October 11, 2011
It's been a while since my last blog - it has been very busy here at the Lemon Grass and the big Elephant. We have been through a lot of changes on the menu and the company structure.
Most of the time for the menu I always miss a lot of goodies from the season and I tend to put most of the stuff on late. I just got new help, his name is Mike, freshly graduated from Johnson & Wales. Mike will help organize my kitchen and is going to be my main man - which will allow me more room to put better food on the menu.
In the past we have had great staff behind all the lines, but what we lacked was finance for higher tech resources. We really need the new kid who can take our new ideas and carry the ideas over to our clientele. Lets see what Mike can do.
Ok lets talk about food! Fall is here and we are welcoming the season with some new goodies and the return of some old classics.
We put a fall spin on our popular goat cheese salad creating our new Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Salad with shredded granny smith apples, stewed white raisins, toasted hazel nuts, olive oil and a Greek yogurt and tarragon dressing.
A Thai classic will make its first appearance on our menu with Num Pla Wan, a Tamarind dipping sauce of dried fried shrimp, fresh and crispy shallots, garlic and palm sugar. Which will be served with fresh tart seasonal apples.
Morning Roti will also make its debut on the menu. I will use green curry with sliced filet mignon, cinnamon basil and sweet peppers served with our warm roti - flat bread.
And introducing Steaky Bacon - center cut pork belly from Niman Ranch - the best free range, no antibiotics. The pork belly is roasted at 700 degrees to melt the fat away then it is stewed in all-spice. It is served with fried sweet buns and a fresh garlic and chili vinaigrette. Trust me you will LOVE it!
As for our returning favorites the butternut squash soup and orange ricotta salata salad are back! Our butternut squash soup is topped with our famous coconut shrimp and its still be best soup in town. The orange ricotta salad is becoming a new classic. Take Ricotta Salate, add seasonal oranges, shaved fennel, mache and finish with balsamic vinaigrette and California extra virgin olive oil.
My Bistro chef Dave (the DDT) added pheasent sausage and cranberry cognac chutney to the big Elephant menu. Along with wild mushroom risotto and a pulled pork poutine that is sure to fend off the cold weather!
This will be a fun season. I am excited to put the new food on and see what everybody thinks!
Your Chef,
Max