on easter, my boss invited us to have dinner with her family. it was really great chance to get to hang out with a large family and eat a meal together. (that is definitely something that we miss being away from "home"). my boss has 5 sons and brian and i fall in age right between the 2 oldest.
one of her sons is the executive chef/owner of the finest restaurant here in chattanooga, st. john's. it is the super yummy, super swanky place where brian and i had our new year's eve date night. there is also a more casual restaurant that shares the same kitchen, which has become our FAVORITE place to eat in town. when i offered to bring a vegetable for the easter meal, i didn't think about the fact that he would be joining us for dinner. YIKES!!!!
i decided to bring a cold asparagus dish that is one of my family's easter traditions. it is a mayo based, lemon dip with blanched asparagus for dipping. i've been known to park myself at the table and eat this asparagus non-stop for several hours. i called my aunt in a panic to get specific directions when i got my mind around the big picture. - i was cooking for a chef who has worked under tom colicchio (better known as "chef" on top chef!!!!). fortunately, it wasn't a difficult dish to prepare and she walked me through the whole thing. i can't say that i went into the meal feeling confident, but i was a least secure in the fact that the dish tasted exactly as i remembered it from years past, yummy.
turns out he is a really cool, down to earth guy and i really want to be friends with his wife (who is equally cool and down to earth). not only did we have a wonderful time getting to know them, they complimented me on my dish and i believe they had seconds! needless to say, i felt relief. it was the icing on the cake of a very fun evening.
fast forward to last week... brian and i had dinner at the casual side of the restaurant before the alison kraus/robert plant concert (a whole other blog in itself!!!). i was scanning the new summer menu and noticed a new asparagus salad. since asparagus is one of my favorites, of course i ordered it. it wasn't until the dish was delivered to me that i the light bulb went on. sure his cold asparagus salad was garnished with some beautifully seared ono (an amazing hawaiian white fish), but it had a creamy white sauce and was served with a lemon wedge. pretty familiar...
now of course brian, my boss and her husband all chuckled when i brought up my obvious influence. but, it's pretty clear to me the impression that my easter dish made!
1 comment:
that asparagus is one of my favorite parts of easter! i have no doubt in my mind that he was absolutely inspired by your dish...who wouldn't be!
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