Every Monday at nine, with the restaurant closed and the coffee on, I call four farms. By ten I know what is coming on Wednesday. By noon the first draft of Thursday's menu is on the board by the pass, in chalk, so it is easy to change.
People ask why we don't print a menu and keep it for a season like most places. The honest answer is that we tried, in 2014, for about three weeks.
Monday: the calls
Ruth at Alder Creek Farm picks up first, because she's already been in the field for three hours. She tells me what is ready, what is nearly ready and what the frost got. Then Tidewater for fish, Bramble Dairy for cream and butter, and Hollow Oak Mill for flour.
- Alder Creek: greens, squash, herbs, roots in winter.
- Tidewater: steelhead, clams, crab in season.
- Bramble: butter, cream, feta, the occasional surprise.
A rule we keep
If a farm has too much of something, we find a way to use it. That is how the squash soup became a fixture every October.
Tuesday: tasting
Tuesday afternoon, before service, Teo and I cook every new dish once and the whole kitchen tastes it standing up. Most dishes change a little. About one in five doesn't make it.
Wednesday: the board
The deliveries arrive between seven and eleven. Whatever came in short, we adjust. The chalk menu turns into the printed one, and the website updates at noon on Thursday, when the Thursday email goes out.
| Out this week | In this week |
|---|---|
| Tomato and peach salad | Roasted beets, whipped feta |
| Grilled corn | Delicata squash soup |
| Halibut | Steelhead with clams |
Thursday: service
The first night of a new menu is always a little slower in the kitchen and a little more fun in the dining room. Servers taste everything at the 4:30 meeting, so they can tell you honestly what they'd order.
If the squash is good, it's on. If it isn't, it waits a week.
Taped above the pass since 2016
What never changes
Three things stay on, whatever the farms say: the half chicken, the burger at the bar and the sourdough. People plan their week around the chicken, and the bar needs a burger.
If you want to know what is on before you come, the menu page is right by noon every Thursday, and the email is below.