Dinner Like no Other (8th annual)

(it occurs to me that it's actually a very nice thing that I have had to wait until a night when Conrad is out of town overnight for work to write this blog post)

This year marks the 8th time Rick Bayless and company have staged the Dinner Like No Other, a fundraiser for the Frontera Farmer Foundation. I think we've been to nearly all of them and enjoyed them hugely, not least because of the great people we've dined with. This year was no different.

Conrad and I got ourselves prettied up,
then headed downtown where we joined RAD again. He had assembled a table of familiar faces, so Jim (on the right with RAD) was there, and so was his wife Dianne. Glen and Sue had come down from Milwaukee. Andrew couldn't make it, but Susan and Conrad had a hoot all night long chatting away at their end of the table. We were sitting in the Frontera side again, and the mood around the table was spirited. And heck, that was even before they had poured us each a Copa Mundial Margarita (Tres Generaciones blanco tequila, Moon on the Water sake, Klug Farm strawberries, fresh lime). We sipped, Rick Bayless spoke to the assembled guests, introduced some of the farmers,
and then on to the food!

An Asian influence spun through the menu this year, mostly with good effect. I know now everyone cares for kimchi, but I for one rather like it. The amuse went down well. Tostadita Asiatica - City Farm radish kimchi, Nichols green onions, Alaskan king crab, crispy tortilla.

The courses are paired with wines, but this year there were two changes. First, Jill (the sommelier - we LOVE her) was not there, having worked the afternoon event. I hope she got the bottle of wine we brought for her. Second, the first course was paired with a local beer. Frankly, the pairing was a little lost on me - not at all bad, but the food just outshone the ale so very much. Our salad, then. Ensalada de Esparragos - grilled Klug Farm asparagus in miso butter. Pasilla chile compote, egg yolk custard, Gunthorp bacon, Bayless microgreens. Paired with 2010 Goose Island "Sophie" Belgian-style farmhouse ale.

When I saw the menu, it was the soup course I zeroed in on. Nettles. Cool! Plus, I'd had a chilled soup at the last wine pairing dinner at Frontera, and it was a wonder. This was no less delightful - look at that colour! The wine was an excellent match in this case. Sopa Verde - chilled soup of Spence Farm nettles and roasted poblano chiles. Whipped ricotta cheese, fermented black garlic, slow-cooked Iron Creek tomatoes, brioche croutons. Paired with 2009 Dona Paula Torrontes, Argentina.

I think Frontera Grill is one of the best places in the city to get seafood, but I think this was the weakest course of the night. The fish was fine in itself, and the go alongs were alright. But that was the problem: I wanted more than alright. I wanted Zap! Pow! It didn't happen. I will say that the wine was even better when sipped with the food. Halibut con Frijoles Negros - wood-grilled Alaskan halibut with Three Sisters Garden black beans and fermented black bean broth. Spicy Nichols snow peas, peanuts, crispy onions, furikake. Paired with 2008 Cono Sur "Vison" Pinot Noir, Chile.

Ah, but while the fish was fine, the pork was delicious. All those herbs singing together on my tongue, and a rich red wine that could handle them. This was a great end to the savoury portion of the meal. Puerco al Coco - Maple Creek pork shoulder braised in coconut water. Green papaya-mango salad with banana blossoms, Spence Farm quelites, homemade rice noodles, Living Waters herbs. Paired with 2009 Boekenhoutskloof "The Wolftrap", South Africa.

Ah dessert, bringing us full circle with the strawberries. Was it the angelica that had the unfamiliar and wonderful flavour? I'm not sure. I really liked this a lot, though. Isla Flotante de Fresa - Little Farm egg white meringue, Klug Farm/Seedling strawberries, peppercorn natilla, Bayless garden angelica, Living Waters micro basil.

With dessert, a pour of Tres Generaciones anejo tequila. I sipped some of it, but I didn't need it, and again, the nuances of tequila can be lost on me.

The night isn't just about food, though. There are raffles (we didn't win anything YET AGAIN). There is a silent auction (we sort of won, as a table, a cocktail party in the Bayless' garden) in which Jim successfully bid on the chef's jacket Rick Bayless wore to cook a recent state dinner at the White House. So there were were, a few of us (Robert and his wife Katie came by, the two lovely young women at the next table - I forget their names), trying it on, having a laugh.




The night wound down and left me thinking it's too seldom that Conrad and I make it down there to dine, much as we love it. Maybe some time next month (not-so-subtle hint coming up) I'll get in an early or belated 40th birthday nosh there. We'll see.