Fri 3 Apr 2009 11:06 pm
Lovely Le Gourmand, where a 7-course tasting menu runs $80 and a single meticulously sourced entree could reach $50, is entering the world of the recession special. The Ballard landmark’s new “Mon Dieu” menu provides three courses for $45, “all our food, the same really good stuff” as you’ll find on the standard menu, said owner-chef Bruce Naftaly. There are three choices apiece for appetizers, main courses, and desserts; my pick would be the rabbit pate with cognac, port, and thyme, the duxelles-stuffed roast chicken in Jerusalem artichoke sauce, and Sara Naftaly’s famous creme brulee. The special will be offered nightly, along with the standard menu.
“The economy has been terrible for us too, not so much in the bar, but definitely in the restaurant,” Naftaly said. It’s a hard problem to attack: The high-quality ingredients he uses set his cost bar high before he even gets into detail like making his own poppyseed crackers. This is the sort of place, after all, where diners got one of the region’s first glimpses at the Mangalitsa, just because Naftaly couldn’t resist the idea of experimenting with the pricey pork.
If you can still handle a splurge, though, Naftaly’s also got a different special coming up at the other end of the price spectrum April 28. It’s an 8-course dinner featuring the “out of this world” Claudio Corallo Chocolates, which recently opened a rare retail store in Ballard.
Kent Bakke, a Seattle coffee pioneer and the U.S. importer for the luxury chocolates, is an old friend of Naftaly’s and will be at the dinner as well.
The chocolate “is very earthy and very basic, the fundamental cocoa flavors, but also without any interference — very pure,” Naftaly said. He’s going to fully exercise his fondness for savory-sweet mixes with dishes such as a radish soup starter, with grated chocolate as the foil for the earthy spring radishes. He’ll be dusting fish in powdered cacoa nibs before sauteeing it, and searing foie gras in a chocolate-raisin liqueur. Sarah is preparing three desserts. Cost: $175, including wine pairings, tax, and tip. Here’s what’s in the works so far (click on the image for a legible version).
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