Restaurant Review: Acorn

      Acorn is the seedling of Oak on Fourteen, so to speak.  I was excited to try Acorn because I love Oak, and Acorn is on the cover of 5280's Best Restaurants.  
     Acorn is located in The Source, a converted warehouse artisanal market in River North.   One of two restaurants in the Source, Acorn is open for lunch and dinner M-F and dinner only on Sunday.  It is an industrial space, high ceilings, exposed brick with a large graffiti mural on one wall.  Everything is cooked in an oak oven.  The menu offers mostly shared plates and suggests one to two per person.  They also offer a couple of larger plates for carnivores, a half roasted chicken and a 38 oz ribeye.  We opted for four shared plates.
     One caveat, Acorn is not a place for wine connoisseurs; their selection is rather limited.  Although, the glass of nebbiolo I ordered was full bodied and complemented all the plates we ordered.  All of the cocktails are well crafted.  Don ordered Across the Atlantic which is akin to a Manhattan with their signature spherical ice ball.
     We started with the oak grilled octopus.  I love cephalopods, but Don had some trepidation.  The octopus tasted sea fresh with a great chewy texture.  The gnocchi were golden clouds of creaminess.  Spice was provided by the in house chorizo which was complimented by the salsa verde.  All the texture and flavor contrasts created a party in your mouth.  It was probably our favorite dish.
     Next came the kale salad.  Kale is a brassica and can be tough and bitter.  At Oak and Acorn, they are shredded thinly and massaged.  The sweet dressing and togarashi (Japanese chili pepper flakes) help balance out the natural bitterness of the kale.  The candied almonds and julienned apples added additional sweetness and and crunch.  The generous portion takes a while to eat.  I found myself feeling slightly bovine.
     The pork belly arrived next.  After a week of whole hog cookery, I was anxious to see how Acorn prepares their pork.
Pork belly has a lot of fat, but if cooked properly, the fat is deliciously edible, and this was the case with Acorn's.  Two hefty cubes of pork belly on a gruyere and Crooked Stave beer fondue prevented us from fighting.  The meat was tender and full of umami flavor.  The skin and fat melts in your mouth.  The brussels sprouts were perfectly charred and caramelized.  Another brassica, their mild bitterness balanced the otherwise rich dish.
     Our last plate was the Key West "Shrimp and Grits" which is made from Anson Mills (organic heirloom grain purveyor) grits and Royal red shrimp which are very tender and flavorful albeit smallish shrimp.  The grits sat on a moat of soffrito wine broth which kept it from drying up.   
     Even though the desserts that we glimpsed looked amazing, we were stuffed to the gills after four shared plates.  But we vowed to return as there were many other plates we wanted to try.  

Across the Atlantic, Nebbiolo

The upstairs

Oak Grilled Octopus

Apple Kale Salad

Oak Grilled Pork Belly

Key West "Shrimp and Grits"

The Source in Brighton

     

Awful Offal

      Last week was whole animal cookery.  We had an 88 pound pig, small for most whole hogs, which we butchered into primal cuts and cooked with varying techniques.  
     We severed the pig head and made head cheese.  We brined the pig ears and deep fried them.  Were they delicious!  The pig skin was also removed and dried in the oven for two days, after which they were deep fried into the crunchiest, most flavorful chicharrones I have ever tasted.  
     I cured half of a ham for 24 hours, then cooked it in pig fat for three hours 'til fork tender and shredded it for a rillette, which is a very French meat paste spread on baguettes.  Talk about porky goodness.  My teammates turned the other half of the ham into a pepper fennel sausage that we are drying for 3 weeks.
      From the shoulder, we made a pork ragout and homemade pasta for our family meal one day.  One jowl has been removed to make guanciale, or what we affectionately call face bacon.  The ribs were smoked and covered with home-made barbecue sauce.  And the belly we are saving for the culmination dinner.
     What to do with the liver, heart, tail, and brains?  We scrambled the brains with some farm fresh eggs from Carrie's Clucks in Windsor, CO.  The brains tasted like eggs, soft and creamy.  The liver was breaded and pan fried but proved inedible for most folks.  Luckily someone salvaged it for their dog so it was not wasted.  I've never had pig heart tartar until now.  It was not terrible but I prefer the organ sautéed.  The tail was cut up, breaded and fried.  It was flavorful and very gelatinous.
     All in all, the pig is one versatile and tasty animal from nose to tail.

