Peterson's Loses Allford

The latest word is that star pastry chef Joseph Allford is leaving the post-Karl Benko Peterson's. No word on where Allford, responsible for everything from the northside steakhouse's artful desserts to the tiny post-dinner chocolates, will land for his next restaurant gig.

Three Latest and Best

Duck Ham from Peterson's: For a place that used to be known mainly for steaks, Peterson's is a restaurant with range. From an amuse bouche of lobster and duck ham (housemade, of course) to the handmade chocolates that appear after dessert, everything at a recent dinner was delicious. Signature aged rib-eyes, tender veal, perfectly cooked scallops, and seared yellowtail rounded out the evening. (And don't think I didn't have an eye on someone's foie gras tart.) Even the seafood dishes are created with the diner in mind -- a perfectly nutty, pinot noir risotto gave mine depth with the slate of cabernets we were drinking. Excellent service, attention to detail, and a richness round out the Peterson's and making it one of the finest restaurants in our city.

IndyPubCrawl: So, not a meal, but Saturday, about 65 people made it for the 11:30 a.m. rock star start of the Winter Indy Pub Crawl. Pub crawlers braved freezing temperatures to make roughly 15 downtown stops -- with 45 minutes to an hour at each one. I gave it my best effort but dropped off mid-afternoon. Either way, it's a great chance to catch up with old friends, make some new ones, and check out lots of places one wouldn't normally go (like the OTB stop after Weber Grill. Hmmmm.) Thanks for organizing it, guys! Great work! I can hardly wait until the summer crawl.

Saraga Market on Sunday Night: Bustling with customers, Saraga International Market is a treat every time. Sunday evening the Mexican bakery was serving up fresh buns. The tortillas in their white paper wrappers smelled like the freshest masa, and even the halal killed lamb looked fresh from that day. The produce section expands every time I'm there. This time of year when curries and sauces taste so good, authentic rice and native ingredients (like Thai coconut milk instead of the Americanized grocery store brands) make a huge difference.

Two Minute Warning: Darn it, just when I go and tout a dish I love, they screw it up. Went back to lunch at McCormick and Schmick's for the Mahi cakes with cucumber and peanut sauce. They were only so-so -- overcooked and dryer than salmon cakes made with canned fish. My friend's salmon "stew' was a salty, gummy mess. Boo!

Karl Benko Leaving Peterson's

For a town this small, I was surprised the rumors didn't start earlier. Yes, it's true, Chef Karl Benko is leaving Peterson's to spend a year teaching, consulting, and learning. He announced it to his staff on Friday before service. He'll tentatively leave on March 1 after which he'll serve as a consultant to the restaurant.

What's next for Chef Benko? Karl is already an active consultant, teacher, and presenter for culinary groups like Star Chefs and Food University working with well-known chefs and food personalities around the country. This year, he'll be involved full time with Food University, hitting the road for a 15-city tour this spring as well as expanding his national consulting business. He's even planning a stage or two with some well-known chefs in Chicago and NYC. He and his wife, Carrie, plan to stay in Indianapolis and hope to remain here long term.

Karl and Carrie are dear friends and the best of people. From the US Culinary Olympics team to seminars at Food University, Karl has a long history of generously sharing his knowledge and love food and wine. I can hardly wait to hear about his new adventures. (Maybe there's a guest blogger spot in his future.)

Ch-ch-ch-changes: The Glass Chimney will serve its last steak Diane at the end of April. Chef Dieter Puska is retiring and the old school Carmel eatery will close April 26. He's also closing Deeters next door. Deeters and Gabes, Puska's restaurant at 86th and Ditch, closed 5 years ago. (Oakleys Bistro is in the space.) More from the IBJ.

Quitting the Night Job: Susan Brewer, bar manager extraordinaire at the downtown Ruth's Chris, celebrated her last day (night) with the restaurant last week. In her day job, Susan is an accomplished local artist with a studio at the Stutz Building and will be pursuing her art full time. (Good for her!) She will be missed.

Closed for Remodeling: Reports are trickling in from Zionsville that changes are in the works at Brix. They're currently closed for remodeling and a format change while ownership changes within the family. (Their website touts a new seafood raw bar.) They're targeting February for an opening date.

Late Lunch: Z's Oyster Bar is still in "soft launch" phase but we're hearing they have some marketing plans in the works for the Spring. In the meantime, they'll be opening for lunch later this week which could be a good way to try them in the daylight.

