A talk with Beatrice and Woodsley Chef Pete List.. and a great recipe he gave us.

Hi all

About a month or so ago we had the chance to sit down for a fantastic meal at Beatrice and Woodsley(www.beatriceandwoodsley.com)and recently asked the Executive Chef Pete List if he would have the time to talk to us a little about what drives his cooking. You can find our review of Beatrice and Woodsley at (http://milehigheater.blogspot.com/search?q=In+the+woods)
and here are the questions and his answers. The recipe he shared with us is at the very end.
Here is a picture of Chef List.




1. What attracted you to cooking?

Food has always been important in my life, and I found that I have a desire to create and produce good food. It makes me happy and hopefully the people I cook for as well.



2. What is the philosophy behind your cooking, or in your kitchen?

Keep it simple, if you have good ingredients, let them speak for themselves. I try not to mess with the natural flavors that make fresh food so good to begin with, only to enhance the experience.



3. What is the biggest influence on the way you cook?

I am a very seasonal cook, using products in the peak of freshness, the height of quality.



4. Is there a chef living today you would like to work with?

Yes, Thomas Keller from the french laundry and Grant Achutz from alinea in Chicago.



5. Is there a particular ingredient you like to cook with more than others?

Currently pork is the thing for me, a good well treated pig may well hold the most potential for creativity (if only they had eggs!)....... If you go out to Beatrice and Woodsley and the pork belly is on the menu TRY IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!



6. If stuck on a desert isle and could have one meal from then on out what would it be?

A sandwich. Just kidding, Give me a good pad thai or a curry and I am a happy guy.



7. Is someone asked you for two Colorado restaurants to try other than your own what would you suggest?

This is a tough one for me to answer because since moving back from Chicago, I have not had a chance to eat around much. I would ask you the same question, where should I try? .... Currently our favorites are Luca D'Italia in Denver and the Black Cat in Boulder



8. How about one restaurant any where in the world? Restaurant Paul Bocuse in Lyon France. The epitome of classic french cuisine.

9. Would you be willing to share a recipe with us ?
yes:


Curried lamb, pearl cous cous salad.

The Lamb:
2# lamb stew meat or shoulder cut into 1/2 inch cubes (you want some fat attached)
1 med yellow onion diced
2-3 cloves of garlic crushed and chopped
2 med carrots diced
3 small potatoes diced
1-2 hot chili peppers seeded and chopped
2tbl madras curry powder
1tsp cayenne
2tsp cinnamon
1tbl toasted, ground coriander
1tsp cumin
3tbl kosher salt
1tbl freshly ground pepper
1/3c flour
1/2 bottle cream sherry
1/8 c ea. golden raisins, dried fig and apricot (small dice)
2qt water

season the lamb with the dry spices, coating completely. Let sit out at room temp for 30-45 minutes. get a 6qt pot on medium to high heat add olive oil and a tbl of butter, toss the lamb in the flour to coat, add to the pan carefully it may splatter. Brown the lamb in the pan to form a crust, add the vegetables and saute to get a little color on them. Add the dried fruit and deglaze with the sherry. Reduce the sherry by 2/3 and add the water. Cover and simmer slowly for an hour or so. The cooking liquid should be at a sauce consistency and the lamb fork tender.

The cous cous:
1/2 red onion or 2 shallots small dice
1 clove garlic chopped
1/8c ea dried golden fig, currants and apricot
2c pearl cous cous
1c white wine
3c water
s/p/s tt

In a tbl ea. olive oil and butter, saute the onions and garlic, add the fruit and sweat. Deglaze with the wine and reduce by 1/2, add the water, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring often to avoid sticking to the pan. When the liquid is absorbed, cool on a pan or platter. When the cous cous is cool, toss with a good olive oil, lemon juice and fresh chives.

To serve:
arrange the cous cous on a platter with a well in the center for the lamb, put the hot lamb in the center of the plate and garnish with baby arugula, yogurt, mint and lime zest. serve with warm flat bread.


