Hello there...

Well, I am slowly recoverling from the trip to Europe (as I took the 6th off from posting) and last night (which was the 6th) was a lot of fun helping Jodie celebrate her birthday. (Details are to follow...) Today was a day that was oh so full and I feel that I need to pause, but want to share with you as night that was so magical that it deserves being posted here. So, without further adure, I share a magical evening that happened on the 19th day of December of 2008. And tomorrow, there is some fun to be shared...enjoy! Cheers, Chris

The HerbFarm
December 19, 2008

Snow has blanketed the Seattle area…a magical evening was just ahead…

And so began an evening that was not to be forgotten. Assembling at my apartment that evening was Helene, Markie, Dan and Moi. Four foodies to be sure. Would Dan make it in from Florida due to all the flight delays and cancels? Would the limo be on time? Would the restaurant cancel for the night as they had the night before…? I was so excited as Markie and Helene were treating me and Markie was treating Dan and it was a holiday heaven for all!

Slowly everyone showed and got the call that a town car would be driving us as the snow was too much for the limo. Bummer, but understood. OK, so most of us understood. One was a bit miffed that champagne would not be served on the way. But oh did we have a good driver. Slow and steady we made our way in anticipation of the experience and soon arrived.

Upon entering the HerbFarm the enormous mantle greets you. Coat check is nearby and soon we realize that my last name is the key word for the evening…”The reservation is under?” Schilling. Getting a glass of wine, finding a little something or being escorted to our table -yup…Schilling. It got rather challenging after a while. Maybe next time I will use a festive name like Santa. But that is getting to next time and this is about this time. We looked around and there is a private dining room and down the hall is the extensive wine cellar you must pass to use the restrooms. Quite a space and all set to enhance your senses. I laughed when I came upon the little bottle of ash from the old HerbFarm that had burned…it is all about marketing.

So we gathered near the entry for fresh air and enjoyed either a glass of wine or cider. At that point the co-owner stepped up and began telling about the herbs and such for the evening and they sent around samples. It was humorous in its’ own way and yet informative. She shared the history of the place and that they have a pig on property that we are more than welcome to visit. I have a feeling few took advantage that evening with the weather.

After a short welcome we were invited into the main dining room and seated. There is no other term than dinner theatre! The massive kitchen in three stages was off to our left once seated and we had a front and center table. There were other tables and a total of maybe a 100 diners that evening. A private library alcove overhead went unused and yet I would love to host a dinner there. There were tables of 6, 8 and even 12 people. There is also a community table for solo diners and small parties wishing to be part of a larger group. Upon seating my seat had a lovely silver framed message wishing me a Happy Birthday and was told it was a small gift from the HerbFarm. Each table had a animal holding a name plate. Ours happened to be a frog – the perfect business card hold for Eric in Kentucky and I asked to acquire it and my wish was granted. The table groaned with glassware, flatware and dishes all sorts and table décor was festive as well.

Silver goblets held water and how they served it was a dream come true…they held a small ice bucket in the arm and did ice first followed by water out of a bottle. Not too much ice and not too little. The cup never ran dry the entire evening. Service was at a level of perfection rarely seen…always anticipating but never invasive. Stunning!

The theme of the evening was The Holly and the Ivy. The whole place was decked out for the holiday and the table was all the more with green chargers and ivory napkins holding our menus and a sprig of fir. We began with a Christmas Tree Champagne Cocktail: choice of Western Juniper or Douglas Fir syrup enhanced with candied cranberry. Champagne was then poured over this to release the smells to the nose. While the Douglas Fir was lovely, Markie did make the best choice with the Juniper. Next a lovely trio was delivered to each of us. Pearls of the Salish Sea – See menu for details of each. Without hesitation, the Qualicum Bay Scallop with Candied Celery Seed Granité and pickled Sea Asparagus was amazing and maybe that was because they had to send a town car to get the scallops for the dish as the delivery truck could not make it.

At this point the curtain was drawn across the kitchen and we were introduced to the staff for the evening and told some tales by the owner including his passion for buying stuff on ebay and thus the major collection of items all about the HerbFarm which was quite entertaining. You also got a sense just how the whole group comes together to make it all work and the amazing training all go through.

We were then served a lovely 2006 Amity Vineyards Pinot Blanc and this was paired with the 2nd course – “Crab Apple” Consommé was the next course. A bit of play on words, I find it a bit challenging and not my favorite. We opted to not try the “2nd glass experience on this course of Sake.

At this point Dan and Helene step away to use the rest room. This gets to be funny as the night progresses. The staff lunge to get to the door to open it for you and then rush over with a new napkin and remove the old. It kept going like this over and over. The staff could hear our comments and we were thrilled when the chef came out to talk to “the foodies in the front.” He had cooked at the White House and numerous restaurants.

Also, they delivered luscious breads to enjoy. I made the simple comment to Helene how I liked Balsamic vinegar and within moments some appeared. A server heard my comment and it was granted. Some of the best I had ever had. Later in the evening I spied a bottle for sale in the lobby…at $105. No, I did not buy a bottle.

Next up was the Nomad of the North Pacific. A delightful nod to the fish course and paired with a 2007 Soter Vineyards Rosé of Oregon Pinot Noir. No 2nd glass pairing with this course and I got to enjoy a 2nd egg as Helene does not like them.

The table to our right was a husband and wife who had brought their parents. That is six people at $275 a clip and they were not having a good time. They sucked down the food and his parents kept saying – When do we REALLY eat. How sad! The wife was totally jealous of our table and the attention and how we were just totally enjoying ourselves. Funny how things happen?

