprise. I have often completely sold out. So I am going to try to keep them as a regular item. This week I am combining Bruce's sun-dried tomato Zesto, brie, smoked portabellas and smoked turkey sausage. Sounds pretty yummy to me.

We are getting in a fresh delivery of Rockbridge rainbow trout this week.  Jon will do his usual magic in wood-firing some of them for the Trout Roman and as an add-on for the spinach salad. We'll feature the Trout Roman Friday for lunch by giving you $1 off. If you have not tried them yet—this would be a good time to do so. They come on my Roman bun which has diced onion baked in for flavor. I put a wasabi mayonaise on the bun for a bit of kick. If you are not familiar with wasabi, it is a Japanese horseradish that I mix with mayonnaise for a bit of entertainment for your tongue. It isn't really hot, just kicky. Then I add fresh tomato and spicy sprouts. So we are combining the mild onion flavor of the bun with the smoky goodness of the trout with the kickiness of the wasabi and the lusciousness of fresh local tomato and the final finsh is the freshness of the sprouts. The line starts HERE!

I am also featuring the trout in one of  Friday's  night-time entrees. I am doing a pepper crusted trout with potato cranberry corn galette and a shitake mushroom braise. This recipe orginated in Dallas at the Mercury Restaurant by Chef Chris Ward. I have adapted it to fresh trout and used the local shitakes instead of chanterelles. Galette is a general term used in French to designate various types of flat, round or freeform crusty cakes. The braise will surround the stacked trout, spinach and gallete. I think if will be quite a treat. $12

Another of the featured entrees this Friday night will be Pecan Crusted Chicken Breasts with whipped sweet potatoes and jalapeno pecans. This one also came from Dallas— Chef Helen Duran at the Crescent Club. She has done an exquisite job of incorporating fresh ingredients with staple stand-bys to create a tasty and visually exciting dish that has loads of texture. $12

The vegetarian entree this week will feature stuffed zucchini rolls, baked phyllo with mushrooms and leeks as well as a fresh corn pudding. It doesn't get much fresher than this. The will be no feeling of compromise here for a lack of any meat. $10

You may have heard Sean McCormick play on open mic night last week or with Swiftkick a couple of weeks ago. This week he is the featured artist and will play bluegrass traditionals plus his own tunes.
When we say we strongly encourage you to make reservations, it isn't out of any hoidy-toidy illusions. We have routinely filled to capacity and sold out of the featured entrees. We WANT you to be here and we WANT you to get your preferred entree choices. Simply call 505-0302 and let us know who will be joining you. We'll make sure you are taken care of.

As always, we take great joy in being able to call you by name and make you feel welcome. We know we couldn't be here without your weekly, sometimes multiple weekly visits. Thank you. By the way, the "comeback treats" are back. This time they are rosemary, pistachio, white chocolate cookies. If you have been in more than once during the week, it is ok to remind us you are due one! We do try to remember on our own but your reminder is welcome. I hope you have a terrific week and look forward to seeing your smiling face!

~~Susan

An explosion of energy! Spring!

Don't you just love the energy this time of year? You can just see the buzz unfolding each day. I always feel like the daylight savings jumps leap-frog us into the next season. So now, once again, the sun has not risen when I leave for work but it is still up long enough when I get home to remind me of all the yard work not yet addressed.

I have not yet learned to master the art of juggling cafe, Mom and home plus the other affiliations of which I've been a part for the last several years. I have been clearing the decks, so I can focus on issues closer to home. I have always felt it was important to give back to the community and have usually been a board member on some non-profit organization or other for the last 15+ years. Time for a break from that while working to strengthen our cafe's customer base.

We have had several people comment on our pricing. So I thought I'd share my thoughts. Yes, I know that the Friday night dinner is reasonably priced. Perhaps less than you would find elsewhere. We would prefer to keep prices such that you can be with us regularly, rather than having to save up! Besides, you want to have enough money left over for our "from-scratch" desserts. We know that you appreciate quality ingredients and we make that a priority. Occasionally, you will see something priced a bit higher. But for now we are content with the $10/12 range for Friday night dinners. However, as the price of gasoline and transportation increases, you might even find we are able to save you more by using locally sourced ingredients.

With the change of seasons we expect to have a more diverse availability of produce. I think we startled a few last week when we introduced several new things at once. Too many choices! We introduced the Trout Roman Sandwich that has wood-fired Rockbridge Rainbow trout, wasabi mayonnaise, tomato and spicy sprouts on our toasted Roman bun.  We also brought back the organic spinach salad and the real Caesar salad. Each salad can be enhanced with the addition of chicken, salmon, trout or shrimp— all wood-fired and smokey. We have other salads and sandwiches in the wings while you get used to these.

This week will include the St. Patrick's Day Dinner on Thursday night. We have fully booked reservations so it should be a full house. Thankfully, with Bruce's guidance, we are getting "feeding a crowd" down to a fairly smooth operation.

Watch for daffodils on the table this week. They come from Bruce's huge flower garden tended by Gordon Johnston. Speaking of Gordon, he and CD Scott are bringing their unique brand of hillbilly soul to À La Carte Café. This will be their first appearance as a duo, but these guys have played together for years as part of The Hellbenders. While not "unplugged" exactly, the decibel level will be greatly reduced as they apply their distinctive angelic harmonies and devilish instrumental skills to a set list of trippy folk rock featuring original tunes, Van Morrison classics, and more. CD Scott, guitar & vocals and Gordon Johnston, keyboards & vocals. So don't pass up this opportunity for a special musical experience. It'll be interesting to see what happens on Friday as the HEllbenders play here and the HIllbenders play at the Civic Center. There are bound to be a few confused souls.

Friday nights have certainly picked up. I'll order that trout again this week. I am planning in serving it baked and stuffed with portabellas, spinach and spring onions. It'll be accompanied by a rice pilaf and side salad.

The pasta dish—well, we have that lovely pesto made from fresh basil, garlic, walnuts, olive oil and Parmesan. I'll toss the pasta with the pesto and add in grilled fresh spring veggies—asparagus, peas, spring onions and mushrooms. Garlic bread and a side salad will accompany.

We are phasing out soups for a while. They just aren't moving as the weather warms up. But I am also planning on making sure we ALWAYS have 2 dessert choices available.

This week's menu—
Monday~ Featuring the Real Caesar Salad and the Organic Spinach Salad (with wood-fired shrimp.) You can add meat/fish to up your protein. I'll have apple pie as well as carrot cake for dessert.

Tuesday~Italian Tamales with orzo. This strange sounding combination was a hit a few weeks ago. The tamales are hand-built and tasty.

Wednesday~Thai chicken with peanut sauce over noodles and greens. This is a chilled salad. Also featuring the Roman Trout Sandwich. Plan on Angel food/ fruit parfait for dessert.

Thursday~ Spring Veggie Crepes with onion cream sauce. Organic Spinach Salad with wood-fired salmon.

Friday~Lunch: Reuben Sandwich—Corned beef and sauerkraut on grilled rye with Thousand Island dressing and Swiss cheese.

~Dinner—Entree #1  Fresh Rainbow trout stuffed with spring veggies and baked. Rice pilaf and salad.
Entree #2 Pesto Pasta Primavera, salad and garlic toast.