Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Spur's Tagliatelle Make Seattle Weekly 100 Favorite Dishes List

Hanna Raskin wrote, "The dishes at Spur Gastropub change so frequently that it's almost impossible to catch and commit them to a permanent list. Since this collection of favorite dishes is meant to have a longer shelf life than a loaf of bread, there's no use spending a slot on, say, the salad of smoked baby artichoke hearts bathed in smoked yogurt or the lamb merguez on Spur's current menu (Although if you're in Belltown, you ought to order them both.)

But chefs Brian McCracken and Dana Tough have kept their terrifically popular tagliatelle on the menu since Spur's 2008 opening, and the dish seems likely to stick around, making it the perfect list stand-in for all the fleeting veal sweetbreads and spot prawn preparations.

The tagliatelle is a mission statement at Spur, which has never shied away from molecular gastronomy and other trends that reliably turn off diners who think any entree with a double-digit price tag should come with a steak knife. Like all the best modern dishes, the dish can't be eaten with the eyes: Only the palate can parse all the flavors dripped and dropped on the willfully abstracted plate.

The fresh pasta is topped with a trembling duck egg, primed to spill a yolk that's spent 45 minutes luxuriating in a 145-degree bath. But the egg's partially obscured by a cloud of foam flavored by Parmesan rinds, and there's a toboggan run of Parmesan leaving against the noodles, which are threaded with oyster mushrooms. It's a hot mess of umami.

And while the dish has become a fixture, it's clearly the product of a kitchen that prefers change. The tagliatelle and the sous vide egg beautifully demonstrate two very different things that can be done with an egg, a neat trick for a restaurant that's obsessed with possibility."

Photo by Raskin.



Thursday, June 14, 2012

The Shared Kitchen- A Trend Reported on in Food and Wine Magazine July 2012 Issue

Thank you to Food & Wine magazine for including us in your Trendspotting section in the July issue, which read:

THE SHARED KITCHEN

At these innovative restaurants, the all-powerful chef has been replaced by more collaborative duos...


SPUR, SEATTLE“We force ourselves to argue to develop better ideas,” says Brian McCracken, describing how he and Dana Tough perfect dishes like veal sweetbreads with stinging-nettle puree, smoked beets and lemon balm.
www.spurseattle.com

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

A Five Course Dinner at Spur with Pike Brewing Company

We're throwing a dinner party at Spur on Wednesday, June 20th with Pike Brewing Company.  Five courses, ten dishes by Chefs McCracken and Tough and five Pike Brewing Company beers. Bartenders from Spur, Tavern Law and The Coterie Room will also craft unique beer cocktails with each course. 
MENU
 
first
- Naughty Nellie -

Tuna Crudo (with pickled green peaches, fresh peach, verjus snow and olive oil pudding)
vand
Foie Gras Torchon (with fresh donut peaches, malt espuma, black walnut praline
served with warm baguette)

second
- Monk’s Uncle Tripel Ale -

Bill and Steff’s Tomatoes Hot and Cold

(Cold) Beef Steak Tomatoes (with argan oil, sheep’s milk yogurt sorbet, arugula and crispy brioche)
and
(Hot) Beef Steak Tartine (with sharp cheddar fondue and sautéed arugula)

third
- Kilt Lifter -

Beer Brined Black Cod (with soubise sauce, sautéed escarole and morel mushrooms)
and
Cod Brandade (with confit sweet onion, ratatouille and Yukon gold potato chips)

fourth
- Pike IPA -

Seared Pork Belly (with corn, green strawberries and summer savory)
and
Smoked Pork Cheeks (with corn bread sauce and chow chow)

fifth
- Post Alley Porter -

Strawberry Custard (with chamomile sorbet and oat streusel)
and
Chocolate Pudding Cake (with porter ice cream, bing cherries and tarragon caramel)


Seating limited. Reservations by phoning 206/728.6706. $85 per person (tax, gratuity and transportation by *Uber additional.)  Dinner begins at 7pm. 


* Uber is an innovative way to request a black car with the tap of an app. Uber is excited to partner with Chefs McCracken and Tough for their Pike Brewing Dinner at Spur to help get attendees to the event in style and home safely. They will be offering a fantastic special for those who will be joining us that night: a free ride for first-time Uber users and 50% off for repeat excluding tax and gratuity.