14 // COASTWEEKEND.COM
Coast Weekend’s local
restaurant review
Artful food graces Cannon Beach’s Spring Unveiling
bronze sculpture by Rip Caswell. It
could’ve equally been refl ected by
a cave painting.
Review and photos by MOUTH
OF THE COLUMBIA
I
I asked a friend from Cannon
Beach if he had any plans to attend
Spring Unveiling. “Is that this
weekend?” he murmured. “I might
have to get out of town.”
His avoidance is understand-
able: during festival weekend the
town becomes even more clogged
with tourists. And come Monday,
once the visitors have fl ocked
home, the “unveiled” art remains
on display.
What my friend didn’t know,
however, was that one component
of Spring Unveiling would be as
fl eeting as the weekend: Art from
the Chef’s Table.
On paper, the premise is as
such: restaurants partner with
galleries, selecting a piece of art
to use as inspiration for a dish. In
practice, the results run the gamut:
some restaurants take the chal-
lenge, and their dish comes from a
conversation with the piece. Others
simply make something and affi x it
somewhat meaninglessly to the art,
or even just slap an association on
an existing dish.
Regardless of execution, the
Chef’s Table concept is sound:
Food and art are indeed concentric
circles. And while the potential for
creativity is endless, not all food is
art (sorry sandwich artists). Draw-
ing that line is fuzzy and subjec-
tive. I’d offer the following, albeit
loose, guideline: food is art when
created with aesthetic purpose, be
it of fl avor, presentation, commen-
tary and so on.
During the festival I spent two
evenings alternating between
galleries and restaurants. In the
short time, I couldn’t hardly try
(nor afford) the 26 specials. The
selections I made were based on
how engaged the dishes seemed
to be with the concept, as well as
logistics, economics and, frankly,
what looked good. To that end,
know there were many more I
wanted to try (I’m looking at you:
Newman’s at 988, Stephanie Inn,
Bruce’s Candy Kitchen
Bistro: Asian-style Crab.
I fi nished the evening with a
Floral Fragrance Truffl e ($1.70)
from Bruce’s Candy Kitchen,
created to honor Brian Taylor’s
metallic garden sculptures. The
truffl e’s essence permeated my
senses like a misting perfume,
expanding throughout my mouth,
fi nishing in my nose.
Cannon Beach Distillery
Bill’s Tavern: Seared Ocean Scallops
and Mango Salsa.
Sweet Basil’s: Venison Osso Bucco.
Cannon Beach Café and Wayfarer).
The Bistro
My fi rst stop came Friday at the
Bistro. A gorgeous, sunny eve-
ning, the streets were bustling and
a lot of eateries were at capacity.
The Bistro, tucked back a bit and
well -shaded, offered peaceful
respite, rays of errant sunlight
peaking through the drawn window
shades and live classical guitar.
The special was an Asian-style
Crab hors d’oeuvres ($15.75)
based on Christopher Mathie’s
bold, colorful painting of the crus-
tacean. Though a direct interpre-
tation, it fi t — and, for whatever
reason, seemed a lot more interest-
ing than serving salmon for salmon
art.
I was fortunate enough to get
the day’s last order of Dungeness
crab legs. They came in a big
white bowl, claws attached, jutting
outward from a shallow pool of
soy sauce, ginger, onions, lemon,
and maybe a touch of rice wine or
vinegar.
I grabbed the shell-cracker and
went at it, enjoying the messy pro-
cess as much the crab itself, salty,
buttery and clean. The sauce was
a nice twist, a little zag from how
crab is normally fl avored on the
North Coast. It was a delectable
and fi nger-licking. And while the
literal interpretation of the painting
fi t, if I were explaining the dish
through art I’d add some touch to
represent the Asian infl uence: may-
be a ship, a fi sh market or locale.
Bill’s Tavern
Saturday I began milling around
a bit earlier. I took a break from
the galleries on the patio at Bill’s
Tavern.
Raised a few feet, with a beer in
hand, I felt above the hustle.
Bill’s special was Seared Ocean
Scallops with Mango Salsa. Touted
as an appetizer, I was surprised
when I was presented with a starter
salad. When the scallops came, the
side of rice too seemed more suited
to an entree. The dish though, with
its bright, Caribbean colors was an
alert reaction to the easy, tropi-
cal colors of Eric Abel’s “Gone
Tropo.”
The four scallops were light-
ly seared, with just the slightest
crust. On the smaller side, they
were simply prepared — buttery,
salty, offering that splash of sea.
There was plenty of mango salsa,
balanced with a sprinkling of
chopped onions, cilantro and bits
of jalapeño.
It was good enough to eat alone,
by the spoonful. I didn’t bother
with the rice.
All in all, an enjoyable pause in
the day, though I was struck with a
bit of sticker-shock at the $20 price
tag — steep for most any appetizer.
Sweet Basil’s Cafe
Value was not an issue for
Sweet Basil’s Venison Osso Bucco.
Resting atop a bed of
heart-stoppingly creamy polenta
with a side of perfect, soft but not
soggy collard greens, one of the
nearly softball-sized shanks of
venison would’ve been wholly ad-
equate. The two on my plate were
downright magisterial.
Smoked through the afternoon
then braised, they were slath-
ered in a deep, thick, rich and
unfathomably dark pomegranate
red wine sauce. Falling off the
bone, but chewy with the fat
and connective tissue, the earthy
heaviness of the meat made me
feel like early man — the beast’s
stature and strength evident in its
flesh.
The dish matched the weight
and power of its inspiration, a
After these rich, experiential
fl avors, a Spring Cocktail from the
Cannon Beach Distillery offered
light, sharp and exquisite refresh-
ment.
When distillery owner Mike
Selberg heard Archimedes Gal-
lery’s theme was “lore” he imme-
diately envision a crimson hue for
his cocktail.
He achieved it with strawber-
ry-rhubarb simple syrup, straw-
berry lemonade, pure dark cherry
juice, his Dorymen’s rum — in-
fused with local cherries — and a
whole lot of lime. It was tart and
sweet, perfectly balanced with
hardly any bite — the kind of
thing you could start sipping away
on while the sun’s still up. It was
marvelous.
Indeed, there’s plenty to feast
upon during Spring Unveiling — it
only begins with the eyes. Art from
the Chef’s Table does, however,
need a promotional kick in the
pants. Many of the folks I met
while at the galleries had nary a
clue that restaurants were involved.
(Neither did a number of the serv-
ers at those restaurants.)
The word ought to get out
though, as the concept is not only a
great opportunity, reminding chef’s
to branch out, challenge them-
selves, uncork their inspiration
and literally approach food as art.
But the event offers something for
reluctant residents as well — in-
stead of a canvas, it just happens to
come on a plate.