Our Piggy, Willie

Drying Sausage

The Pig's Tail

Chicharrones!

Sauteed Heart Appetizer

Pig Heart Tartar

Barbecue Pork and Ribs

Escoffier Day

     Boulder declared October 9th as "Escoffier Day".  Michel Escoffier, the great grandson of Auguste Escoffier was the guest of honor.  Our school and faculty provided a banquet representing five regions of France:  Provence, Burgundy, Loire, Rhone, and Languedoc.  I volunteered to help my chef with his station, which was Provence.  Our dish was bouillabaisse, or fisherman's stew, made of lobster stock, clams, mussels, and shrimp.  Additionally, we served toast points with rouille, a spread made of day old bread soaked in milk and pulverized with roasted red pepper and garlic.  It is very traditional and delicious with the bouillabaisse.  Our refreshing beverage was a lavender sour blended with effervescent Pellegrino.  Other stations included one which served cassoulet, another had Burgundy stew and pasta, one served caramelized onion flat bread, and one served apple cider and potatoes with prosciutto.
    There were members from all sectors of the food industry.  One actively recruiting Escoffier students to work for the company.  There were chefs from prestigious restaurants in Boulder and Denver such as the Black Cat and the Warwick Hotel.  Several chefs were inducted into the Disciples of Escoffier, an exclusive club where one is nominated by one's peers.  This included a couple chef instructors from school.  
     Michel Escoffier is an elegant French gentleman who spoke excellent English.  I was most impressed with his warmth and willingness to oblige me with a photo, which I promptly sent to my envious classmates.  I also got a signed copy of one of Auguste Escoffier's historic menus.  It was a long day but well worth it.

Farm to Table

     Today begins the first day of our last block, Farm to Table also known as Ethical and Sustainable.   Six more weeks of classes, and we're off to our externships!  This adventure has certainly flown by.  It was questionable whether I would get to this point, but here I am.  
    We started our day by meeting our new chef in our new kitchen, which used to be the Broker Inn in Boulder.  Then we headed to Waste Farmers in Arvada.  We have a farm day each week which is usually Monday and scheduled from 7:30am to 5:30pm.  We arrived at the farm around 9am and had an hour tour of the farm operations.  Their focus is on permaculture and reduced carbon footprint.  Nothing is done with a tractor, all man power.  After an hour and a half of informative but sedentary lecture, we were ready to get our hands dirty.
    It had threatened rain all day, but never produced.  As soon as we started clearing out the beds, the skies opened up and dumped rain on us and did not let up.  Apparently it was not meant to be a farm day for us.  
     On non farm days, we will be cooking without recipes using what ever farm to table produce/ingredients we get.  We will be butchering a whole pig and using it from head to tail.  At the end of this block, we will produce a culmination dinner for our family and friends with seasonal produce, a budget, and our own menu designs.  This is the block that sets Escoffier apart from other culinary schools.  

