The February 2024 Issue:To: Mr./Ms. Sample - sample@tailoredmail.com | View on the web |
[CategoryIndex]

www.tailorednews.com


Hope you all have been making soup since my last newsletter.

Today I was working on the lobster sweet potato gratin for the "Heart and Soul" Valentines dinner coming up this weekend at the Palace Ballroom. Our theme is southern cooking but as I worked through the dish with my longtime co-author Shelley Lance I found myself returning to the days of being a cook's helper at the Hotel DuPont in Wilmington Delaware in 1976.

Uncle Duppies, as we fondly called it back then, is a classic gem of a hotel, quite literally the hub of Wilmington. When the DuPont company couldn't find an appropriate place to house their executives they built their own. For many years and still to this day they set the gold standard for hospitality in the region.

As a cook's helper my first job was to shuck fist sized Cherrystone clams and Bluepoint oysters, peel mounds of giant scampi and cook and crack cases of Maine lobster. The rookie gashes that still scar my hands are a daily reminder of how not to open oysters. It was fun for me to follow the trails of the "prep" I had done in the massive basement kitchens up into the lofty, highly regarded dining halls of the hotel.

My prep would turn into amazing dishes created by the French and Swiss chefs that dominated the Kitchens of the era. You couldn't really get a chef job there without a European accent (how things have changed). One of the most popular and expensive dishes was Lobster Thermador, a silky sherry scented creamed lobster that was cooked, sauced, and returned to its shell. Then the halves were placed under the broiler to be bronzed and served with potatoes dauphinois and whisked off to the gold chandeliered dining room to be dispensed tableside by a uniformed captain.

So... what's my recipe? Click here to find out!

Some new restaurants around town that I've tried in the last few weeks.

~Art at the Four Seasons for Brunch. Try the perfectly grilled salmon with hollandaise and enjoy the unique industrial view from the dining room.

~Cantinetta at 37th and Wallingford is a terrific new Italian joint. I liked the avocado and olive salad with pepper vinaigrette and the lamb anglotti.

~Not new but well worth a stop if you're in the neighborhood of Olympia, try The Marc. Lisa Owens has crafted a great cocktail list and the pastas were quite delicious.

-Tom

(Send me feedback)



Home | Lola | Palace Kitchen | Dahlia Lounge | Dahlia Bakery | Etta's | Serious Pie | Catering | Events | Blog & News | Contact | Store

© Tom Douglas, All Rights Reserved | About Tom and Jackie | Employment | Newsletter Signup

Tom Douglas Restaurants is concerned about your privacy. We do not rent, sell or exchange email addresses.
Write us at: Tom Douglas Restaurants, 2030 5th Ave Seattle,WA 98121



:: Change email, preferences (sample@tailoredmail.com)
:: Stop getting these updates
:: Newsletter Signup
TailoredMail: It's all relevant.