Alternative Dining

Nomad Dinners
A married couple, who met at culinary school in New York and have world-wide cooking and dining experience, high end to casual, started talking about having dinners in their own home in 2004. It wasn't the right place and they waited. Using contacts they made in their various Seattle restaurant jobs, they finally held their first underground or private party—a white truffle dinner in December, 2011. Their subsequent monthly dinners have clever titles: "Purim Feast" (Middle Eastern cuisine), "Sakura Fest" (named for the Japanese Cherry Blossom festival), "May Day-S.O.S." (highlighting Smoked Or Salted foods on May 1st), "Bourbon St. Bash" (Louisiana food and music). Each dinner's well-designed invitation, decorations, entertainment and playlist reinforces the theme. Guest numbers have ranged from 4 to 27. (Photo by Alissa Hudson: salt cod, piquillo pepper, frekeh.)

Details:

• Dinners are by invitation only.
• Basically, this is a supper club where contributions from one dinner pay for the ingredients of the next dinner.
• Members contribute varying amounts depending on the theme.

A DJ and a Cook
Two friends started this after their travels. They wanted to do a photo gallery about their trips and cook for friends. The DJ moved to LA, but the Cook wanted to keep it going. He uses a location for a night—art space, loft, restaurant, something with a kitchen—and makes 6-15 courses with wine, cocktail, or beer pairings. The evenings include entertainment. They disappear for 3-4 weeks, then pop up somewhere new. "We keep this exclusive," says the Cook. "People like to be a part of something." The team includes between 6 and 9 cooks. To be on the team, an individual has to work in the community. Some teach kids to cook or hold general cooking classes, some work with the elderly. Themes have included Spanish, a cocktail party, North African, French contemporary, and a full-on charcuterie dinner. The Cook has been in the restaurant industry for 23 years and has taught cooking classes for kids for over 10 years. He likes to surprise people as much as possible, so even the team doesn't know the theme until the week before. Sometimes dinners are a solo chef, sometimes two chefs, and sometimes a super star showdown with five chefs. Culinary school students and kids from cooking classes often assist in the kitchen.

Details:

• Prices change based on the theme and cost of food and beverage, generally between $50-150.
• Dinners are by invitation only. The RSVP goes out with date, time, cost, and attire. The address is sent out one week before the dinner.
• This is an underground club that is meant to be a way for people to have a good time, meet new people, have interesting conversations, and a great meal.

The Barbecue Bar
Capitol Hill may seem overrun with good bars, but not until recently have any of them offered great barbeque. One of the newer establishments, Montana, owned by Rachel Marshall of Rachel's Ginger Beer and Kate Opatz of Matt's in the Market, now doubles as a Barbecue joint on Sunday nights. Since opening their wild west inspired bar in December of 2011, Montana has quickly become a local favorite for their unique carbonated cocktails (always on tap), picklebacks (a shot of whiskey with a pickle juice chaser) and a low-key, welcoming atmosphere. The only thing missing was food. With pop-up dining spreading throughout the city, the duo realized the grilling potential of the bar's small patio. During the week, diners can have sandwiches delivered from Dinette, another local favorite. But on Sundays, Montana finally gets to show off some cooking skills. Local chefs pop in to serve some authentic barbecue, including Malaysian grilled fish, Korean pork with kimchi, and American favorites like baby back ribs, chicken wings, and jalapeno corn muffins. The food sells out quickly, so be sure to arrive early.

Details:

• Starts Sundays at 5 p.m. and lasts until the food is sold out.
• Prices are generally kept under $10 per person.
• Location: 1506 E Olive Way on Capitol Hill in Seattle.
• Guest chefs are posted on their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pages/Montana/159287814159572

Farm Cooking With Yogis
For those who like the idea of a supper club but aren't on a coveted invite list, the ambiance of Sutra offers a similar friendly, intimate atmosphere. Chef/Yogi Colin Patterson and his wife, Amber Tande, own and operate Sutra, as well as the Sutra Yoga and Wellness Studio, in Wallingford. Serving starts at the same time for all guests, so be sure to show up on time as there is only one seating on Wednesday & Thursday at 7:00 p.m., and Sunday at 6:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday offer two seatings, at 6:30 p.m. and again at 9:00 p.m. This eco-friendly, mostly organic restaurant serves pre-set 4 course dinners of purely vegetarian cuisine, with menu changes every two weeks, according to seasonal products and availability.

