More Zero Proof Dinner at Feast 2019

I was fortunate to snag tickets to one of the dinner series events, More Zero Proof Dinner at Feast 2019. Last year was the first edition of this dinner, and they decided to offer version 2.0 in 2019. Similar to last year, it features a roster of sober chefs and mixologists, and the food and drink pairings are all non-alcoholic, or zero proof – or as sober bar veteran Eric Nelson of Eem, who provided the beverage ideas for the dinner, prefers to call them, clear headed drinks. This is, as he explained, because using terms like non, or zero, sound negative like something is missing. And there is definitely nothing missing from any part of this dinner or the drinks at The Nightwood.
Recap of the More Zero Proof Dinner at Feast 2019 Recap of the More Zero Proof Dinner at Feast 2019

Although the event officially listed eight chefs contributing to the meal, in a surprise twist Andrew Zimmern (who was a participating chef in last year’s dinner) also was present this evening filming the dinner for his show. So perhaps you will see an episode on this dinner in the future. It did mean there were a lot of cameras and floating mikes in the kitchen and overall everywhere, which made the dinner a bit chaotic, and there were some shots and interviews (such as below with Dana Cowin) making the space feel crowded.
Recap of the More Zero Proof Dinner at Feast 2019 Recap of the More Zero Proof Dinner at Feast 2019

In the meantime, you can read more background on the dinner and the founding chefs of Gabriel Rucker and Gregory Gourdet at this feature by USA Today. From last year you can read my recap of that dinner as well from my blog post last year, as well as some thoughts from the lyrical Karen Brooks of Portland Monthly. With new and returning sober chefs on the roster, the accumulated years of sobriety in the kitchen increased from last year’s 57 years to I believe 92 years this time.

In the year since the inaugural Zero Proof dinner, the sobriety and wellness movement has gained more traction, with the new organization called Ben’s Friends offering a support group for the industry. A new trend has also been more beverages being added to the menus in restaurants and bars to support wellness while still standing up to all the layers of flavors of cocktails and offering all the pairing possibilities like wine and beer. You can see for yourself in my recap below of the More Zero Proof Dinner at Feast 2019 at all the happiness you can have without a drop of alcohol.
Recap of the More Zero Proof Dinner at Feast 2019

Appetizers

We were welcomed with some passed appetizers along with a form of sparkling beverage made with Mango, Yunnan Silver White Tea, and Champagne Acid. You will notice a theme with the beverages concocted by the Drinks Team tonight as all will have tea component because for this dinner, Smith Teamakers was a sponsor.
We were welcomed with some passed appetizers along with sparkling in the form of a sparkling beverage made with Mango, Yunnan Silver White Tea, Champagne Acid at the More Zero Proof Dinner at Feast 2019 We were welcomed with some passed appetizers along with sparkling in the form of a sparkling beverage made with Mango, Yunnan Silver White Tea, Champagne Acid at the More Zero Proof Dinner at Feast 2019

Foie Gras and Mushroom Raviolini en Brodo, by Patrick McKee, Estes was my favorite of the appetizers. I may have had three – sorry but not sorry. If you haven’t dined at his residential pop-up inside Dame natural wine bar, go. The food he serves up has the comfort and care of family (some of them literally his takes his family memories) with a focused Italian theme.
Appetizer of Foie Gras and Mushroom Raviolini en Brodo, by Patrick McKee, Estes from the More Zero Proof Dinner at Feast 2019 Appetizer of Foie Gras and Mushroom Raviolini en Brodo, by Patrick McKee, Estes from the More Zero Proof Dinner at Feast 2019

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Picks for Portland Dining Month 2019

Portland Dining Month 2019 takes place all of March in Portland, and includes 133 restaurants participating, each offering 3 course meals for $33. This is Portland Dining Month’s 20th year, and my 7th year taking advantage of the great food at a great deal. Every year I do my due diligence reviewing who are the participants and making my list based on the menu offered and value of the meal. With this post I’m sharing with you my picks for Portland Dining Month 2019.
Portland Dining Month 2019

A full list of participating Portland Dining Month restaurants and their menus can be found at the official Portland Dining Month list and map on the Travel Portland website. As usual, making a reservation though the Portland Dining Month website can also benefit the local community. Besides supporting local businesses and employees in Portland, in addition Travel Portland has partnered with OpenTable. A donation will be made to Oregon Food Bank for every online reservation booked at participating restaurants through PortlandDiningMonth.com – just click on the OpenTable reservation button next to the restaurant listing.

I highly encourage using this, not just for the fact you are doing good to fight hunger by using the OpenTable online reservation systems, but some places can get pretty busy so to avoid an annoying wait, make reservations with whoever takes them to spend less time waiting and more time dining.

Also check back to the blog and follow me on my Instagram social media stories and feed to see where I am eating at @pechluck– I will be dining at one Portland Dining Month restaurant at least once a week through March. I’ll also be doing giveaways that I post on the blog Facebook page and the Instagram page so follow me to be in the know!