That recipe sounds great we will have to try it soon and when we do I will put up our attempt on the blog. I want to thank Chef List and Kevin Delk for all the time they gave to us for this and hopefully when you get a chance you will stop by this great restaurant.

Thanks as always for stopping by and if you have any questions or comments we would love to hear from you.

Jonathan and Barb

White Chili on a cold day

We have had a few cold rainy days in a row and Barb started to crave one of her favorite winter dishes so I thought I would make it and share the experience on the blog. I will give the recipe first then show pictures of the making,

Chicken and White Bean Chili

Roasted green chilies add spice too this great white chili recipe that is also a great way to us up left over chicken!

1 pound dried small white beans ( I have used canned white beans and it works pretty well and cuts out a overnight step)
8 fresh Anaheim chilies
¼ cup butter (1/2 stick)
2 Large onions chopped
1/3 cup all purpose flour
4 cups low-salt chicken broth
3 cups half and half
4 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon white pepper (regular pepper works fine)
1 ½ cups grated Monterey Jack cheese (about 6 oz)
1 cup sour cream
Chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Place beans in a heavy large pot with enough cold water to cover by at least 3 inches. Let stand overnight.

Char chilies over gas flame or in a broiler until blackened on all sides. Enclose in a paper bag; let stand 10 minutes. Peel, seed, and chop chilies and then set them aside. ( I have used the chilies without roasting it still turns out well but the roasting adds a bit of flavor that is unique)

Drain Beans. Return to pot. Add enough cold water to pot to cover beans by 3 inches. Simmer until beans are almost tender, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour (add 15 minutes if in high altitude) the drain well.
Melt butter in a clean heavy large pot over medium heat. Add onions and sauté until tender, about 15 minutes. Add flour and stir about 5 minutes (do not brown). Gradually whisk in chicken broth and half and half. Simmer gently to thicken, about 10 minutes. Add in the beans , chilies, shredded chicken, and everything else except the cheese sour cream and cilantro. Simmer gently to blend flavors about 20 minutes. Chill until cold and cover this can be made up to one day ahead of time and the chilling is not essential but will make it much more flavorful.

Reheat before serving add grated cheese and sour cream stir just until chili is heated through and cheese melts (do not boil). Ladle into bowls and garnish with Cilantro.

Makes 10-12 servings.
All the ingredients


Soaking the beans


Roasting the chilies

The onions


Chilies


Chicken

Getting the pot ready

In goes the chicken broth

And the beans


Here comes the chili powder

Cheese

Stirring it up


White chili on a cold day a Happy wife makes.



It was fun documenting the cooking process here. Tuesday our Talk with the chef of Beatrice and Woodsley will be posted and he gave us a Lamb recipe we just have to try I will more than likely put that up when we make it.

Thanks for coming by if have any questions or comments please let us know.

Jonathan and Barb

Rodizio Grill

Chain alert: This restaurant is a chain but its a ton of fun and you never leave hungry!

One note, I dont have many pictures here. I found out quickly moving servers slicing meat on your plate then quickly moving in a dim room makes for very hard photo taking.


Rodizio Grill – the place where meatetarians gather

For a meaty good time, you can’t beat the Rodizio Grill located on Wynkoop (http://www.rodiziogrill.com/). The place is buzzing with activity. Once you’re seated, your server will give you the lowdown for the evening. Placed on your table is this wooden red/green bauble, which they call the “cue”. If the green is placed up, that means food is coming. If the red is up, that means you are so full, you can’t eat another bite. If you lay the bauble on its side, that means you’re ready for dessert or the check. But, you can always go “green” again.

For those of you who haven’t been there, the meat is flowing freely throughout the room with the servers coming to you. All you have to do is raid the salad bar. Everything else is delivered to your table.

You start out with Bananas Frita (deep fried bananas that were delicious), and Pao De Queijo (cheesy bread - not so delicious, but really, you’re there for the meat-a-ganza).



