Monday, February 16, 2009

Weekly Menu 1/16 - 1/20 plus Porter & Frye

We had a fabulous Valentine's Day dinner this year at a relatively new restaurant in downtown Minneapolis called Porter & Frye. We knew they were serving a tasting menu but really had no idea what to expect. Oh, did we enjoy this meal. Each dish was so tasty & in someways I guess you could say whimsical. It was a meal that gave us a lot to talk about while we were eating it (not that we have any trouble coming up with things to talk about). Here's what we had (excuse the pictures as it was romantically lit in the restaurant)
Valentine's Day Dinner
Amuse Bouche - Razor Clam with Parmesan Pudding
Valentine's Day Dinner
Monte Cristo - Ham & Gruyere on Brioche with Black Truffles and Apricot Jam - This was Matt's favorite.
Valentine's Day Dinner Valentine's Day Dinner
Foie Gras Capsule filled with Passion Fruit Semi Freddo - I loved this, the saltiness of the foie gras was amazing with the passion fruit.
Valentine's Day Dinner
Smoked Scallops with Cider, Quince & King trumpet Mushroom - The smoked flavor was perfect.
Valentine's Day Dinner
Lamb Crops with Merguez Sausage, Tomato, Cilantro, Orange & Mashed Potatoes - Probably the most straight forward dish but Matt couldn't get enough of the tomato jam.
Valentine's Day Dinner
Blood Orange Ice over Coconut with White Chocolate Sauce
Valentine's Day Dinner Valentine's Day Dinner
Red Velvet Cake with Chocolate Ice Cream - This was probably the least successful dish to us. I love red velvet cake & this was more like an ice cream torte with layers of praline, chocolate mousse, pink cherry flavored cake & white cake all covered in chocolate ganache. It tasted wonderful but was not red velvet or even a take on it. If it had a different name I probably would have liked it better. The chocolate martini is was served with was amazingly good.
Valentine's Day Dinner
Finally we were given a little box of treats to take home. We ate them the next morning & the chocolate was perfectly melt in your mouth.

This was a meal like none we've ever had before. I'm so glad we splurged for it & the wine pairing that went with it. We've been to a lot of good restaurants in Minneapolis but I don't believe any that are doing what Porter & Frye is with their food.

Back to the real world & Menu Planning Monday...

Vegetable Soup - After a week at my parents & then a weekend eating out I need this!

Shrimp, Grits & Bacon

BBQ Beef Sandwich - We'll be using the crockpot to cook the beef until fork tender

Clam Chowder with Homemade Crackers

Thursday we'll be eating out at The Red Stag & Saturday we'll be in an Iron Chef style cooking challenge at The Corner Table.

This week's cupcake will be Chocolate Orange.

9 comments:

  1. This looks like it was a wonderful meal and evening.I love that you were able to take photos of it. 76 took me to a meal like this in DC one year, and we talked about it for weeks. Your weekly menu looks yummy too.

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  2. Wow I think you had one amazing meal. So many different tastes. Loved hearing about it. The foi gras was particularly interesting.

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  3. What a meal! I bet that was so much fun. The food looks amazing. What a perfect experience for a Valentine's celebration. So glad you enjoyed it and shared it with us!

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  4. Kat,
    That is some gorgeous meal.
    Beautifully presented.
    A foie gras capsule??????
    wowie!

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  5. OMG, Foie grass sound so luxurious. What a beautiful and perfect meal for a special day.
    Cheers,
    Elra

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  6. Hmmm... how can I convince Zach that we should go to Porter and Frye on our next trip to MN? The meal looks amazing and I'm glad you all had such a good Valentine's dinner.

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  7. Kat,

    Looks like a killer meal, and I'm super excited to hear about the Red Stag - and even more excited to hear about the Corner Table deal. Keep us posted!

    Got your message the other day, I'm thinking Rustica for Coffee and a pastry on a Saturday in the near future might work. Thoughts?

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  8. Wow, that all looks wonderful. I'm taking a camera with me the next time we eat out ("... and I call this one 'Golden Arches at sunset..."). :-)

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