Three Latest and Best

Supper Club Prime Rib: I've been craving prime rib all fall and I finally conspired to satisfy my taste for rich, fatty meat by scheduling it for our supper club. Chef Karl Benko of Peterson's (a valued member of our group) arrived with the lovingly aged star of the show -- crusty and wonderful wet aged, then dry aged for three weeks. My piece was so beautifully melted together I couldn't tell where the meat stopped and the fat began. Oh, so good! Add truffle butter, horseradish, rich and cheesy potatoes, creamed spinach, salad, cornbread, and incredible chocolate Bourbon pecan pie and we had one fantastic holiday dinner! We drank lots and lots of great wine including one of my new favorites, a champagne that requires a bit more research before I list it. (Harder to find than I thought. Nolan may be along shortly to give us more information.)

Toast and Nutella from Petit Chou: Petit Chou in Broad Ripple is now officially on my avoid-on-Sunday-morning list because of the wait. We should have known better arriving at peak brunch time, but after a 45 minute gab session with the girls *before* we got a table, my grumpiness dissipated thanks to the oh-so-simple brioche toast slathered in melty Nutella. And with their melon-free fruit salad, it was enough to get me back. Grrrrr. (With new space open at Cafe Patachou at 49th and Penn, it may be time for me to return to my old haunts!)

Chocolate Truffles for Breakfast: With all this discussion of chocolate, I had to admit that I'm up to my elbows in it this morning! Literally! The holidays are upon us and that means it's time for truffles. They are possibly the easiest holiday treat to make (the hardest and messiest part being rolling them out!) and I coat mine in tasty things in coatings like chipotle powder, sugar, cocoa, and freshly ground spices like cardamom, cinnamon, and allspice. Here's the tried and true recipe I use.

What I Learned in this Month's Dine Magazine

Absinthe is really legal? Apparently so, since testing shows that most commercial brands of absinthe carry legal quantities of the banned chemical (thujone) found in wormwood. Fans will tell you hand crafted absinthe, even by a trusted and experienced herbalist, can still be dangerous. But if you've been wanting to try a trusted brand, it should be easier to find. Who knew?

Blank of the Month Clubs: I've always loved the idea of ___ of the Month clubs. They're gifts that keep on giving year round. And today, they're moving past wine, chocolate, and flowers into the realms of coffee, olives, loose-leaf tea, and even cheese-and-wine (from our local Frasiers). Also, there's a nice mention of Artisanal in NYC, the cheese shop that's come up in many conversations in the past few weeks. I've heard more than a few foodies swear by them for mail ordering of hard to find and region specific cheeses. (On their website, you can search for and sort cheeses by milk type, country, and wine pairing.)

Best of Indy -- Pies: With pies, I didn't post a long analysis after judging like I usually do. Frankly, we had such a fun panel and we were all so sugar-fueled, all I remember of that day was just manic tasting, laughing, talking, and making some notes. I suspect all of my comments were gibberish after 34 pies. (I calculated later that I ate the equivalent of an entire pie *myself*. And was still hungry 2 hours later.) But really, how can an afternoon with judges like Krissy Tallent, uber-foodie Bob Whitt, and Pierre Giacometti not be a blast? We taste blind with a "reveal" at the end after we've turned in all our scores and we were pleasantly surprised that Peterson's pastry chef Joseph Allford blew us away with his two wining pies. (He didn't blow us away with his third entry -- a strange blueberry and banana concoction, but that's the life of a pie maker, I suppose.) Along the way, as usual, I learned a ton about baking, assembly processes, the qualities of lard and butter crusts, good fruit, bad fruit, and what works in the realm of fillings. The vast majority of the pies we had were just much too sweet (like chocolate crust, chocolate filling, and chocolate candy). One judge found a pastry tip in her piece of pie (oops!). And I also learned that pastry chefs who work with dairy toppings must have a pristine refrigerator. Toppings pick up all kinds of tastes and odors not great for your pie. All in all, it was a great day, and I may be making a trek up to Mama Bear's for that terrific berry pie this fall. That was one I could have eaten all on my own -- with no prompting.

Great Minds Think Alike! After my own visit there a week or two ago, it was such a treat to see the write up on Sandra Rice and Noodle, the fresh, new Vietnamese restaurant on Pendleton Pike. Sang Nguyen came out and chatted with us the day we were there making spot on menu recommendations. It's nice to see their interesting story and philosophy on food in print.

