Join us April 30th

We are celebrating spring in our own Gnaw sort of way.

Hop to It! is the theme – it will feature rabbit, frogs legs and fresh spring peas and more!

RSVP right away to get a place at the table.

gnaw.pdx@gmail.com

Sticks and Stones is an alternative name for this dinner, since those were the only utensils on the table. The stones were for cracking the crab and the sticks were for dipping into the chocolate fondu. This was an entirely tactile eating experience. We really embraced the term “finger-licking-good,” but kept things refined with finger bowls and a thyme infused jello shot palate cleanser. It was a lot of fun.

Not only did we all dress like Julia but also included a hammed up crepe suzzett cooking demonstration. Julia’s favorite cocktail, the Upside-down Martini, featured gin and Oregon’s Imbue vermouth in 1:5 proportions. The tasty Imbue made this drink a new favorite. A classic sole with chanterelles and white wine sauce was served elegantly following a gin, lemon and veal granitta palette cleanser. Butter sculptures adorned the table with vases of food.

Gnaw does private parties too! For Kristan’s birthday we catered a Gnaw style dinner for 22 with the spendor of autumn’s harvest. The Tomato Essence Martini was bright, piquant and clear. The cherry chutney set off the delicata squash and braised pork delightfully. The white velvet birthday cake with carmel-pear butter cream was adorned with burnt-orange ice cream.

Set in the roaring twenties and capturing the vibrant spirit of Chicago’s Italian-American cuisine from that era. Our house negroni used Oregon’s own Imbue Vermouth (batch #1). The hand-made pappardelle with lovely three meat or wild mushroom sugo was succulent while our hand-formed canoli was sweet and rich with Gnaw’s signature ricotta. We loved that everyone dressed to the nines!

With a fun summery cocktail and super tasty ”foie due” we started off a garden party. A canopy in the middle of the yard with lights set the space apart from the garden teeming with vegetables. The veal kabobs and chewy farro, confit of duck, pickled cherries and chocolate cake with house-made vanilla ice cream were all cited as guest’s favorites.

This was a nice early summer evening of sangria, sweetbreads and cheese stuffed peppers while the paella cooked on an open fire, followed by shared plates-tapas style. The paella was  rich with smokey paparika, seafood and chicken, our fresh garden peas and roasted peppers. The huge traditional pans gave the rice a crunchy tooth and the chewy rice pieces were much sought after.

What a fun theme for this one! We were able to cover the innuendo aspect with oysters and champagne for the appetizers. The pasta course touched on the pollinators with raviolis made with flower petals  in the pasta dough and filled with bee pollen infused goat cheese. The entree featured quail and duck as love birds on a nest of spaghetti squash. Desert competed the meal with a twelve layered Russian honey cake served with homemade ice cream and a drizzle of flower infused honey. Wow!

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On the Streets of Asia

The flavors of spring were welcomed with the theme “Of Leaf and Lamb.” Many thanks to Sudan Farm for the lamb and to all of those who joined us and to John Grimme for some of the pictures. Among the favorite dishes were the DIY churned butter, fresh pea soup, and of course the lamb delicately prepared in three different ways – as sausage,  rolled and braised, and roasted.