The first server has Assado (Brazilian Pot Roast served with potatoes, carrots and onions) followed by the next server who has Coracao (chicken hearts), then yet another server with Peru Com Bacon (chicken wrapped in bacon). What an auspicious start. But wait, the meat keeps coming (put the green bauble down!). Picanha (sirloin), Tomate Grelhado Com Parmesao (fried tomatoes), 3 x 1 Chef Special (whole sirloin with garlic butter), Abacaxi (fresh glazed pineapple). Red!!

The servers have skewers and slide your meat onto your waiting plate. The top sirloin with garlic was our favorite; you could smell the garlic from across the table. But, we didn’t know what else was to come.


Green again. Sobre Coxa (marinated chicken), Linguica (pork sausage), Fraldinha (beef tenderloin, Presunto (glazed ham), Lombo (pork loin), and Peru Com Bacon (turkey wrapped in bacon). And we did try every single thing. The ham was delicious, moist and tender. I looked over once at my friend’s plate and it was overflowing in meat….he was the last man standing! The rest of us “meatetarians” had given up by then. We were saving room for dessert.



We had six choices for dessert. Our tummies were full, but our eyes were telling us, “dessert”. So, we had to try it. We ordered 3 for the table: Royal Brigadeiro Banana Sundae (Brazilian chocolate cake toppled with ice cream, sliced bananas, an avalanche of Brigadeiro sauce, whipped cream, chocolate sprinkles and a cherry! Rabanada (warm cinnamon pastry with a creamy center, served with vanilla ice cream and laced with caramel sauce). The last was like a key lime pie (sorry I don’t have the Brazilian name for it).



If you leave the Rodizio Grill hungry, you only have yourself to blame. It’s Meat-a-Palooza every night there with good friends, good food, you can’t afford to not go.

We all had a wonderful time and came away very stuffed and thinking only of salads for a few days afterword. As always thanks for coming by and if you have any questions or comments or just want to chat we would love to hear from you.

Barb and Jonathan

Going Green With Black Cat chef Eric Skokan

Going Green with Eric Skokan of the Black Cat
a interview with Eric Skokan


Hi all,


We were fortunate enough to be invited out to meet Chef Eric Skokan of the Black Cat in Boulder and spend some time talking with him about his cooking and his garden. For those of you that don’t know, in the summer 80% of the produce used in the meals at the Black Cat come from Chef Eric’s garden and even in the winter you can expect something on your plate to have come from there, which is a pretty darn cool thing in this age of shipping in everything from hundreds of miles away.

When I first walked up, Chef Skokan was busy tending his garden, with his son Avery following around. As we talked and walked around, Chef Eric would pick a little something here and there for all of us to try, such as pole beans, pepper cress and a couple bright red strawberries, which his son was very happy to see. And to be completely honest, so was I as it was very sweet and juicy. After a little while his wife and older son came around the corner from picking some fresh grapes, which I also got to sample. The dark ones had a taste that was just out of this world and the lucky chickens in the back yard were busy having a field day with some of them that they had dropped inside the pen.


Chef Skokan


The front garden and Avery

Inside the chicken coop, which he tends to move around the yard a bit to even out the use of the land he has, there are enough chickens to hopefully provide all the eggs for the restaurant. There are even 2 quails that he uses just for the eggs. He mentioned that one thing he really liked about raising the chickens is the circle they formed with the restaurant. He brings scraps form the kitchen back to feed the chickens who in turn lay eggs for the restaurant and of course do what chickens do on the ground, which is composted up with other items and then is used to fertilize the garden which grows the food that will end up being scraps for their food!











I asked Chef Skokan a few questions which I will list below with his answers.

