Let's Hear it for Team Eugene

We are so proud of the team we have in place at Restaurant Eugene. As the saying goes, a chain is only as strong as it's weakest link, and right now, we feel like our chain is titanium.  We're not trying to be boastful at all, but we do want to take a moment to acknowledge some of the extraordinary people who bring their hearts, minds and dedication to the job every day, starting with Rob Ochotnicky.

Rob has been with the team for a year.  Starting with us as server, he then moved Assistant Maitre d', and most recently serves as our Guest Services & Event Coordinator.  Rob is the man you want to talk to if you plan to bring a large group (more than 8) to dine at Restaurant Eugene or if you'd like to bring Restaurant Eugene's celebrated food and hospitality to your next party or event.  Yes, by the way, Catering Eugene is back.  Rob is a natural hospitalitarian, a hard worker, a stickler for details and one of our many valued team members, so we wanted to give him a little shout-out here and let you know who to reach out to regarding large party and catering request.

Look for more team member profiles here soon.

Satsuma Season - Abundance and Good Fortune

In the winter months, we give thanks for citrus.  We like to think that the fabled "Orange Blossom Special" isn't just a passenger train delivering sun-sick snowbirds to Florida, but also the freight train that brings fruit starved citizens of northern climes a little taste of the tropics (or at least the sub-tropics).  So, in winter, we also give thanks for our Floridian neighbors to the south and their latest delivery of vitamin C infused deliciousness: Satsumas.

The Satsuma mandarin is many things:  an oblate spheroid (flat & round, as opposed to prolate, like an egg); an easy-to-peel, sweet, seedless variety of orange; a cold-tolerant citrus crop important to growers in Florida, Alabama, Louisiana and Texas (in each of which state, incidentally, you'll find the  homonymous town).   In the late 19th century the Satsuma was first brought to Florida from Japan where it had been cultivated for some half a millennium.  It is in season now throughout the sub-tropics, which is probably why it's a customary gift for the lunar (aka Chinese) new year, thought to symbolize abundance and good fortune.  We are so grateful for the good fortune of having them in abundance right now, and as per usual, we're putting some up for that inevitable day, when Satsumas are no longer abundant and we find ourselves craving one last sweet, aromatic, sunshiney bite with some shrimp or lettuces.  Look for the beautiful golden jars at the top of the bar while they last.

A Toast to 2011

We are busily planning and preparing for our New Year's Eve celebration at Restaurant Eugene.  For this first time ever, we've teamed up with our colleagues at Holeman & Finch Public House to deliver an incredibly thoughtful and memorable evening, full of intrigue and style, 007: The Cocktail & Dinner Event. 

Guests will begin their evening with cocktails and a spin of the roulette wheel at the Public House, which we are transforming into a casino, then proceed to Restaurant Eugene for a dinner fit for an international man of mystery.  In fact, every course will be taken from foods Bond enjoyed in Ian Flemming's novels.

Casino Royal - Caviar &; Toast
Dr. No. - Conch Fritters
You Only Live Twice - Tsukiji Market Hamachi
Goldfinger - Stone Crab Claws with Pink Champagne
Diamonds are Forever - Pheasant Roulade
Moonraker - Road Prime Rib, Yorkshire Pudding and Marrow
From Russia with Love - Macerated Figs, Sweet Yogurt and Crunchy Almond

You get the idea...

Of course, there is only one thing with which someone as debonnaire as Bond would toast the new year:
a recoltant manipulant (grower producer) champagne --- in this case, a  Jeroboam of Vilmart & Cie Cuvee Grand Cellier.

Cheers, indeed.  Happy New Year!

Bourbon and Bon Bons --- Comfort and Joy!

It's a very happy day at Restaurant Eugene.  The Pappy Van Winkle has just arrived --- a case each of the 12, 20 and 23 year aged bourbons.

A tricky thing that bourbon.  America's native spirit is named after the French royal house which held territory in Kentucky before it was Kentucky.  There's a county in Kentucky named Bourbon which doesn't actually produce any of the stuff.  Though 99% of the Bourbon in the world does come from the state of Kentucky, the 1964 law that codified the elements of bourbon does not dictate the origin.

It does specify the mash: at least 51% corn base; the aging: at least two years in charred new oak; and the distillation; under 160 proof. 

If you love bourbon and have never had a sip of Pappy, you should avail yourself of one soon.  If you don't think you like bourbon, you should try the Pappy.  Pappy is some of the finest there is, and no drink is more perfect this time of year. 

And what could be better with your bourbon than a bon bon or two.  Pastry Chef Aaron Russell makes a new bon bon flavor almost daily.  Tonight we have sorghum walnut praline and egg nog.  Both are creamy smooth chocolate truffle perfection and truly live up to their name --- "good good!"

Comfort and joy abound at Restaurant Eugene.

Calling all Vegetable Lovers

Chefs Hopkins and Sweeney checking in the daily harvest.

