Lucky

When you are able and willing to work with individuals who are driven to produce perfection your own standards and results can improve dramatically.  Every day I am surrounded by marks of greatness; from Diane’s butter to Steve’s roes and guests staying with us to individuals who visit us visually through our website and push us towards excellence. I thrive off this interaction between individuals and ingredients.  Yesterday we were presented with an incredible challenge.  Steve, of blis caviar, has researched and developed a wild char roe.  The hoops he has jumped through to bring this ingredient to market are amazing, and we as chefs get to benefit.  The roe cured with just fleur de sel is nutty and rich, crisp, herbal and buttery.  He has also cured a small portion of the roe with smoked salt.  Over the past several years Steve has worked on applying the smoke with a deft hand so as not to lose the natural characteristics of the roe.  This morning, when we had the pleasure of sampling these two renditions of wild char roe, I experienced something different.  The char roe, larger than brook trout and smaller than salmon roe, golden in color and explosive in texture is better than any of the other roe’s Steve cures.  Think about the fact that Steve has stretched himself thin to raise the bar of perfect.  Now we are faced with the results.