Monthly Archives: June 2023

Sunday Brunching At Be.Steak.A

Toad-in-a-hole -- one of the many, many offerings at Sunday brunch at Be.Steak.A.
Toad-in-a-hole — one of the many, many offerings at Sunday brunch at Be.Steak.A.

Our strategy?

To divide and conquer — and not end up looking and feeling like a beached whale and her mate at the end of it.

Our mission?

To spend last Sunday morning indulging in the upscale buffet brunch at Campbell’s Be.Steak.A.

Yes, it was an assignment that my husband and I accepted eagerly after Chef-Owner Jeffrey Stout invited us in as his guests.

The brunch, which the restaurant started offering about a year ago, is available Sundays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at $115 per person. Seatings are available both in the dining room and outside on the patio.

The dining room just before opening on Sunday morning.
The dining room just before opening on Sunday morning.
The buffet's cold dishes.
The buffet’s cold dishes.
Four types of roe to top blini.
Four types of roe to top blini.

When it comes to buffets, everyone has a game plan. Some people like to try a little bit of every single thing. Some key in on the most expensive dishes first and foremost. Many keep piling their plates over and over until deep remorse sets in as the waistband digs in mercilessly.

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Summer’s South Carolina Shrimp Burgers — Plus A Cookbook Giveaway

So crisp, moist, and delicious, this shrimp burger is sure to become a new summer favorite.
So crisp, moist, and delicious, this shrimp burger is sure to become a new summer favorite.

Summer’s the time when folks like nothing better than firing up the backyard grill.

But there are some who lack grills — either because they have no suitable yard or balcony or they simply don’t like playing with fire like that.

“South Carolina Shrimp Burgers” are just the ticket for them — and really for anyone who loves a great burger of any sort.

Reminiscent of the popular ones enjoyed all over the coastal Carolinas, this moist-on-the-inside and crisp-on-the-outside shrimp burger is cooked on a skillet on the stovetop in no time flat.

It tastes of pure summer sunshine, long lazy days, and much like a New England lobster roll — except it’s easier and more economical.

The recipe is from the new “The Complete Summer Cookbook”,” of which I received a review copy. It’s by America’s Test Kitchen.

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Exploring Southern Oregon: Long Walk Vineyard

Grenache vines at Long Walk Vineyards, which bucks the trend for Pinot Noir in Oregon and specializes in Rhone varietals instead.
Grenache vines at Long Walk Vineyards, which bucks the trend for Pinot Noir in Oregon and specializes in Rhone varietals instead.

Ashland, OR. — Stanford grads Kathy and Tim O’Leary were looking for a second home that would allow them to take a break from their hectic lives in Palo Alto where she was an engineer and he was an attorney.

They started scouting around in a circumference of a 2-hour’s drive away in California before ultimately settling on a spot nearly 8 hours away in Oregon.

That’s why their Ashland winery was dubbed Long Walk Vineyard. Or so the story goes. You can understand why they extended their search so far north, though, once you gaze upon this this 50-acre historic orchard on a hill that they purchased in 2000.

The 2021 Carignane with charcuterie board that includes the winery's own honey.
The 2021 Carignane with charcuterie board that includes the winery’s own honey.

That’s what I found when I visited the beautiful property a couple weeks ago, where unlike most wineries in this region, Pinot Noir is not king, but Rhone varietals are.

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Oui Oui to French Onion Sheet Pan Chicken

Chicken thighs smothered in caramelized onions and Gruyere just like classic French onion soup.
Chicken thighs smothered in caramelized onions and Gruyere just like classic French onion soup.

Who doesn’t love the rustic and robust taste of French onion soup, loaded with caramelized onions and finished with a crisp crouton smothered in gooey melted cheese?

That’s all dandy in the chill of winter. But in the torrid days of summer? Not so much.

But now, you can have your French onion soup — and eat it then, too.

All it takes is this recipe for “French Onion Sheet Pan Chicken.”

It’s from the new cookbook, “Everyday Grand” (Clarkson Potter), of which I received a review copy. It was written by Texas-based Jocelyn Delk Adams, the founder of the popular blog, Grandbaby Cakes, along with Olga Massov, a Washington Post food editor.

Adams calls it a collection of recipes designed to celebrate life’s good times, be they major victories or small everyday momentary wins. They include “Cornmeal Butter Biscuits with Big Mama’s Fig Preserves,” “Hawaiian Loco Moco Tatchos” (sheet pan tater tots smothered in ground beef), “Shrimp Etouffee Potpie,” “Oxtail and Cornmeal Dumplings,” and “Brownie-Stuffed Birthday Cookies.”

I’m not going to lie: “French Onion Sheet Pan Chicken” doesn’t taste exactly like its namesake classic soup. However, it is boldly seasoned and thoroughly delicious in its own right.

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Exploring Southern Oregon: Fine-Dining at Mas

Poached otoro or medium fatty tuna belly and foie gras blanketed by slices of raw porcini at Mas.
Poached otoro or medium fatty tuna belly and foie gras blanketed by slices of raw porcini at Mas.

Ashland, OR. — Tucked away in a secluded alley off the main downtown drag, Mas is not a place that one just happens to stumble upon.

But seek it out, you definitely should.

Named one of the New York Times’ “favorite 50 restaurants” in 2022 and a semi-finalist for “Best Chef Northwest and Pacific” in 2023, this $195 per person, tasting menu-only restaurant is all of 16 seats.

The best seats, of course, are at the chef’s counter, where I dined earlier this month as a guest of Travel Oregon. It’s where you can watch Chef Josh Dorcak and his small staff prepare each course with precision.

Chef Josh Dorcak putting the finishing touches on dishes at the chef's counter.
Chef Josh Dorcak putting the finishing touches on dishes at the chef’s counter.

It’s rather astonishing to realize that the galley kitchen behind the counter, about the size of one in a modest home, is all they use, too. There’s all of one or two induction burners, a combi oven that can cook with steam or hot air, and a fish aging refrigerator off to the side. That’s pretty much it.

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