It’s been said before, but we’ll say it again.  Chef Linton Hopkins loves vegetables --- eating them, as well as cooking and serving them.  Chef Hopkins is not the only cook in our kitchen with a deep appreciation of the earth’s edible flora.  Chef David Sweeney recently joined our team.  As the Chef de Jardin, Sweeney is directly responsible for working with our farmers as they deliver their harvest daily, and processing the vegetables as they arrive.  As a result of his fine work, we are announcing a nightly five and seven course vegetable tasting every night at Restaurant Eugene.  Here’s a preview of a recent menu:

RESTAURANT  | EUGENE

Vegetable

5 Course

December, 2010

____________________

shaved radish salad

buttermilk, orange, caraway

_______________________

gougere

holeman and finch, pink pisoni, santa lucia highlands 2008

_______________________

tasting of beets

glazed, pickled, pureed and sorbet

domaine chêne colombe, macon villages 2008

_______________________

crisp kale & skillet peppers

broccoli puree, pecans and vermouth onions

macrostie, sonoma coast 2008

_______________________

mushrooms & farro

mustard greens, turnips, horseradish broth

domaine d’ andezon, côtes de rhône  2008

_______________________

le cabrie

montchever-betin / wisconsin

luli, pinot noir, santa lucia highlgands 2009

 _______________________

grapefruit sorbet

champagne gelée, almond-buckwheat crumble

zefiro, prosecco, veneto, nv

RESTAURANT  | EUGENE

Vegetable

7 course

December, 2010

_______________________

shaved radish salad

buttermilk, orange, caraway

holeman and finch, pink pisoni, santa lucia highlands 2008

____________________

 

gougere

hughes beaulieu, picpoul de pinet,

coteaux du languedoc 2009

_______________________

tasting of beets

glazed, pickled, pureed and sorbet

hughes beaulieu, picpoul de pinet,

coteaux du languedoc 2009

_______________________

white truffles & grits

soft butter, black pepper

domaine chêne colombe, macon villages 2008

_____________________

crisp kale & skillet peppers

broccoli puree, pecans and vermouth onions

macrostie, sonoma coast 2008

_______________________

toasted farro

turnips, mustard greens, pickled peaches

drew, gatekeepers, anderson valley 2008

_______________________

roasted wild mushrooms

rutabaga-apple gratin, skillet greens

domaine d’ andezon, côtes de rhône  2008

_______________________

le cabrie

montchever-betin / wisconsin

luli, pinot noir, santa lucia highlgands 2009  

_______________________

grapefruit sorbet

champagne gelée, almond-buckwheat crumble

zefiro, prosecco, veneto, nv

Meet The New Confections

We are delighted to announce that Aaron Russell has joined the team at Restaurant Eugene and is premiering his new dessert menu tonight.  Aaron's bio reads like who's who of Atlanta culinary achievement:  Johannes Klapdohr, Bruno Menard, Guenter Seeger... 

An even better read is the actual menu.  Here's a preview.  Come see for yourself soon.

green apple sorbet

       buckwheat streusel, goat cheese mousse, tarragon honey  

beet gelée

yogurt and chocolate “snow,” peppermint

 

warm poached pear

red wine, gingersnap crisp, brown butter ice cream

The Blur of Late Summer

Those long summer days really keep us moving. We’ve been so busy, we haven’t blogged since July. Now, tis Thanksgiving Eve, we’ve just received a very special delivery: a gorgeous box of oyster mushrooms, freshly foraged by our favorite forest food sleuth, Michael from Indian Ridge Farm, and we really want to share the joy of this special delivery with you. We want to tell you about Michael, and Ed Taylor, the biodynamic farmer who owns the farm where Michael works and forages. We want to share something of the treasures from the woods that are going on to the menu tonight, and this weekend. 

We also want to say Happy Thanksgiving. We are thankful for Ed, and Michael and all of our farmer friends.

Michael with his latest find.

 

Here is a list of a few of the things we’re thankful for from the past three months:

• Best table display at the Attack of the Killer Tomato Festival to benefit Georgia Organics.

 • Lovely new tableware for Chef to plate on and play with.

 

• Recognition from Travel & Leisure Magazine for the Best Fried Chicken in the Country.

• Our amazing Executive Sous Chef, Jason Paolini

Chef Jason schooling the staff Holeman & Finch line-up.

• Our inaugural Eugene Author Dinner, with the delightful Susan Rebecca White.

• Recognition from Creative Loafing for our vegetable plate. You must try this dish!

• Our friends at Pollen.

• The Southern Foodways Alliance and its brilliant programming.

• Kat Kinsman’s Eatocracy.  Thanks, Kat.  That was great fun!

• Mark Kurlansky, and everything he’s written on food, history and humanity.

• Feeding our guests and even sometimes our heroes. What an honor to serve you all, especially you, Mr. Ali.

Thanks Y’all. Look for more good things here soon.