1. What attracted you to cooking?

When I asked him this question he told me he had always been interested in gardening and cooking from a young age and it was just following his love that lead him into it. But, after talking to him for a bit, another story came out that I would like to share here. At 22 years of age he was in school to become a lawyer and as time went on he found himself really not liking going to school but really loving going to work at the restaurant job he had at the time and finally decided that it was more important to do what he loved and since then has been in the fortunate position to be able to go to a job he loves ever since. And let me tell you, you can taste that love of cooking and the love of gardening in every bite of the food you have at the Black Cat.


2. What is the philosophy behind your cooking, or in your kitchen?

Cooking is all about taking care of people and that comes first. I don’t do tall food that is beautiful to look at but darn near impossible to figure how to eat and I think that bringing in the produce from my garden and reducing the waste we produce also is a way of taking care of people.

3. What is the biggest influence on the way you cook?

What is in season! As the year goes on I try to spotlight the things that are in season on my dishes. For example, peaches. I only use peaches a few months a year and then you won’t see them again for months and months. But, that first sweet piece that comes back into the kitchen makes that meal even more special. Another large influence is the person he trained under and in particular an incident that happened where he had, to put it bluntly, screwed up a parsnip soup. He went to the chef and said he thought he could fix it by adding more heavy cream and butter. He was told not to. When he asked why, he was told that it is the easy way out and anyone can make something taste better by dumping in cream, but a great chef can do it without. He took this to heart and to this day in his cooking he finishes the cooking process with cream and butter when it is needed, and does not begin with them so the dish can stand on its own with out them and just explode when he does add it at the end.


Second garden

4. Is there a chef living today you would like to work with?

Jean George Vongerichten. Because he has done so much innovative work with French cuisine and getting away from the heavy cream and butter.

5. Is there a particular ingredient you like to cook with more than others?

Every first item that comes, the first tomato, the first bean, but even more the first fresh wild herbs that pop up in the spring because that just gives the feel that we have made it through the winter and the spring and summer is coming with its bounty of flavors.

6. If stuck on a desert isle and you could have only one thing to eat fort he rest of your life what would it be.

Eric went back and forth between good bread and a good risotto and finally decided on the risotto.

7. What 2 restaurants would you suggest to visit besides your own in Colorado?

Frasca Food and Wine (www.frascafoodandwine.com) which he credits with being one of the best restaurants as far as service goes in Colorado and secondly Pupusas Sabor Hispano also in Boulder which serves Salvadoran and Mexican fare which he says is heads and tails above all its competition!

8. What do you do for produce in the winter months?

To this he quickly answered, lament! But he does manage to get produce as late as December from his outside garden and he does some small things inside his garage with grow lights year round.

9. Why did you decide to provide produce from your garden and why not just hire a local farmer to do it for you?

To answer the first question, he used to chef at another Colorado restaurant and seeing it be a “factory” with three or more pallets of food shipped in everyday and a pallet of flattened boxes going out and all the other waste and that was the driving force for his producing his own garden as well as his love for gardening. For the second question he says he is a very hands on person and loves gardening almost as much as he loves cooking and doing the garden lets him experiment and see what works here in Colorado and what does not, as well as to play with those ingredients in different meals to see what flavors he can come up with.


10. You have a vegan and vegetarian tasting menu. What kind of challenges does that bring?

With most restaurants it would be a real problem but with the way I cook almost all my meals start out as vegetarian and I don’t add such items as cream or butter or even the meat items till later, so it is very easy for me to have a great tasting vegan/vegetarian tasting.


11. Would you be willing to share a recipe with us?

Of course! After you come by and eat at the restaurant, let me know which dish you liked the most and I will share the recipe.

12. What do you see for yourself in the future?

I have leased a 10 acre plot for gardening starting next year and am going to bury a storage trailer out there as well to use as cold storage. Hopefully using this and the extra land I will be able to provide more and more produce for the restaurant later and later into the year.


