Chef Wayne on Andaluca’s Happenings

Learning how the cuts make it to the table

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 20:43:39 -0700

We had the pleasure of spending the day with Tracy Smaciarz, a homegrown butcher out of Rochester, WA. and Tracey Baker (yes another one, but with an “e”) a homegrown raiser of grass-fed beef.
We showed up early in the morning at Heritage Meats, founded in 1977, a company that butchers, makes custom sausage and creates their own custom jerky. We pulled up in the parking lot to find one other vehicle and the doors locked. After such a long drive down (1 1/2 hours) we began knocking on the front door because we were not about to drive back without seeing some butchering. Tracy, the butcher welcomed us at the door and invited us into his office (the butcher shop), this place was clean, open and ready for breaking down the sides of beef, lamb and pork. He mentioned that he will butcher anything pasture raised animal that travels on four legs.
Tracy got to work right away, cutting the big side of beef (it must of weight 250-300 pounds) into primal cuts (prime rib, striploin, rump roast, top round, etc.). One of the exciting things for me was being able to feel the passion and the love that Tracy has for his talent and butcher shop that was handed down to him from his father around 1996. He also will only butcher animals that have been humanely and pasture raised. He is so proud of his growers that he recognizes them on his website ( http://heritagemeatswa.com/growers.html ).
While visiting the butchering company we were invited to the Gleason Ranch (one of Tracy’s growers) in Brady, Washington, which is about a 30-40 minute ride from Heritage Meats. The ride did not seem that long as we were given some of Heritage’s Custom Jerky to gnaw on while we traveled.
We arrived at the Gleason Ranch and were greeted by Tracey Baker and her family. They took us on a tour of the ranch, talked about the history of the ranch, which is now run by the 5th generation of family farmers. The family grows their own hay to feed the cattle in the winter months. They also move them from pasture-to-pasture as to allow the grass to recover and for the cattle to fertilize each lot.
After a lovely visit it was time to head back to Seattle, but not before we were treated to some burger patties, beef shank and rib bones. I brought these products home prepared them and WOW, the flavor from these wonderfully raised and butchered cattle took my mind back to the homegrown rancher and butcher.
Now to work on a way to get that beef, pig and lamb from there to here.

Brian Carter in the house

Mon, 24 Aug 2009 18:21:52 -0700

Andaluca and myself are proud to team up with Brian Carter for our next winemakers dinner.
On Friday, September 11th at 6pm, we will be serving up a 5-course menu with wines to match.
Course #1 will be a seared scallop paired with Oriana ’06.
Course #2 Crispy Ski Salmon on Fattoush salad and paired with Tuttorosso ’06.
Course #3 our braised Pheasant with chanterelle risotto and red wine jus paired with Byzance ‘05
Course #4 Seared Tenderloin of Venison with portobello mushroom, sweet potato puree and truffle demi, paired with L’Etalon ’04.
Course #5 Traditional Spanish Flan paired with Sauternes ’03.
Now if that doesn't get your mouth watering I don’t know what will! All of these flavors and matching wines to boot for only $85.
For reservation go to www.andaluca.com, call 206-382-6999 or email to kkhoshel@andaluca.com.
I am looking forward to seeing you there.
Bon Appetit!

Can you believe it?

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 16:56:21 -0700

A week ago was a celebration for me having reached a milestone of 10 years with Andaluca and the Mayflower Park Hotel. We had pintxos, sangria and live music. Wow! What a party it was!
Thank you to all who came out and those of you who sent me your congrats. I am blessed to have such a great community around me that supports my crazy foodie thoughts. Your continued support has pushed me to greater heights in creating food flavors.
Those of you who have been following the “Where’s Chef?” on the www.andaluca.com website know that last week was a whirl wind of events for me.
It started on Tuesday with the 10 year celebration. Wednesday and the first half of Thursday I was at college orientation with my son Tony, who will be a freshman at WWU in Bellingham. By Thursday at 4 p.m. we had to have chicken mojo with soft polenta ready for 800 guests at Chateau St. Michelle in Woodinville for the Auction of Washington Wines picnic. Friday, under perfect weather conditions, at Sunset Supper in the Pike Place Public Market, we prepared 1200 portions of deconstructed Andaluca crab-tower (avocado/hearts of palm base, seasoned crabmeat in the middle and topped with a sweet pepper gazpacho) on crostini and that went late into the night. Trust me, I was ready to hit the pillow that night!
Oh, and were you wondering about the picture above? Back in my days of taking accounting classes in college, I learned how to make pizza from scratch. Although this photo is of a more recent experience (stretching dough at via Tribunali in Georgetown), it brought back memories.