The pacing of the evening is such that the 9+ course dinner begins around 7pm and you are walking out around midnight. So amazing and there is live music to enjoy and it is a thrill that cannot be described to a non foodie as they often just roll their eyes.

Next up was the Northwest Bollito Misto…who knew you could lust for Pork Belly! Three of us sure did. Hello Mary. This dish honored the chef’s father and mother’s heritage. It was paired with a 2001 Wilridge Nebbiolo di Klipsun from Red Mountain. Good choice, I LOVE Nebbiolo’s and yet I have to say that the 2nd glass pairing was better…yes, it really was. A Guiseppe Costese Barbaresco, Rabaja out of Italy and it was such a discussion that the wine sommeliers stopped by to discuss and in the end they actually realized we were right in our points and thanked us for being so insightful. Yup, that got to the chef who paid another visit to our table after the next course to be sure we were enjoying ourselves!

It must be shared that each course is a work of art and the portion is such that it is a bite or two. This is not about “all you can eat” but rather about the layers of complexity that are being played with and how you take great lengths to use local items and let the senses be taken away on a wonderful journey. A foodie gets this. Not being a snob, just sharing. It was an evening that many of us would love to enjoy again.

As we began the fifth course, it was time to just pause and be present. The course was titled Bisen, Beef, Wagyu. Well, it was just yummy to be sure and even the 24-hour Wagyu Short Rib stood up, but the flavors…see the menu for full details. Amazing pairings of flavors. The wine was a 2000 Cadence Meritage, Taptiel, Red Mountain and a steal that night at $60 a bottle. It was so far above the 2nd glass pairing of Andrew Will Meritage, Klipsun Vineyards that the sommelier stopped by and gave us not only a 2nd glass of the original wine, but a third as well…oh yeah!

Heaven is a place we hear about and yet this was a heavenly evening. What a night to be sure. The cheese course followed – specifically Cheese with Bitter Greens. It was lovely to slow down and while no specific wine was available with this course, they had flights you could buy. We got two:

Red Alert! Had never had a red ice wine and we enjoyed them quite a bit. First up was Lake Crest Winery’s Syrah Ice Wine which was our 2nd favorite of the three. Inniskillin’s Cabernet Franc Ice Wine out of Canada was our 2nd tasting but third choice. Our final ice wine was the favorite and that was Sineann’s Zinfandel Ice Wine out of Oregon. All 2006 and was $35 for the tasting – thank you Helene for the lovely gift to the three of us for the holiday.

Flight of Grand Champagnes! What a treat…three fabulous pours with Dom Pérignon 2000 vintage starting things off. I know one of us sure good a good taste of this one. But the other three were a bit more balanced around…the 2nd being 1998 Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame which is always a delight. But the third is why I so wanted to try it – I had never had Krug and tonight it all changed. Hello MARY!! Non vintage Krug Grand Cuvée was an oral orgasm unrivaled in my book. It was a sheer joy – again thank you so much Helene for treating us to this lovely memory.

Dan kept using the wash room and the gentleman server kept placing new napkins and in the end when Dan came back he had left a stack as a sort of joke that we all laughed at, but wonder if Dan ever realized it was a joke, or perhaps did not find it humorous. Oh well, it was all in fun. But the next course was not fun at all; it was the miss of the night sadly. It was a Sorbet of Pineapple Quince. It was just a miss on flavor. The server asked us what we thought as much of it was left and we were frank and honest. The chef came out for a third visit and asked what happened? My honest suggestion was to consider something like Grapefruit and pepper, something to really cleanse the palette. He liked my idea…but to be honest, I had had that once before at a dinner and have always thought it was an amazing blend.

We were slowly coming to the end of the dinner. Dan stepped out to find something for Lisa as a memento of the night. Helene did a little power shopping and well, I was getting a tad bit tired. Alas, it was time for dessert and Deck the Halls. To watch them plate this up right before your eyes. The perfection of the double Terrine was a sheer joy. Eggnog Ice Cream was a double BAM as I got Helene’s share. I am so happy she does not like eggs!

It was time for Coffee, Teas & Infusions…talk about assembly line as they prepared creamers, tea sets and coffees, oh my! It was magical and everyone was taken care of promptly. It was all laid out in a booklet complete with cliff notes on the back page on how to order if not sure!

The finale was A Selection of Small Treats. This was so cute as they did double orders so each person got to taste one of everything which did not quite work out on one side of the table, but there was Rose Geranium Chocolate cookie; Persimmon Pates de Fruits; Dark Chocolate Knackerli with Caramel Quinoa & Cranberry; Birch Milk Chocolate Truffle; and finally a Pumpkin Spice White Chocolate.

What an amazing meal…and as we sat back and savored the last tastes one could not help notice those rushing to get out and break the magic. It was a night to be savored, not rushed. Alas, we enjoyed ourselves and then went and settled the bill and got our wraps to brace for the cold. Our driver was there and as we headed back to the city Markie had a CD of Christmas music to polish off the night.

Many in the back nodded off as I kept the driver company and he was AMAZING in getting Helene home to her abode in the snow and madness. He then drove down into the city and took Roosevelt Avenue and we saw some festive lights and the CD finished just as we arrived at my building. The boys went to the parking garage as I went up to my apartment. The tree had been left on and was a magical moment to tell me that the magic would live on as the memory is one that will not die. Thank you to all for making my birthday so very special I will never forget it. Ho! Ho! Ho!