|
Chef
Bruce Paton
Cathedral
Hill Hotel
San Francisco, CA
One of
the stalwart supporters of the beer dinner on the West Coast is Chef
Bruce Paton, a maverick among hotel chefs. Rather than relying on
the standard wine dinner of Napa Valley favorites to build dining
room traffic, Chef Bruce prefers to promote American craft beer and
food pairings at the Cathedral Hill Hotel. 
For client
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chef Bruce recently created a stunning
buffet for the after-party of Celebrator Beer News 15th Anniversary
at the Great American Music Hall. Chief among the culinary attractions
was a tray full of spoonfuls of luscious tuna tartare, decked out
with bronzed "truffle" caviar.
Paton
came to the Cathedral Hill after working at the Clift Hotel. While
at the Clift, beer dinners included a rooftop barbecue for the Russian
River Brewing Company, featuring a spicy ceviche of scallops with
caviar, oysters con espinaca drizzled with chile c, and a lobster
pozole, with Damnation Ale.
For Deschutes
Brewery, Paton created a Fat Tuesday celebration, with lobster beignets,
grilled oysters, a smoky gumbo of venison and crawfish, and grilled
game with Black Butte Porter.
And for
local friends in the industry, such as Nico Freccia of the 21st Amendment
on Second Street, Paton developed new twist on standards such as "beef
and beer", re-incarnated as a carpaccio of smokey beef with horseradish
creme fraiche, to stand up to the Northstar Red Ale, or a lightly
sauteed filet of escolar, with ginger butter and banana salsa, to
make a sweet contrast to the hoppy IPA.
In
2003, the "Dinner with the Brewmaster" series includes feasts with
the North Coast Brewing Co., Magnolia Brewing, Chimay, Bear Republic
Brewing and Hoptown Brewing Co. The events tend to be affordably priced
at $50-$75, depending on the complexity and choices of the menu. Best
of all, since the dinners are held in a hotel, diners can stay the
night and avoid driving.
When
food and beer expert Stephen Beaumont met Chef Paton, one of his first
questions was, "How did you make that stunning tuna tartar?"
Here it is:
Bruce's
Tuna Tartare
1/4 lb.
fresh Ahi tuna
1 tablespoon
truffle caviar
1 tablespoon
minced chives
1 tablespoon
truffle oil
Salt
and pepper to taste
Method:
Combine all ingredients and check seasonings. Serve in Asian porcelain
soup spoons.
Note:
"Truffle Caviar" is actually white fish roe which is naturally flavored
with truffle oil and naturally colored with vegetable caramel. It
is produced by Tsar Nicoulai and available retail at Whole Foods and
Draegers grocery stores.
Chef
Bruce Paton
Cathedral Hill Hotel
San Francisco, CA
Chairman
of the Board of Directors,
The Chefs Association of the Pacific Coast
San Francisco Chapter of The American Culinary Federation
|