A Beautiful Pintxo

Mon, 13 Apr 2009 13:48:28 -0700

Seattle Times and I hooked up to produce a video of the making of the famous Lamb Burger Meatball. To see this incredible video, click on the link below or copy and put into the URL.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/flatpages/living/lambburgermeatballsandaluca.html

It is Official!!! Andaluca & Van Duzer Winemaker Dinner...May 15th, 2009

Sat, 21 Mar 2009 15:12:14 -0700

If you have not already done so, mark your calendars. On May 15th, Kamyar (Andaluca Manager) and I are pleased to be joined by winemaker Jim Kakacek and assistant winemaker Mark Evich of Van Duzer Vineyards in Oregon, where they produce some of the most exotic Pinots.
We will begin the night toasting with a glass of Cava. Soon after that we will begin our six courses of food and wine pairing for only (are you kidding me) $75. With that said, the first course is our Andaluca salad, mixed field greens tossed with champagne vinaigrette, paired with 2007 Estate Pinot Gris. Second course, pan-seared pancetta wrapped monkfish with frisse and romesco sauce, paired with 2007 Pinot Noir Rose. Course number three, black pepper seared Ahi tuna served atop warm cannellini bean salad with fresh lime aioli, this dish goes with the 2006 Estate Pinot Noir.
At this half way point we will refresh the palate with a lemon thyme granita intermezzo.
Course number four, Morel mushroom and asparagus tart, loaded with reduced cream, rosemary and gruyere cheese, paired with one of my favorites, the 2005 Flagpole Block Pinot Noir. Our next course, if you’re counting, number five is marinated grilled lamb loin in grape leaf served with harissa mash potatoes and Dijon Block demi-glaze, paired nicely with the 2005 Dijon Block Pinot Noir.
Our sixth and finally course will be the Andaluca famous liquid cake oozing with a smooth chocolate center, vanilla gelato and mint sprig.

What a Party!

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 19:29:04 -0800

Last night at Andaluca we had our first of the year ‘Wine Dinner’. If you were there, you will agree that we had great wine and food, super company and an overall good time. If you did not make this one, have no fear the next one is coming May 29th. This Wine Dinner featured Spanish wines. Joining us to give a captivating description of the wines was a good friend of ours, from Unique Wine Company, Scott Murphy.
I started the evening with our mini crab tower and it was paired with the 2007 Hermanos del Villar Verdejo “Oro de Castilla”. The next course was the black pepper seared scallops with sweet pea puree, a field green salad with shallot vinaigrette, that was paired with the 2006 Cune Monopole. We broke up the action with an intermezzo, a lemon thyme granita. As we returned to our food and wine pairing, the next dish was the un-paella (a mini version of our Andaluca Paella) and that was paired with the 2003 Bodegas Beronia Rioja Reserva. The hit of the night was our next course, the guava mahon paquettes, a paste of grated mahon cheese and guava paste rolled in phyllo dough baked and topped with a Mediterranean salsa. The paquettes were paired with the 2007 Faset Marca Rosado. To round out our savory courses we featured the Andaluca favorite, the Cabrales crusted beef tenderloin (topped with a blue cheese crust and served with a Marsala glaze and grilled pear), this was paired with the 2004 Hornillos Ballesteros Mibal Tempranillo. Knowing that this was quite a filling meal I finished the dinner off with a light olive oil cake, paired with the 2007 Oocha Vino Moscatel. As I said, what a party! I want to thank all the kitchen staff, the servers, Scott and Kamyar Khoshdel (Andaluca’s Restaurant Manager) for all their hard work. Reserve your seat early for the May 15th Wine Dinner. Details to follow. Bon Appetit!

