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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 17, 2016)
14 // COASTWEEKEND.COM Coast Weekend’s local restaurant review Pickled Fish dinner series highlights regional ingredients, chef’s skills Review and photos by MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA MOUTH@COASTWEEKEND.COM “The purpose of these dinners,” said Shelby Dodson, Pickled Fish’s baker and wife of executive chef Brad, “is to highlight purveyors in the area who are doing wonderful things.” She was introducing the Pacifi c Northwest Partner Dinner Series, which presents prix fi xe, reserva- tion-only dinner menus revolving around pairs of regional purveyors. The series started in November and continues through March on the fi rst Friday and Saturday of each month. (December’s engagement features Elk Cove Winery and Starvation Alley Cranberry Farm. January’s incorporates Drink Ok Wines and Beautiful Pig Char- cuterie. For further dates, partners and reservations see: pickledfi sh- restaurant.com.) Beyond shouting out great purveyors, the PNW Partner Series has a second reason for being — introducing the Dodsons to the North Coast. Prior to taking the reins at Pickled Fish some two-and-a-half months ago, they helmed the well-regarded Wheat + Barley in Echo, Oregon. As such, the Partner Series is an event with which to say: Hi, we’re here and we’re doing cool stuff with great local bounty! November’s Partner Series dinner was served in the rear dining room, separate from a bustling bar. (That regular dinner service contin- ued concurrently made the event’s execution that much more ambi- tious.) I’ll refrain from diving into Pickled Fish’s ambiance, suffi ce it to say: I reveled in it — the tactile, industrial-chic design, the expan- sive fourth fl oor views and stylish modernity that, while perhaps rote in Portland, is rare and welcome on the North Coast. November’s partners were Pink Poppy Farm and North Jetty Brewing. Each of the evening’s four courses included ingredients “ The fi rst course featured a porter-braised shallot, purees of matsutake mush- rooms and celery, a bacon vinaigrette, micro-greens and herbs topped with a poached egg. from Pink Poppy and, for $12 more, eight-ounce beer pairings from North Jetty. (The base price of the dinner, sans drinks, was $55.) The fi rst course was the only one featuring North Jetty’s beer on the plate as well as the glass. The porter-braised shallot was divine, with a caramelized skin that gave way to a melting, supple core. It was joined by purees of matsutake mushrooms and celery, a bacon vinaigrette, micro-greens and herbs from Pink Poppy, and crowned with a poached egg, which shivered and upon puncture fl owed smooth silky protein. Each bite riffed on deep central fl avors of the earthy mushroom puree and blunted bacon vinaigrette. The depth was creeping. It made me present, contemplative, full of wonder. The beer — a malt-y Scottish red — made sense, its bit- terness an interlocking counterpoint in similar tones. Between courses, Shelby Dod- son said a few words. So too did North Jetty’s brewmaster, who’d had the meal the night before. (A representative from Pink Poppy was unable to attend that evening.) The brewmaster said he’d spent signif- icant time collaborating with the The third course included a pork chop topped with mint and micro-greens, braised broccoli rabe, preserved peaches and pickled mustard seeds. tastebuds. Sips of the ale couldn’t chef on fi nding the beers to properly fi x it. Neither could water. It complement each dish. overwhelmed, like getting washed For the second course, North in the surf. Still, I appreciated the Jetty came with a Fresh Hop Pale presentation and creativity — a few Ale. The hops for this limited edi- tweaks and the dish could be saved. tion ale were picked in September The third course fl ipped the during the harvest and put almost script, the opposite of abstract-art straight into the beer. The freshness presentation and dainty portions. — particularly, the pine-y-ness — Huge and hearty was the main unfurled like the golden ratio. It event, something like grandma was chosen, the brewmaster said, in would make in the farmhouse. hopes of counteracting the saltiness There was a huge pork chop, of the second dish. Unfortunately, it cooked tenderly, topped with mint was a fool’s errand. No beer — and and micro-greens, a pile of braised perhaps no liquid, broccoli rabe and short of milk — some of Pink PICKLED FISH could soothe the Poppy’s pre- salt-bomb. served peaches. PNW PARTNER It was a lovely Pickled mustard DINNER SERIES plate, though — seeds swirled a half-moon of around the plate, 409 Sid Snyder Drive, green herbs and playing well with Long Beach, Washington pickles (from everything — PHONE: 360-642-2344 Pink Poppy), a even the peaches. pickledfi shrestaurant.com yellow fl ower, While the herbs bronzed chips were damn-near and white, mar- as fresh as being ble-sized puffs of salt-cured petrale just plucked from the soil, and the sole and crème fraîche. The concept pork and braised broccoli rabe a of a fi sh-based, creamy mousse thoughtful marriage, the peaches struck me as sound, but paired with were absolutely exquisite. Oozing salty, home-made chips and baby with brandy, their caramelized, pickles just short-circuited my boozy but not overwhelming sweetness was akin to a dessert and digestif all in one. By this time I was fully sati- ated — not bursting, but hardly wanting. But when the bowl of butternut squash ice cream, fennel fl avored herbs (from Pink Poppy), marble-sized pecks of pumpernick- el cake and candied chanterelles was placed before me, I spooned up every last morsel. Playing well with North Jetty’s coffee-tinged Semper Paratus Porter, the cake and ice cream — which I believe may have included a few drips of salted caramel — were enticingly spiced. The candied chanterelles afforded a depth and earthiness that had me remembering the fi rst course. That I might even consider a conversation- al callback in coursing suggests that the Pickled Fish’s new guard is on to something special. While sheepish in front of the crowd, executive chef Brad Dodson appeared at the end of the two-hour meal. He mostly defl ected, shining the light back to his purveyors. “They’re going against the status quo and helping the community,” Dodson said. “They’re the reason I came here.” With him, Dodson brought the ingenuity and technique to match.