We strolled around a bit more and talked food and dining and about Colorado and then I took my leave knowing he had a full day in front of him. How he manages to run that garden and his kitchen and provide such high quality food, I have no idea, but I am glad we have him. He did mention something about his tasting menu. If you have read my posting about the Black Cat previously you will know that Barb and I came out of that meal stuffed to the gills and he told me the reason. The reason he puts so much food out there for a tasting menu is because two times in the past few years he had people say that they were still hungry after the meal. To him that is a crime, so he wants to make sure that no one ever feels they have to go eat somewhere else after they finish a meal at his restaurant.

One of the final things I asked Chef Skokan about was the name of his restaurant. Originally it was to be named flying saucers (picture a chef tossing saucers around), but they had so many problems with construction that one day while Eric was commenting to his wife that maybe it was a bad idea to open up a place on 13th street and it was commented that this place may be a "black cat" and the name stuck.




I am going to break this into 2 parts. The second part will include our experiences and pictures from our recent meal there and the recipe from Chef Skokan. One last thing I would like to pass on is that in December, the Black Cat is going to have a 4course tasting menu where everything on it will have been raised within a hundred mile radius!


Thanks again for coming by and if you have any questions or comments please let us know, we would be happy to hear from you.

Barb and Jonathan

Harvest week at Luca d'italia

Hi all,

For Harvest week, Barb and I decided to head out to Luca D’Italia and try out their Harvest Week tasting menu. Luca’s (www.lucadenver.com) chefs are Frank Bonnano and Michael Peshek. For those of you who don’t know, Harvest Week is a week where many Colorado restaurants make menu items or whole menus using Colorado grown food only and even set up local wine parings in several cases.


We entered Luca and were seated promptly by the window; the seats here are far enough apart that you do have enough privacy to hold your own conversations without having the next table being a part of it. The overall feel is very comfortable with a window into the kitchen in the back so you can see a brief glimpse of the hustle and bustle of the kitchen.


If you are curious what’s on the black board in the kitchen it was that evening's tasting menu.


The first thing that came out was this.



Halibut Salad on Semolina Cristini with Pea Sprouts and Pickled Carrots.

I have become a big fan of this sort of dish ever since our lunch at Le Bernardin in NYC ( http://milehigheater.blogspot.com/search?q=eric+ripert). The bread was nice and crisp and had a great buttery taste even though I think it was just olive oil that the bread had been drenched with before it was toasted up. The spread itself had a very nice non fishy taste and the pickled carrots gave it nice sharp vinaigrette taste that hit you right at first. I will give the starter an 8. Barb actually liked this more than I did. She enjoyed the crispy and soft mixed together, with just the right amount of seasoning. She gave it a 9. (She says: If I could have had this for another course, I would have been happy, it was truly a delicious start to the menu).


The Bread



Ok, I normally don’t list bread here, even though fresh bread is a wonderful thing because in most places like this, the bread is very good without exception. Why then am I bringing it up? I am bringing it up because of the “butter”. My mind was wandering the first time the waiter described the butter, so my experience basically went like this. Hello, what is this? The bread tastes like meat. I have never had bread that tastes like meat. Wait a minute that’s not the bread, that’s the butter. Oh, I need to know more about this Mmmmmm meaty tasting butter. So, when the waiter came around again I inquired about it. Well my friends, that was not just any old butter, it was pork fat with spices. You may say ewww and honestly my first reaction was to push it slightly away from me, but you know as long as you just put a light bit on the bread it was very very good. It tasted more than anything like bread that had been used to soak up a little au jus or something like that. I won’t give this a rating as it was just bread and “butter” with a twist but I do think it shows a very high level of inventiveness going on here.


Amuse Bouche




Sadly somehow we forgot to write down what each item was here I have contacted Luca about this but at this time have not received any information.

1. The shooter:
He says: Was a tomato soup which was very similar to the cold heirloom tomato soup we had a while back at Mizuna. However this was served warm and had a sharp spicy punch that hit you at then end which was very good. I give it an 8.