5280 Lists Denver's 25 Best Restaurants

     The much anticipated issue of 5280's annual 25 best Denver restaurants is here.  My goal is to eat my way through the list, such is my dedication to restaurant reviewing.
     I begin with a Highland favorite, Duo.  First opened in 2005, Duo has been a regular on numerous Denver's best restaurants lists.  I have only been to Duo once and for brunch.  Now was a good time for a revisit.  
     We made reservations for a Sunday night, one of the few on 5280's list of restaurants open on Sunday.  We easily found street parking.  The open and cozy dining room is rustic with exposed brick, overhead duct work, and decorative window panes.  Even the lighting fixtures resemble mixing bowls.  The kitchen looks out into the dining space.  All the chefs that night were women.  Rare, but serendipitous.  We were seated next to the windows which allowed for entertaining street viewing.
     The menu was succinct and featured seasonal produce.  The server brought a sampling of flavorful house marinated olives.  The wine list had a well rounded selection of wines by the glass.  Don chose a French Syrah blend from the Rhone region, and I ordered a Nebbiolo/Barbera from the Piedmont region in Italy.  Both were full bodied and complex.  
    We ordered the open faced Lamb Tartine to start.  It came with shaved lamb atop a smear of grainy mustard on three grilled, hearty, artisan toasts, garnished with julienned pickled radish and red onions.  The lamb was somewhat lacking in flavor or perhaps overshadowed by the accouterments.  
    The Farmer's Market Salad came with julienned squash, mixed greens, heirloom tomatoes, and the  perfect amount of charred leek dressing.  
    Our entrees of Buffalo Sirloin and Bershire Porkchop were more rustic than refined in presentation.  My buffalo was cooked medium rare and more tender and flavorful than most beef.  The potatoes in the fricassee were flavorful but slightly underdone.  Don's pork chop was a bone in, thick cut, and flavorful, however, the smear of barbecue sauce on top obscured the grill marks and was a bit of a turn off aesthetically.  His green beans were also undercooked.
     Even though it was a Sunday night, we decided to indulge in some French press coffee with our dessert.  The flourless chocolate cake was an artistic rectangular slab rather than the ubiquitous wedge.  Two beautifully quinnelled (oval shape) pumpkin chantilly cream and tuille cookies complimented the cake.  
     Service was very good for a busy night.  New silverware was presented after each plate.  The server was very knowledgeable about both the wines and the food.  Coffee was hot and pressed for us at the table.
     Overall, I think Duo pays attention to details, especially in their meticulous knife cuts, and is a good value for your money.  

Lamb Tartine

Farmer's Market Salad

Duo's Kitchen

Buffalo Sirloin

Bershire Porkchop

Flourless Chocolate Cake with Pumpkin Chantilly

Transcendence

     Recently I watched an episode of PBS's "Inside the Mind of a Chef" where Chef David Chang of NYC's Momofuku silently weeped after partaking a most delectable morsel of sushi from a venerable but obscure sushi chef in Tokyo.  
     I have long believed that truly transcendent food has the power to affect as much as any piece of art, poetry, film, or theater.  Our cooking has improved so much in the past 112 days that I have recently been moved to tears on two occasions.  Both times our production could not have been more flawless.  Our food was seasoned so well that each taste element: sweet, salty, fat, and acid was balanced to perfect harmony.  One classmate lovingly observed that she was able to taste individuals' personalities shine in each plate.  
    Cooking is a dance where, hopefully, many rehearsals lead to an effortless tango with your partner.  Sometimes you don't even have to speak, and the other person has already anticipated your next move.  It's a beautiful thing.
     Below are some products from our collaboration:

Grilled Cornish Ham with Basil Butter

Calamari and Arugula Salad

Gnocchi with Sundried Tomato Pesto

Red Pepper, Olive, Anchovy Focaccia

Caprese Salad with Housemade Mozarella

Spaghetti alla Puttanesca

Tiramisu

Trauma Drama

      It's only been three weeks into this block, and there has already been three injuries.  A student suffered second and third degree burns grabbing a hot pot handle.  Another student snipped the webbing between her index and third finger which barely missed her tendons and required 4 stitches.  And yesterday, while pureeing hot stock in the Vitamix, the liquid exploded burning my skin.  Luckily, it wasn't very extensive and a fellow classmate had the equanimity to procure an ice bath for me to soak my arm, which I very much appreciated.  Poor chef is probably looking forward to the conclusion of this block with us.
     I have enjoyed this chef's laissez-faire teaching style.  It is clear that he has a depth of knowledge that comes only with many years in the industry.  Additionally, he is calm, humorous, and respectful.  He never makes you feel like and idiot.  What I appreciate most about this chef is that he does not blatantly pick favorites.  
     What I have observed with all of the chefs thus far is their level of education.  They are all well read, not just in  the culinary arts but current events, politics, and popular culture.  I have as much respect for them as the medical doctors I worked with in my previous profession.
     Today ends our lovely week in Spain.  Below are some of the dishes we have made thus far.  Our plating has improved to rival that of fine dining restaurants.

Roasted Rack of Lamb with Haricots Vert

Spanish Meatballs in Sherry Sauce

Chorizo Stuffed Pork Tenderloin 

Paella a la Madrilena

Halibut en Paupiette

Spanish Roasted Leg of Lamb