Portland: 1001

Well, I had dinner the other night at 1001 and all I can say is FAAAABULOUS. Wait . . . that was too gay . . . dinner was wonderful? Fantastic? Excellent? No, it really was fabulous! The best meal I’ve had in Portland, or anywhere, for some time. From the amuse all the way through to the dessert the food and service were perfect and I was ready to go back as soon as we left the restaurant. More than anything, I was surprised. I had eaten a couple of times at 1001 last year and found the room beautiful and the staff pleasant, but the food was fussy and trying way too hard to be “cutting edge” [maybe?]. So I was interested to see how things had evolved since the arrival of a new chef and an overhaul of the menu . . . to say that Chef Jack has hit a homerun is an understatement . . . now, everything works and this is suddenly in the top tier of my Portland restaurants. And now, on to the food.

After ordering, which took some time because everything on the menu was tempting, an amuse arrived and it was the perfect foreshadow of things to come in one small dish: savory, balanced and surprising with just a touch of whimsy for good measure. Horseradish panna cota, with a topping of steak tartare, served in a shot glass started the meal on a high note and things only got better. Who would have thought of that combination?

Next came a salad with duck prosciutto, dark and rich and an effective foil to the greens on the plate. The star of this course, however, was a foie gras torchon. Its unctuous texture set off perfectly by a blood orange moutard and pistachio puree. This is another one of those dishes that made me want to lick the plate and then ask for more, but as always I resisted for fear of not being invited back. We then had a potion of seared ahi served with a piquant celery and apple relish that was excellent. All of these dishes proved what we had suspected after the amuse, that the chef is adept at putting surprising combinations on the plate that set each other off in texture, flavor and color, taking full advantage of each.

For my entrée I selected the bacon wrapped quail [well, I would select bacon wrapped anything, no surprise here] served with a mushroom stuffing and a ragout of small beans. I know I am repeating myself, but this too was amazing. The usual problem with the quail that I have encountered is that they tend to get overcooked; not the case here where these little flyers were moist and tender with crisp skin. I had to protect my plate from the marauding forks of my dining companions it was so good.

And just when I thought I could eat no more the dessert menu arrived and we agreed to take a look. Well its hard to resist when the choices were so enticing and so we waded in for more. The star of the table at dessert was a wonderful peanut butter crème brulee . . . . I know, hold on . . . which revealed a layer of berry jam underneath. And, to make things even better, a small glass of chocolate milk came along on the plate. PBJ with chocolate milk, a kid’s delight all dressed up for adults and just as appealing. With some bubbles it was the perfect ending to a really FABAAAABULOUS meal.

EatHereOrNot: EAT HERE!!!

http://www.ten-01.com/