Three Latest and Best

Sakura, Still Going after All These Years: Had a fantastic meal at Sakura recently discovering much of their non-sushi menu. While I didn't try my favorite donbury, I did enjoy the udon with perfectly firm -- not soggy -- noodles, mushrooms, green onion, and crispy tempura on top. They are celebrating their 20th Anniversary and advertising a special gift for customers who come in next week!

Peterson's: Yes, I love this place. Goat cheese bruschetta. Watermelon chipotle "soup" amuse boche. Mushroom of the day (in this case, portobello topped with artichoke hearts and baked). Beef short ribs falling off the bone. Blue cheese au gratin potatoes. Little chocolates that come with the bill. That is all.

Nicole's Ice Cream: Nicole Anderson of H2O Sushi is selling her fantastic ice creams, sorbets, and baked treats (which happen to be gluten free) at the Broad Ripple Farmer's Market. Look for their signature oatmeal cookies (huge! $2) and ice cream in her amazing flavors (pints and quarts, $4.50/pint) through the end of October. Hopefully they have plans to sustain us through the winter. Today, they had hibiscus and pistachio ice cream and a plum sake sorbet that sounded so good! I settled on a pint of cucumber tarragon ice cream.

Three Latest and Best

Smelt at The Oceanaire! Now there's some upper midwestern food I can get behind. It may not be on the menu, but Chef Ryan Nelson has a fantastic supply of fresh smelt in at The Oceanaire. We munched on the yummy little fried fish from head to tail. If they're not on the menu, ask.

Portabello Mushroom Fries: Love fried mushrooms? Wait until you have these perfectly crispy portabello mushroom slices, breaded in panko, ginger, rosemary and more then fried to crunchy perfection. Top it all off with a thick horseradish sauce and you have the perfect combo. All at Peterson's.

Pretzel Rolls and Fried Biscuits: My first fried biscuits of the summer! Had lunch at Chancellor's (at the University Place Hotel) the other day. The best treat? The pretzel bread and fried biscuits on the table -- complete with thick apple butter. They'll only give you one of each so ask for more!

Two Minute Warning: OK, more like a smaller, one minute warning, but a warning none-the-less. Chancellor's is an oasis of civility on a bustling campus and perfect for a business lunch, but a few issues will keep them off the "top notch" list for me -- for now. After being blown away by the wonderful light sweetness and incredible texture of the tomato watermelon gazpacho at a tasting downtown, I tried it, knowing it was a signature dish. Sadly, it was a thick, deep red concoction with tomato seeds and almost none of the fabulous watermelon flavor I remembered. Sandwiches and salads are big -- but expect a liberal interpretation. My "Cuban" was merely pork, cheese, and a few dill pickle slices on overtoasted French bread. (Delicious but impossible to eat without crumbling it everywhere. Not great in a business suit.) Our other issue was a ... well, a fragrant one. The expediter who brought our food had the most pungent BO I've ever smelled on a server. It was thick (clothing and person) and lingered long after he'd brought our food. I was pretty surprised that a manager hadn't sent him home to clean up and change! Once the air cleared, we were able to continue our meal, but everyone at the table commented on the extra aroma -- and not from our food! Don't forget to have them validate your parking.

Bits and Pieces

A Twisted Dinner! Just what we've been waiting for -- a particularly twisted reason for a feast at L'Explorateur. Neal, Lindy, and Crossroad Vintners are welcoming the famous (or infamous) Boy Braynerd, winemaker for Twisted Oak in Calaveras, California, for a Twisted Oak wine dinner, Tuesday, August 21, at 6:30 p.m. With the big wines and flavors -- and the rowdy and fun tone these wine lovers set -- this will be a can't miss event. These guys *love* wine and it shows. I may have to wear my "Wine Rack" tank top. Call L'Ex for reservations.

Bar Menu at Tallent: Christine (over at My Plate or Yours) has a beautiful preview of the new bar menu at Restaurant Tallent in Bloomington. If you haven't eaten Dave's incredible food, you're missing out on some of the best in the state. And a bar menu is a perfect way to enjoy a light dinner with a glass of wine while making reservations for a Big Night Out!