She says: I'm still not convinced that I like cold soup. Although it was tasty, I didn't even drink it all because I like my soup hot. I give it a 6.
2. Not sure 
3. He says: This tasted like a very good macaroni and cheese with a toasted bread topping. The cheese sauce was very creamy with a great taste and the beans were cooked perfectly. Moms if you want your kids to eat beans this is the recipe you need! 8.5
She says: Jonathan is right in saying this looks like macaroni and cheese, but it sure didn't taste like mac and cheese. The beans were chewy and delicious. The topping on the cheese gave it a nice crusty taste. I would give it an 8.

4. He says: So many different flavors here the balsamic vinegar the peaches the onion I thought it would just be way too much but the flavors melted together and formed a great overall taste. I give it a 7.5

She says: Unfortunately, I don't remember this dish at all. I guess that says a lot about it. So, I feel unfair giving it a score.

Antipasti 1



Mixed Greens- Finochetta, Haystack Mountain Goat Cheese and Local Tomatoes.

He says: Finochetta is fennel salami that’s made in-house and of course haystack mountain goat cheese is wonderful. The salad had a nice balsamic dressing and the greens and everything were very fresh. The tomatoes were introduced to me as roof top tomatoes and silly me asked why he called them roof top and he said, of course, because we grow them on the roof. In the end, it was a salad. A salad with goat cheese and salami but still a salad a 7.
She says: The salad was tasty and had the right amount of ingredients to give it a fullness. The tomatoes were delicious (and again, I'm not a huge tomato fan). I give it a 7 as well.


Antipasti 2



Striped Bass- Olathe Corn Puree, Pea Shoots and Beets

He says: When this came out, I was like, "Excuse me, bass? I thought this was all Colorado food. But, as it turns out these are farmed raised here in Colorado (near Alamosa) so it stuck with the Harvest Week theme. Perfectly prepared, with very crisp outer skin and a tender and moist inside. The beets and the corn just added to the flavors I enjoyed this a lot and the beets and sauce left a very cool pattern on the plate when you finished with all the different colors. I give it a 7.5
She says: I'm becoming more of a fish fan than I ever thought I would be. This dish was truly delicious. The bass cooked to perfection and the veggies blended in nicely. I give this an 8.

Primi



Raw Cows Milk Ricotta Agnolotti and Local Herbs

He says: Here it comes, YUMMMY! This dish yanked the darn Yummm right out of my mouth. Such a fantastic cheese taste and the agnolotti melted right in your mouth I do however want to complain a little there was not near enough of it. I needed maybe 6 or 7 more plates full. :) And this now will take a 10 for me - best Agnolotti I have had.
She says:

Secondi


Colorado Lamb-White bean and Bacon Ragu, Green and Yellow Zucchini.

He says: MMMMMMMM, yep, MM MM MMMMM MMM MMMMMM. Juicy and tender nice red pink in middle with the outer seared just right yanked another Mmmmmm out of my mouth and the Ragu was such a great mix of flavors that it seemed to enhance the flavor of the lamb which with how good the lamb was that’s a feat! By the end of it I was holding the bone and trying to make sure I got every last scrap off, it was just that good!. I will give this a 9 only because the lamb I had at Per Se was a bit better but not by a large margin.
She says: By the time we got to the Lamb dish, I was getting full. I also have an issue with some meat as if it's too chewy, I can't eat it. That wasn't the problem with this meat, it was very good, the flavoring was spot on, I was just stuffed from all the food before it (It did provide Jonathan with lunch the next day though). I give it a 7.5.


Dolce

Palisade Peach Tart- Rhubarb Conserva

He says: Hmm, dessert was probably the only weak part of the meal. Don’t get me wrong, it was good, just not up to the standards of the rest of the meal. It seems to me it gets to be very hard to impress with a dessert that does not involve chocolate. I give it a 6.5.
She says: Even though I was stuffed by the last course, I can always find room for dessert. This dish was alright. The crust mixing in with the fruit was nice, but nothing that said to me, this is the dish I'll be telling everyone about. It was ok. I would give it a 6.



