Dear Friends,
I've spent some time visiting with Chef Ben about the Valentine's Weekend prix fixe this Saturday and Sunday night at $65 a person. I wanted to send out a little more info on it and I need to note one last minute change.
The first course oysters will be drenched in buttermilk, cornmeal battered and fried (and yes, they will be GF friendly - that's gluten free - although we assume your girlfriend will be good with these too). The gulf oysters we got in are enormous and Chef made an executive decision to go fried, rather than on the half shell - dude is from the East Coast, what can I say? This dish is going to rock - Texas oysters are the business.
If giant fried bivalves feel a little intimidating (are you sure you're from Texas?) you can always opt for choice no. 2 - Chef Ben's killer bruschettas, which he's sending out with creamy, house-made goat ricotta and Round Rock Honey.
The second course features a choice of beautifully composed Tejas vegetables. Some Yankee types seem to think we can't get a vegetable here (and that we live surrounded by cactus in a locale better suited to a John Wayne movie) - WRONG. This weekend, you can opt for the beets - 3 different kinds (from local organic grower JBG), layered with proper Texas grapefruits, oranges and Meyer lemons (G&S Groves), and our house-made creme fraiche. Alternatively, you might avail yourself of the gorgeous broccoli (from Phoenix Farm) grilled over real Texas pecan wood and drizzled with boquerones (those are anchovies y'all) aioli, pine nuts, plus more whole boquerones and well... you get the picture.
Now, I'm not going to sugarcoat this one (you'll have to wait for dessert for that business) - the main course is going to be a tough choice. The aged strip steak fired on the wood grill is going to be AWESOME, and it should pair marvelously with our crispy, cheesy potato and sunchoke gratin - thanks to Animal Farm for those chokes.
But if you're feeling like you want something a touch lighter, you can go with the freshly caught gulf flounder. (Technically, it's a turbot - a somewhat larger, flatter fish than a true flounder, smaller than a Halibut, - but hey, who's measuring? Since nobody's ever heard of turbot, we thought maybe we should just call it "big flounder.") Regardless, I've tried it and it's really nice fish. Ben will be crusting it with brioche crumbs (unless you choose to go GF on us), and serving it with delish Boggy Creek carrots and lemon butter.
And finally, for the "piece de resistance," dessert will be profiteroles for two with vanilla ice cream from the good people at Lick Honest Ice Creams and warm chocolate sauce.
Look, what I'm saying is that this is a meal that should seriously woo your date. But as I mentioned in a previous email, we know that the stakes are high, and Valentine's can be stressful. With that in mind, and in the spirit of making sure your experience is perfect, our general manager Hall Sheriff has agreed to offer table-side couples' counseling (ok, he didn't really agree to that, but sometimes you gotta take one for the team).
Most importantly, we love all of you and we have a table with your name on it whether you want to come Saturday night, on Valentine's proper, or hey, even both (and if you bring two different dates on separate nights, our discretion is legendary).
bon appetit and xo,
murph