Happy February!

Fri, 6 Feb 2009 08:24:58 -0800

What's Love Got To Do With It?
It’s got everything to do with it. Folks have been returning to Andaluca for years because of the romantic atmosphere. The dedicated culinary team, also here for many years, prides itself on putting the passion and love in each dish that comes to your table. There is no wonder we have been voted 'Most Romantic' restaurant time and time again. Join us for complimentary Champagne the entire month of February as we toast to “You” our guests and to Love!

The Inauguration

Wed, 21 Jan 2009 09:55:58 -0800

As I sat and watched the Inauguration, it heightened for me the sense of family. I had thoughts of my mom, dad, brothers and sister, my grandmother and my aunt, as well as my uncles and cousins.

We would gather together during the holidays in celebration. This remembrance of those times also reminded me of our sitting down to large comfort style meals, like the Lamb “Osso Bucco style” entrée on the Andaluca menu. Through this comforting thought, without leaving my seat in front of the T.V. (watching the Inauguration), I enjoyed all of the happy emotions of our families being together during those holidays.

It is great that celebrations bring back some of our fondest food memories. So go out and celebrate with family and friends over some food that will take you back down memory lane.
Bon Appetit

Get ready: Another round of Dine around Seattle 30 For $30

Thu, 23 Oct 2008 09:34:19 -0700

After a wonderful summer of rolling out pintxos in Andaluca, it is now time to enjoy a Seattle favorite time “Dine around Seattle”. Since returning from Spain, I’ve increased the Andaluca pintxos menu by an unheard of 220 percent. Keeping with the integrity our menu we will feature a select number of pintxos for you to choose from during lunch and dinner along with a soup or salad and dessert. Some of the pintxos we are featuring: chicken chanterelle skewer, pumpkin risotto, crispy duck cake with cucumber riata and apricot chutney, mini crab tower and many more. Lunch is three courses for $15 and during dinner it is three courses for $30. Six years ago we started this great deal in Seattle to help people enjoy dining at some of Seattle’s finest restaurants. During these tough times we are experiencing, this is now a great time to take advantage of this promotion. I am looking forward to seeing you dining around Andaluca. Bon appétit!

Winemaker’s Dinner July 25, 2008

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 14:37:31 -0700

Now the time has come for me to put the trip of a lifetime to work in Andaluca. On Friday, July 25th we will be having our first winemakers dinner since my return from Spain. We have joined up with Pepperidge Winery to have a 5-course dinner with wines to match.
The first course is Seared Scallops with a frissee; heirloom tomatoes, feta cheese and pine nuts salad tossed in sherry shallot vinaigrette and the wine with this course will be Amavi Semillon, Columbia Valley 2007.
The second course is our famous Un-Paella with prawn, diced chicken, chorizo, roasted red pepper and peas all surrounded by saffron infused Arborio rice. Paired with Amavi Semillon, Columbia Valley 2006.
Crispy Duck Cakes is course number 3; tender bits of ground duck seasoned with allspice, cumin, coriander, marjoram, pine nuts and parsley; rolled in bulgur wheat and sautéed until crispy and golden brown. Served with cucumber riata and apricot chutney. The wine that goes well with this dish is the Pepper Bridge Merlot, Columbia Valley 2005.
An Andaluca signature dish rounds out the savory items, our Cabrales Crusted Beef Tenderloin with idiazabal-mashed potatoes, grilled pears and marsala demi glace. The Pepper Bridge Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley 2004 works wonderfully with the blue cheese and the flavor of that tenderloin of beef.
We could not close out dinner without a bit of chocolate. Closing out the dinner and to put that exclamation mark on it we will finish with the Andaluca Liquid Chocolate Cake…mint gelato, butter caramel and bittersweet chocolate sauce. The Amavi Syrah, Walla Walla 2006.
I am so excited to work with Pepper Bridge Winery on this winemaker’s dinner. I would like to invite each of you down to Andaluca and to join us this Friday for a fabulous dinner.