More Bloomington News: Also, from our fair city to the south, Bloomington Eat Local night is this Friday, August 17. Eleven local restaurants including Trulli, Nick's, Upland Brewery, tutto bene, and Restaurant Tallent, will have special menus featuring locally grown foods. Ask your favorite restaurant if they're participating and order local!

Bar Menu at Peterson's: More details to come, but we hear Peterson's has a new happy hour bar menu with specials starting this month, too. Haven't heard about dishes and prices but I'll update you when I get the info. (Bar menus and happy hour pricing are a great way to sample the food at some of these fine dining restaurants before committing to a full meal. With all this hot weather, they're also a great way to eat more lightly!)

Bartenders at Ruth's: We'd heard a nasty rumor of some turnover at the downtown Ruth's Chris bar (which would be a real shame because they have some of the best bartenders in town.) Turns out nasty rumors are all they are. Bar goddess Susan Brewer confirms that our favorites Matt and Theresa are still firmly employed while martini master Mode has been away helping open the new restaurant up north. He'll be returning shortly!

Pizza King Arriveth: Yes, it's true (or as one fan said as his eyes rolled back in his head in anticipation, "There *is* a God.") Pizza King has opened a location in Broad Ripple. For fans of classic thin crust pizza, it's a welcome addition to the local pie market. Look for it on Broad Ripple Avenue in the old Tin Star location! (There are locations in Geist and Zionsville as well.)

Tuesday Tidbits

Lots of little things floating around in the food world these days -- new restaurants, chefs, books, news and more.

Another New Chef in Town! Congratulations to Carrie and Chef Karl Benko from Peterson's on their new baby boy -- Alexander Joseph weighing in a 7 lbs and 14 ounces. Welcome to the wide world! (There's a dry aging/wet aging joke in here somewhere, but I'm not sure where it is.)

Mad Cow in Northern Indiana? Four cases of death recently in Ft. Wayne were ruled regular Creutzfeld Jacob Disease, not the more rare new variant Creutzfeld Jacob Disease (nvCJD) reports the Indy Star. nvCJD is the a rare human form of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy or mad cow disease. Regular CJD is not directly related to nvCJD, an unusual variant caused by prions ingested from infected cattle.

Zoobilation on Friday: Shut out? Me, too! Zoobilation, Indy's most successful annual fundraiser, sold out in record time this year. Currently there are tickets on eBay -- from $700 for two full VIP and event tickets (including parking) to $325 for an individual ticket. (There is one pair up for $305 for both but don't expect it to last long. At that price, that's less than face value.)

Nuvo's Best of Indy: It's that time of year again. Time for those all-knowing readers of Nuvo to vote Red Lobster "Best Seafood Restaurant". You can help turn the tide. Vote for your favorite restaurants at their website. Annoying registration required. (Or you can rip the page from this week's issue and spend your own postage to send it in.) All votes due by June 12.

Three Latest and Best

Tater Tots at King David Dogs: Hot, fresh, and right out of the fryer, these tater tots are the best pieces of crispy, deep fried potato I've had in a long time. (And trust me, I know from my crispy, deep fried potato.) Nothing could have tasted better on a recent rainy day downtown. Well, unless you count the chili dog with everything which was pretty darn good, too. (Next time, I want to try the State Fair dog -- the king of corn dogs!)

Dinner at Peterson's: Holy Waygu, Batman! Chef Karl Benko outdid himself once again with everything from the portabello "fries" to the chipotle house-cured salmon to the pork tenderloin with Capriole goat cheese sauce. Oooh, the corn leek risotto. Ahhh, the freshest crab cakes with perfect fritters. Ohhhh, the housemade limoncello. By the time we got to dessert, my eyes were glazed over -- chocolate semifreddo with cocoa nibs, candied pistacios, pistachio ice cream, and brandied apricots. I was oh, so full, but not too full to make room for samples of the hot-from-the-oven KOBE BEEF BRISKET!! Holy beef cheeks, it was good.

Chicken Salad Love Affair: I love chicken salad, but I don't eat it very often because I can almost never find a really great chicken salad to love. It's too dry, or too flavorless, or the chicken is over cooked. But if you're looking for chicken salad nirvana, look no further than Joe's Butcher Shop in Carmel. In a word? Perfect. In more than a word? Lots of mayo in a traditional mix of celery and green onion tops with just a touch of curry to keep you coming back for more over fresh, tender chicken and chopped pecans. I'm in love.