Luca was a first class meal and it topples Mizuna for me as the Best meal in Colorado to date. The staff is friendly and the service is prompt and the food will make you lick your lips for a week afterwards.


Numbers and such - the meal cost a total of $143.62 for the two of us and was well worth it! Our rating ended up being 8.74 which includes a .75 jump due to tasting menu and a .1 jump for the inventiveness of the meal Of course you can get out of there cheaper by not doing the tasting menu, but if you can try a tasting menu some time when the chef walks you up the culinary ladder, the experience can be so much better than any single course.





Thanks again for coming by if you have any questions or comments please let us know. If you know of any places we should try please do drop us a note and if you see any new restaurants opening up we would love to hear about it. Till next time take care!

Lunch at Lui's

Quick Bites.


Hi all


I decided to add an article in here about a new restaurant in Erie named Lui’s Wok and Grill. The reason I called this a quick bit is that I just stopped by for a to go lunch and not a full sit down with Barb so I don’t want it to be considered be a full review. From the taste that I got of the food at Liu’s the Erie area has to be very happy to have this gem that has re opened after being away a year.




As the name suggests Lui’s is an Asian restaurant but what is unusual especially for a smaller town is the caliber of the chef heading up the restaurant. Chef Lui is an award winning master chef with over 20 years of culinary experience and chef Lui has been the head chef of the Silver Palace in Boulder among others. He uses very fresh ingredients and if you are looking for something out of the ordinary chef Lui has some item’s called Lui Creations which chef Lui says will satisfy even the most discriminating of pallets. One thing I really appreciate is that the chef will adjust each dish depending on how tolerant the diner is of spicy food and he never uses Trans fat or msg!


The inside bar area.



Main Dining area


The Kitchen and Che Lui.

The day I went I just had time to grab something to go and asked for a lunch order.








I had Szechuan Chicken fried rice and an egg roll. The total price for this huge lunch was $7.95! The meal had large chunks of chicken and unlike a lot of places I have been the chicken was not tough or dry and when I cut the chicken in half you could see how perfectly juicy and tender it was!








I also had to try the Egg drop soup. This turned out to be full of vegetables and had a great taste.



I do have to apologize to my coworkers for bringing this back to work with me as it did cause a bit of the prairie dog effect with people popping up over their cubicle’s when the wonderful smell hit them.



If you happen to be in the Erie area I recommend giving it a try they are located at 89 South Briggs Street and offer free delivery at 303-828-2282!

Thanks for stopping by and as always if you have any questions, comments, or if know a place we should try we would love to hear from you.

Jonathan

In the woods with Beatrice and Woodsley

Hi all,

Barb and I made it out to Beatrice and Woodsley (www.beatriceandwoodsley.com) late last month and it seems they have an all around winner on their hands. The environment is inventive and new and in fact, it is so unique inside that the proprietor asked me not to show pictures of the inside because he wants people to discover it for themselves and we think that’s a great idea! You will be enthralled with the little touches inside this restaurant which seems on the outside to be just a regular place.

The menu is composed of “small plates”, so if you’re not very hungry you can go in and order just one. But if you’re in the mood for a more filling meal, I would say try two and go from there and of course sharing your plate with the others in your party is half the fun! I am going to try to briefly describe this fun place. You come in and see Aspen trees spread throughout the space with a nice soft jazz music playing and converted lanterns overhead. The booths and tables are far enough apart that it gives you a private feeling and you almost immediately forget you are right in the heart of Denver and are transported to a spot of your own up in the mountains.
Jonathan’s first course



GRILLED, BRAISED PORK BELLY With mashed peas, carrot, potato and house-cured/smoked ham
He says:
Wait for it ………. YUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM! From the wonderful smell of the pork and cherry wood (that’s what is on the plate beneath) to the OMG MMM of the pork belly this was fantastic. Even the veggies on the side had pork flavor and that’s a trend I can get behind veggies that taste like bacon!!! This is the first pork belly I have had and it was so tasty I will go ahead and give this a 10.
She says:
I don’t remember much of Jonathan’s dish…probably because he was too busy eating it all himself! 




