hot, muggy, humid,... frieken' hot downtown Little Rock in August. We did an executive lunch today for the execs who are the financial backbone of one Arkansas Hotel. We're doing these lunches every Thurs. and they are a good way to play around with the potential dishes of Ashley's ( the upper scale restaurant of the Hotel). This was my third one and CDabney has been doing these for six months and is the one who knows their eating carictatures. Its our only real time to cook a dining experience. Its basically catering for eight once a week. We're trying to show them that using local, Arkansas products can be guality and refined,..kickass southern food. Also using an Old School Southern mentality and reconcepting these staple dishes into something new and exciting. So actually by the time it gets to them they may not realize that their grandmother was doing the same thing, just different methods and presentation. These are exectuive, non-foodie, suits, with the funds to back our kitchen projects, they needed to be lovin' it. So on todays menu we started with cheese-straws and wedged Arkansas Heirloom tomatoes. A nice and simple start to the meal. The entrees was seared, airline chicken breast with a warm potato and bitter green salad. The final dish,..dessert was a cornmeal pound cake with peach caramel and lemon creme fraiche. Keep in mind all of this is made from scratch from our little office kitchen, where other (non culinarians) come in for morning coffee or something out of our little fridges. Then we ice chest it all up and walk a few blocks over the corporate building and serve it up,(no cooking allowed here because they don't like the smell of food??) ALright one day in the life of a hotel opening,...