For fans of yoga and farm to table dining, Colin and Amber's newest operation is the Sutra Farm and Bhakti Barn in Sultan, which offers occasional 6-course farm to table dinners with wine and/or non-alcohol pairings during the summer, as well as some cooking and yoga classes. Recently on the Fall Equinox, they held a canning/preserving class complete with take-home goodies and a Harvest Dinner with cider and wine.

Details:

• Vegan diets can be easily accommodated.
• For more information on events, visit sutrayogaseattle.com/node/37

The Lone Cicerone
For a long time, chef Rich Coffey was the only Cicerone (the beer equivalent of a sommelier) in Washington state. Although he has worked as a chef for over twenty years, most recently as Executive Chef of Madison Park Cafe, it's only recently that he's merged his love of cooking and beer into a creation entirely his own. His restaurant, affectionately named Estaminet after the small cafes and bars of France and Belgium, offers pop-up dining centered around the perfect partnering of beer and food. But before popping up anywhere he first teams up with one of his favorite local breweries, such as Schooner Exact and Lantern, to plan what beers will be present. Together they plan a four course tasting menu that pairs a different beer with each item. Rare beers that are unavailable at other restaurants will certainly be on hand to delight beer lovers, though you don't have to be into beer culture to enjoy Estaminet. The food promises to stand out on its own and can easily be paired with other beverages.

Details:

• You'll find Rich's updated schedule at www.facebook.com/EstaminetSeattle
• Price for a 4-course dinner will range from $45-55.
• Chef Rich is also available for catering and consulting.

Irbille Edibles
Born and raised in the Philippines, Irbille came to the States permanently around middle school, and attended culinary school at Seattle Central. He's been in the culinary industry since 2006. His grandmother passed on her love of Filipino food and family to him and friends pushed him to start Irwin Edibles Catering. Although his dinners are pop-ups, they are not underground by any means. Dinners are held once a month at Olivar on Capitol Hill, where Irbille worked with Chef/Owner Philippe Thomelin for two years. The idea is to "share our love and passion for my homeland's cuisine while thinking outside the box, but paying respect to the heritage and tradition." He uses Spanish techniques to elevate the food and stay away from steam table food often seen in Filipino restaurants. "We are proud of our traditions, but need to raise the level of cooking for a modern restaurant style." The end product is Filipino with a twist of sophistication through modern Spanish and American techniques.

Details:

• Dinners are held the last Monday of each month from 5-10 p.m. (final 2012 dinners are October 29 and November 26). They are taking the month of December to reflect and plan their next steps, so getting to these two dinners would be a good plan.
• Location: Olivar, 806 E Roy St on Capitol Hill across the street from the Harvard Exit theatre.
• Cost: $8-17 for shared-style plates for two. Cash or credit cards accepted.
• Reservations can be made through Olivar, 206-322-0409, but are not necessary.
• Email: irbilleedibleseattle@gmail.com.
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/IrbilleEdibles

Velvet Underground Dining Experience
It's an experiment started by Jon Staenberg of Hand of Gods Wines who is just releasing his first wine, made in Argentina. The idea is to have local chefs come to a space with an open kitchen and for one night do something they can't do in a busy restaurant setting. This also gives Jon a way to introduce his wine to the locals. Those who sign up for the dinners (about 40 people can come) get to talk with chefs and producers and Jon. Again, for legal reasons, these are private events and you must register before being notified of events.

Details:

• Location: 308 9th Ave N, Seattle, WA 98109.
• Sign up at www.thevude.com.
• No regular schedule.

The One Night Only Project
Two friends decided to use their contacts in the culinary industry to design casual dinner parties with "great people, music, energy and, of course, food." They ask chefs to create special menus that are unique in some way (maybe the chef is retired, or maybe a French chef does a Mexican dinner—who knows?) and available for one night only. Each chef is matched up with a winemaker, brewmaster or mixologist. Each event is held at a different location that matches the chef's theme. Most dinners have no more than 40 guests. (Photo: Mark Fuller of Ma'ono and Tyler Palagi doing an ONO dinner at VUDE.)

Details:

• Go to www.onoproject.com for more information and to sign up for their newsletter.
• Dinners cost between $100-300 depending on several factors.
• Tickets are on Brown Paper Tickets and prices are listed. When you purchase a ticket, you don't actually get a ticket. Your name goes on the list and you are checked off at the door.

October 2012