Barb’s First dish.



MARKET GROWIES, CARROT HAZELNUT BREAD Chef selected, pan roasted, with mushroom gastrique

She says:
I thought this would be a good starter for me. I really wanted to try the carrot hazelnut bread (and wish the portion was just a little bit bigger). Overall the vegetables were cooked well and tasted delicious, but it wasn’t anything spectacular. I would give it a 6.
He says:
I thought these were cooked just right - not too soft or too crunchy, but have to be honest it was veggies, just veggies and me in my pork filled bliss, well, this just didn’t do it for me but of course at this point had it been manna that had just fallen down from the sky I would of shrugged it off and gone back to my pork. I give it a 6.5.
Barb’s Second Dish



PAILLARD Lemon cucumber, New Caledonian shrimp, white soy dressing and micro greens

She says:
Ok, so I did get a little more adventurous with my 2nd small plate. The sauce was heated and made this hard crust on the bottom of the plate which I then cut and placed on the cucumber slice. It had a very light flavor overall, lemony with a small taste of shrimp. I would order this again as it was so very light and airy, but did fill me up. The shrimp heads were more for decoration (but you can eat them if you’re into that). The waiter said that most people just squeeze them for some extra juice! Make this an 8.

He says:
Where’s the shrimp? That’s what I asked myself when I saw this. I see shrimp heads but no shrimp. Then I figured it out the shrimp had been pounded flat and placed under the Shrimp heads and when the shrimp was placed on some the cucumber it had a very pleasing taste with a hint of citrus and a nice crunch from the cucumber. A 7 is what I give it.


Jonathans 2nd



CRAWFISH BEIGNETS Sweet pepper aioli, spicy powdered sugar

He says:
Do I dare do it two times in one review ……yes I am afraid I must, YUMMM! Ok, not as big of a yum as the Pork but still a very nice yum. The outside was crisp and strangely enough tasted a bit like a donut but then came a rush of warm aioli that adds a taste and spicy heat to the tongue and the combined flavors are fantastic. I will give this an 8.5 as it almost pulled an Mmm out of me.
She says:
I tried a bite of this and just did not enjoy it. It was too mushy for me. I’m glad Jonathan liked it though. I would give this a 6.




Jonathan's Dessert




THE FALLEN EMPORER
He says:
The cookies are light and crispy and the filling has a light sweet almond flavor that combines very nicely with the chocolate and gives you a very nice way to finish off your night. A 7.5 I would say.
She says:
This was a nice dessert with sweet almond flavoring. I really liked the crispiness of it combined with the almond gooiness. I would give this a 7.5.


Barb’s Dessert



GERMAN CHOCOLATE CAKE
She says:
For dessert, I had the German Chocoate Cake. Nothing too out of the ordinary, but loved the fact that it wasn’t just all cake and a small amount of topping. The topping was layered in to make this a much more vibrant and delicious treat. I would give this an 8.
He says:
I really enjoy German Chocoloate cake and the was pretty darn good very moist and rich and the chocoloate was very rich. 7.5 as well

Why go?
Kevin Delk the proprietor and his team have done something here that is very special by combing all 4 elements of a great restaurant in one fantastic experience. The atmosphere is relaxing and romantic, the plating is gorgeous, the food mouth watering, and the price surprisingly reasonable for its quality.

Numbers and such. The meal cost a total of $73.94. And our final rating is 7.5. I do want to add that though the score is 7.5 I very much enjoyed this restaurant and have already made plans to go again with a few friends to try some more dishes!

Thanks as always for stopping by and if you have any questions, comments or places that you think we should try please let us know.

Jonathan and Barb


Kevin Delk was kind enough to provide a few inside shots for us here is one of them but I bet you cant guess from the picture what part of the restaurant this is. For the answer to that you will just have to go and check it out for yourself.