Two Minute Warning: I hadn't been to H2O Sushi under the new owners and while I was prepared for the crazy high prices ($4.75 for a bowl of edamame?), I wasn't prepared for the poorly made sushi. I had two huge issues. 1) The fish wasn't blow-my-mind fresh. Pieces were incredibly small, limp, and dull in color, and while the fish didn't smell or taste bad, much of it, well, didn't smell or taste at all. Note to chefs: When you serve sashimi, please don't cover it with sauce, let alone spicy chili sauce. The whole *point* of sashimi is to let the flavor of your fish come through. If your fish has no flavor, change it. If it's very delicate in flavor (like the fluke we had might have been), don't ruin it with a thick, heavy sauce.* You have so many other, more wonderful options. 2) The rice was not properly made. Making sushi rice is fairly time consuming and difficult, but it's the single most important thing a sushi chef does! First, the grains weren't cooked evenly or steamed through. While it wasn't crunchy or raw, we could see on the rolls that grains were seperated and broken. Secondly, the chef hadn't added any kind of vinegar mixture. Have you ever noticed how sushi rice has that wonderful slightly tangy taste? That's because sushi chefs mix a small amount of rice vinegar, sugar, and sometimes other ingredients like sake into the rice. This acidic mixture helps release additional starches (making it *extra* sticky and, yes, hard to work) and complements the flavor of the fish. Everything we had was missing that extra zing, but the rice was most noticeably bland under our scallop nigiri. A huge misstep to me that implied untrained or uncaring staff. I've always considered H2O the fun, push the edge, anti-Sakura sushi, but this was bland and boring, especially galling at their prices.

*Update: The waiter did remove the sashimi from our bill (although he didn't tell us. We noticed it today.

Peterson's: A Meal to Remember

Well, when I say "remember" it's relative related to how much wine we drank. Suffice to say, last night, the never ending round of holiday celebration continued at Peterson's, the venerable north side eatery helmed by Chef Karl Benko. It was, quite simply, a spectacular night with the incredible meal starring in the show.

Our party of five started out in the cozy wood bar with Moet Rose, then moved on to black bubbles. I'd tried a few sparkling shiraz wines over the summer and found them a bit heavy, but on a cold winter holiday evening, the fruit and sparkle with the heaviness of the red was just perfect. By the time we were seated, we found more bubbles waiting for us -- this time a Spanish cava. And what came with the cava? An amuse boche platter including duck confit streudel, a tuna tartare tangy with lemon and huge chunks of hamachi, and my favorite -- foie gras, this time cured (for only a few hours), braised (chef's words), and served over a vanilla sorbet with cocoa nibs. Not only was the hot and cold together amazing, but the wonderful flavor the of the foie (as one friend put it, the "funk") popped with the sweet of the ice cream and the wine. The cocoa nibs added an additional dark component and some crunch, perfect with the foie and sorbet both. Amazing.

For our next course, we shared the menu tartare (a different style), the portabello "fries" breaded in panko with a horseradish mayo (so meaty and good!), and a lobster tart with goat cheese and leeks. Wow. All so fantastic.

At this point, we started on an Oregon Pinot Noir from a vineyard owned by a friend of Chef Karl's. It had been open and decanted for an hour. By the time we poured it, the wine was really starting to open up with florals and fruit. At this point, my memory starts to get fuzzy.

For dinner, we all shared plates of braised shortribs with a blue cheese polenta (one of my many favorite dishes!), a Macadamia crusted walleye, and a halibut with a lot of really yummy, um, sauces, and, uh, some vegetables. I think. We had ginger snow peas and also French horn mushrooms. (You have to love a place that has a "mushroom of the day.") We had more wine. A cab. I think. And then, um, we had dessert. Yes, dessert.

OK, I can focus for dessert. Among the honey dome cheesecake and the flourless chocolate torte three-way, there was my standout favorite -- the Chambord sorbet. Again using cocoa nibs and perfectly wonderful presentation on the desserts, it was a spectacular finish to the evening. And the best part? Chef Karl came out and sat with us to enjoy a glass of wine. We spent the rest of the evening talking, laughing, drinking, and enjoying wonderful friends and company in the holiday season. When one thinks about the joys of the season, one is spending it with great friends. Thanks again to Chef Karl for the fantastic evening -- and to my friends, I say "Cheers" and "Happy Holidays"! What a night!