5/5 stars
Transcendent. I felt like I was floating, watching this girl, this couple, experience this - they are very lucky.
The dining room is quite intimate, with only 20 or so tables. Dark wood, cream-colored walls, crisp, white tablecloths with bright, yellow flowers in cloudy vases, and big windows allowing lots of light. We got seated next to one of the windows, overlooking the porch and the trees. An envelope with the restaurant's seal greeted us. It wished us a happy anniversary.
Olin was our host for the evening and he was friendly and easy to talk to. He asked us if we wanted to see the menu or if we wanted to be surprised. We said we wanted to be surprised. We were there for the journey. And one of the best parts of this journey? Getting to see what vessel Chef Kostow was going to use to display his food. The ceramics were part of the joy.
My husband did the wine pairing, but I opted for the bartender's, Sam, wild and wonderful concoctions. He even makes his own root beer. He delivers the drink with stories about what inspired them - thoughtful childhood memories. He was so sincere and incredibly talented.
I didn't get to speak to Chef Kostow that night when we toured the efficient kitchen, but I saw him again a couple weeks later when he came to Google to talk. I got another cookbook signed and got to tell him that his mashed potatoes with caviar was the best thing I'd ever eaten in my life.
The teasers:
Olive
Kale chip with chorizo
Clam
The menu:
Gwen avocado oyster rancho chimiles walnut
Fermented potato caviar nasturtium
Broccoli whelk agretti
Abalone coal roasted eggplant smoked pepper
Cod cooked in sunflower petals
Kohlrabi cooked in it's own juice flax seed mustard
Squab "tea"
Grilled squab hibiscus leaf berries
Veal short rib tendon roe dill
Alpine cheese roasted pumpkin honey truffle
Olive oil coconut borafe
Ha'ogen melon padron pepper vanilla
Praline
The highlights:
Fermented potato caviar nasturtium: Picture a smooth, white, perfect mound of the most delicious mashed potatoes ever made. Then imagine dipping your spoon into the center of it and, to your surprise, exposing a heart of tiny, quivering, shiny, black caviar. Served with warm, fresh, tiny, fluffy, buttery, salty rolls. Best. Thing. I. Have. Ever. Eaten.
Alpine cheese roasted pumpkin honey truffle: The presentation was fun (it was served in the pumpkin itself) and the cheese was creamy and only slightly pungent. It was perfect paired with the sweet honey and the homemade sourdough rye. I am not a rye fan, but I ate that entire loaf.
Grilled squab hibiscus leaf berries: Chef Kostow seems to utilize every bit of the plant or animal. Before we had the squab, we drank its tea. The squab with berries was amazing. It reminded me of the nursery rhyme, "Sing a Song of Sixpence":
Four and twenty blackbirds,
Baked in a pie.
When the pie was opened,
The birds began to sing;
Wasn't that a dainty dish,
To set before the king?
I am no king, but Meadowood made me feel blessed. I'm coming back, and I'm bringing family.
(Oct 1, 2014)
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