Refined Comfort Food

When Bon Appetit awarded Boulder the Foodiest Town in America this fall, it praised our small city for its farm-to-table mentality and restaurants, like the Kitchen and Salt, which brought refined comfort flavors to local ingredients. And that was before Oak at 14th opened.

The latest addition to the Boulder dining scene, a stylish, understated restaurant, takes familiar dining up a notch more. In the kitchen of Oak at 14th is Steven Redzikowski, a former Frasca sous chef, and at the bar, Bryan Dayton, previously Frasca’s bar manager, mixes drinks. Which is why Oak’s grits are arguably the lightest, fluffiest on the Front Range and why its cocktails (both alcoholic and booze-free) taste precisely of the bright ginger, lemon, and other juices that they are made of.

Oak’s menu covers the gamut of familiar foods, fried pickles to tacos to black-bottom banana crème pie, and it brings those flavors to life with creativity and precision.
Bon Appetit was even more spot on than it knew.

1400 Pearl St., 303-444-3622

--Kazia Jankowski

Kazia Jankowski
Associate Culinary Director

Our Gift Guide for the Foodie

The leftovers from Thanksgiving have all disappeared so now it's time to shift gears to gift giving. Finding the perfect gift can be tricky so to help you this holiday season we've rounded up some of our favorite foodie gifts. A little something for everyone, from the cocktail enthusiast to those interested in a greater good, happy shopping!

1. For those interested in expanding their culinary knowledge: Culinary Artistry talks about plate composition, juggling flavors, insights from highly regarded chefs, and a plethora of flavor combinations that would make any home cook seem like a well educated food person. 2. Pastry lovers will rejoice when they open their doors and find this Rustic Burlap Sack filled with William Werner's (formerly of Quince and Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay) delicate confections, preserves, pastries, and savory breads on their doorstep. For $35 a month you can send a delicious bag of goodies like Apple-Praline Butter, Pear Pate de Fruit, Smoked Almond Brittle, and Oak Bourbon Caramels. 3. Every cook in training needs a good knife and the Wüsthof Classic Chef’s Knife is a great knife for preparing any meal, no matter how simple. The German made knife is great for chopping, dicing and slicing and will be their go-to in the kitchen for years to come. 4. For the true cocktail junky give them the gift of perfect ice. With the Spherical Ice Tray Set you can make sure they have cool drinks from the first sip to the last. 5. For those looking to give a gift that keeps on giving buzz over to Heifer International and order a beehive that will help struggling families earn income through the sale of honey, beeswax and pollen. 6. Need another sweet gift? Check out Savannah Bee Company Tupelo Honey, one taste of this and they'll never touch one of those honey bears again. 7. Spice up their life with the Magnetic Artisan Salt and Spice Rack. A sleek stainless steel rack that comes with five round magnetic tins to seal in flavor while allowing for easy accessibility. It even includes gourmet salts like smoked serrano, vanilla bean, and thai ginger. 8. Give the gift of knife skills they'll be sure to want to show off. The de Buyer Kobra Adjustable Slicer is a user-friendly adjustable slicer from France for uniform and precise slices without taking years of practice in the kitchen.

--Bryce Clark

Bryce Clark
Culinary Assistant

Pie Times

It’s the day before Thanksgiving, and pie is on the mind. Tomorrow a pumpkin or pecan pastry will grace almost every house in the country. But that’s not the only reason we’re thinking of pie.

This month, pie is also at the center of the national culinary conversation. Trendologists, like Andrew Freeman, have declared pie the big thing for 2011, and last week, the New York Times officially stated that the cupcake’s time was up, and pie is in line to be our nation’s next sweet obsession.

Indeed, pie shops have begun to spring up in across the country. The culinary capitols of San Francisco and New York have the largest concentration of stores. In those cities, bakers are turning out classic pies, as well as innovative plays on familiar flavors, like apple green-chile pie with a cheddar crust.

Locally, pies are just beginning to make an appearance. Last Wednesday, chef Frank Bonanno (Mizuna, Luca ‘d Italia) opened Wednesday’s Pie, a once-a-week pie shop in Larimer Square that serves up pumpkin, banana cream, and caramel apple pies. Around the corner from Wednesday’s Pie, Euclid Hall dishes up fried pies. Try the chocolate, cheesecake, or peach preserves. And across town in Highland, the bakery Cake makes the classics: pumpkin, pumpkin praline, apple, pecan, and more.

All these options should offer plenty of choices for Turkey Day and the year to come.

--Kazia Jankowski

Photo courtesy of the New York Times

Kazia Jankowski
Associate Culinary Director

Responsibility

The movement to reduce childhood obesity gained momentum in the last year with Michelle Obama, Jamie Oliver, and Bill Clinton joining forces with the “George Washington of the movement” Alice Waters. And now San Francisco has taken one more step in fighting childhood obesity. Last week they became the first major city in the country to forbid restaurants from offering a free toy with meals that contain more than set levels of calories, sugar and fat (600 calories and less than 35% of the calories coming from fat to be exact). The ordinance will also require restaurants to provide fruits and vegetables with all meals for children that come with toys. Although the ordinance isn’t scheduled to take effect until December 2011, its acceptance has created quite the buzz online and on television, with supporters arguing that it will reduce childhood obesity, and opponents, including the McDonald's spokeswoman, seeing it as “San Francisco wacked out”.

What do YOU think? Do you think government should make laws like this? Do you think this type of effort will help reduce childhood obesity? Comment with your thoughts!

-Bryce Clark

Sources:
Alice Waters Push for Local, Organic Setting National Agenda
San Francisco Bans Happy Meals

photo courtesy www.csmonitor.com

Bryce Clark
Culinary Assistant

Ready, Set, Eat... First Bite Boulder is Almost Here

Get your appetites ready for some serious eating. The fifth annual First Bite Boulder starts Friday, November 12th, and runs through November 20th. More than forty of Boulder’s top restaurants (and even some from Longmont, Lafayette, and Louisville) are offering a special three course $26 prix fixe dinner menu for nine days. See our Culinary Shifts in action with First Bite Boulder menu items like Isabelle Farm Pumpkin Cannelloni at Café Aion or Munson Farm Squash Soup at Arugula Bar e Ristorante for a taste of Community Connected. Or try the Housemade Bread Pudding at The West End Tavern to experience Simple Refuge. The questions is, how many restaurants can you fit into nine short days? Search through the prix fixe menus and make reservations at http://www.firstbiteboulder.com/.

--Bryce Clark

photo courtesy www.firstbiteboulder.com

Bryce Clark
Culinary Assistant