A while ago, I read this blog post and was intrigued. Just what was this event called Clandesdine? According to the website, it's a simple idea: good food, at home. Just maybe not your home. Clandesdine coaxes local cooks into doing a home dinner for a small group of people. It's not a for-profit venture--diners are asked (not required, but come on, don't be cheap) to cover the cost of their meal. It's BYOB, so no pricy alcohol upcharges.
I was intrigued enough to sign up for the mailing list, and when I received an invite for the April dinner, I promptly RSVPd yes. A few days before the event, I got a call from someone with the address.
That's it. That's how it works.
Here's what we saw when we arrived.
I have to admit, between the name and the last-minute phone call, I did feel a bit sneaky. In a good way.
I wondered if it would be communal seating, and my second thought after that was, oh dear, what if DH and I are the oldest by a long shot, and we're the fuddy-duddies in the group? I often feel in peril of slipping into deep fuddy-duddydom. So I was relieved that, like at a restaurant, each reservation had its own table.
How charming, yes? Very bistro. Clandesdine supplied the flowers and water, we brought the wine. No corkage fee here--there's a wine opener in that jar.
The first course was a marinated crab salad with avocado, pickled ginger, tomato, and jalapeno vinaigrette.
Light, refreshing.
Then came the lobster ravioli.
Quite as decadent as it sounds, and there was a goodly amount of lobster in that ravioli.
At this point, I could smell something being fried. Here's the cool thing. It's a set menu--well, if you have dietary restrictions and request ahead of time, they'll work around it. But otherwise, everyone gets the same thing. So when you smell something delicious wafting out of the kitchen, guess what? That delicious thing will soon be set in front of you. Unlike a restaurant where there may be many delicious aromas competing for your attention, here the scent is just--well--foreplay.
The kitchen was hopping. Given that he was cooking for around 25 people, that was no surprise. Especially when this was all the stove power he had access to:
Not exactly a six-burner Viking professional range, but it worked.
And this was a clue towards the wonderful aroma I mentioned:
Big bowl of flour, or some kind of breading mix. Which made sense.
Because the entree was fried chicken and waffle, with gravy and a drizzle of maple syrup. Ooooooooooohhhh was it good. So good. In fact, while I appreciated the fact that the portions were moderately sized and not of the "let's get obese right here tonight" size, I would have gladly, if guiltily, eaten a second plate of this.
I don't have a photo of dessert, because it had gotten fairly dark and I didn't want to use my flash. But I can tantalize you by describing it: flourless chocolate torte with whipped cream, shelled kumquat, and a blood orange glaze. It was intensely rich (if anything, the portion on this was maybe a bit larger than necessary), and the blood orange glaze was a wonderful way to cut through that. I've never had that type of glaze, and found it to be much better than the traditional raspberry.
After dinner, the host went through the details of the cost with us. So: for four courses, the bouquet of flowers on the table, and beer for the kitchen crew (who were not earning anything), the price?
$15 per person.
We might have left extra. In case they wanted more beer.
Totally worth every penny.
