As local produce begins to fill our farmer’s markets and grocery stores once again, I am announcing a brand new project! Both the Bacon Gospel and Heritage Breed Supper Club will continue to preach the local meats truth later this year, but The Northwest Farm & Table Project drives the message home in a whole new way!
Some of you may recall those raging community dinners I was doing last summer with Tressa Yellig of Salt, Fire & Time. One plate dinners overflowing with local meats and produce had people lining up all the way to the sidewalk! Others have attended my more formal dinners and bacon tastings or that big bash last fall for Primal Cuts. My style is about making this amazing, local food accessible to more people. So, as the farm season gets going, I have been planning this year’s list of events and could think of no better way to take the conversation to another level than to bring the message home! To your home, that is.
The Northwest Farm & Table Project runs from April 22nd (Earth Day) to May 20th!
We’re taking a full month to highlight the special early season produce that gets us excited for summer by bringing a fancy feeling to the kitchens and dining rooms of Portland through a month of home feasts with local foods. That’s right, for one month, I am private chef’ing it up for the lucky omnivores of Stumptown, and documenting the ingredients, menus and magical meals to be shared over the course of the project. Ramps, fiddleheads, garlic scapes, and even pastured chickens- the season is here! This is a thrilling new experiment for The Ethical Butcher projects and a perfect way to bring the special atmosphere of my dinners to homes all over Portland. These intimate and familial dinners will surely hold some great conversations and will be a great educational exchange for all involved. I am interested in hearing directly from consumers about the obstacles and challenges and rewards of buying foods they trust. As with The Bacon Gospel, I am also intrigued by working with many palates. Developing menus for family dinners, romantic evenings and friendly gatherings is a candid way of mapping the tastes and preferences of an entire range of people, an element that gets my chef mind jumping up and down!
Think you can’t afford to eat local foods, or doubt the culinary superiority of fresh food from local farms? Want to learn a new butchery or cooking technique, hear stories from my travels, chat about the evils of large agribusiness or debate the relevance of Micheal Pollan? Perhaps it’s just time to skip the restaurant and have a luxurious meal with friends at home without any of the work?
Just open your home and kitchen to take part in The Northwest Farm & Table Project!!
Your dinner will begin well ahead of time with a private menu consultation. Using the menu we create together, I will then source all of the local ingredients for your meal from local farms and markets. The day of your dinner, simply have your dining table cleared, kitchen free and clean and ready to be taken over at the predetermined time. Then sit back, wait for your guests to arrive and savor the aromas wafting in the air as a three-course dinner brimming with the early season’s best ingredients is lovingly prepared in your own home. Or head out for the day and come home to a spread of decadence! Local meats and produce will, as always, will be the highlight of the meal. Expect to see breads, jams, ice creams and other local foods featured as well.
The Northwest Farm & Table Project feasts are 3 courses:
an appetizer or small plate, main course and dessert.
Feast for 2-$60
Feast for 4-$100
Feast for 8-$160
Feast for 12- $210
Not small print: Dates are open from April 22nd through May 20th, 2011. Full payment is due at consultation. All dinners are 3 courses (1st, main, dessert). No beverages are included in meal and should be provided by host. Soy-, nut- & gluten-free diets are easily accommodated. While main courses will surely be a carnivore’s dream, most side dishes are vegetarian or vegan. Vegetarian entree can be added to the menu for small fee. Dinner price includes consultation, ingredient sourcing, set-up, preparation, kitchen clean up and table service for up to 12 people. Table service for larger parties and the addition of courses can be arranged at an additional charge.
Contact at theethicalbutcher@gmail.com to schedule consultation and dinner or inquire about rates for larger parties.
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