Bluehour 3 courses for $33 for Portland Dining Month March 2018: after a complimentary amuse bouche, I enjoyed courses of 1. Farmers Mixed Green Salad with blue cheese, pickled red onions, radish, sunflower seeds, and sherry vinaigrette 2. Parisian Gnocchi with butternut squash, apples, grana padano, sage and 3. Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with salted caramel, creme fraiche, textures of chocolate Bluehour 3 courses for $33 for Portland Dining Month March 2018: after a complimentary amuse bouche, I enjoyed courses of 1. Farmers Mixed Green Salad with blue cheese, pickled red onions, radish, sunflower seeds, and sherry vinaigrette 2. Parisian Gnocchi with butternut squash, apples, grana padano, sage and 3. Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with salted caramel, creme fraiche, textures of chocolate Bluehour 3 courses for $33 for Portland Dining Month March 2018: after a complimentary amuse bouche, I enjoyed courses of 1. Farmers Mixed Green Salad with blue cheese, pickled red onions, radish, sunflower seeds, and sherry vinaigrette 2. Parisian Gnocchi with butternut squash, apples, grana padano, sage and 3. Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with salted caramel, creme fraiche, textures of chocolate Bluehour 3 courses for $33 for Portland Dining Month March 2018: after a complimentary amuse bouche, I enjoyed courses of 1. Farmers Mixed Green Salad with blue cheese, pickled red onions, radish, sunflower seeds, and sherry vinaigrette 2. Parisian Gnocchi with butternut squash, apples, grana padano, sage and 3. Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with salted caramel, creme fraiche, textures of chocolate

Example Portland Dining Month menu of Bluehour 3 courses for $33 for Portland Dining Month March 2018: after a complimentary amuse bouche, I enjoyed courses of 1. Farmers Mixed Green Salad with blue cheese, pickled red onions, radish, sunflower seeds, and sherry vinaigrette 2. Parisian Gnocchi with butternut squash, apples, grana padano, sage and 3. Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with salted caramel, creme fraiche, textures of chocolate

How I made the list of my picks for Portland Dining Month 2019:

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Portland Dumpling Week 2019 Picks

Once again this year the Oregonian has organized Portland Dumpling week 2019, this year extending from February 1 – 9 2019. Featuring more then 30 restaurants all over Portland, this event offers limited time only dumplings available at each participating restaurant only for this week. Then after consuming the dumpling you can collect a dumpling sticker specifically from that establishment to add to your Dumpling Week passport.

Dumplings from Dough Zone Gnocchi from the Nightwood
These are dumplings to get you in the mood… not representative of Portland Dumpling Week 2019 dumplings since I haven’t had any yet… Dumpling possibilities are from around the world, both east and west!

I’ve been eating dumplings and crawling through multiple dumplings a night since the first annual dumpling week. With the 36 possible different dumplings I know I can’t visit them all, even when sharing dumplings with good friends of a dumpling crawl. I curate a list based on unique offerings of dumplings listed to use as my wishlist, making sure to get a variety of dumplings from around the world, many from restaurants and chefs I trust will offer a delicious dumpling dish, and then some that just are unique. I will update the listings with photos of dishes when I have them, and may add or remove based on what reviews I may hear during the week.

Updated 2/3/2019

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Meet the Chef Albert Adria dinner with Ataula

I know it’s been pretty quiet on the blog front – I had a lot of travel both for work and personal that happened in November, and shortly after I got back I got sick with two different colds back to back. Fortunately, just before the cold symptoms of cold #1 fully hit me (and before I had picked up cold #2), I was able to attend an incredible Meet the Chef Albert Adria dinner with Ataula. This was a special reservations only dinner in which Ataula hosted Chef Albert Adria with an all inclusive tasting menu with wine pairings.
Meet the Chef Albert Adria dinner with Ataula Meet the Chef Albert Adria dinner with Ataula

Honestly, even if Chef Albert Adria was not present at the dinner, the fact that the incredible Chef Jose Chesa was going to create this unique dinner was enough to have me rush to sign up. I have never ever been disappointed at any of the one-off dishes Chef Jose Chesa has made for special events whether they are seated or one of the walk around events, and this was a whole seated dinner for one of the most famous chefs in the world, natch also from Spain, that I was 100% sure would impress.

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Recap of the Zero Proof Dinner for Feast 2018

When the listing of the various event listings for Feast Portland 2018 came out in early spring, when I saw the description for the Zero Proof Dinner as part of the Feast 2018 Dinner Series it was immediately one of my top two choices of what I wanted to attend. I loved the idea of recognizing and celebrating sobriety – and the lineup of the chefs was impeccable. It was a dinner that not only would feature deliciousness from an all star list of chefs and probably an intriguing pairing of non-alcoholic drinks, but seemed like a dinner underscored with a message and meaning too. I had no idea as I was quickly clicking the next day to purchase my ticket (and ultimately sacrificing another dinner I wanted to attend because it sold out while I purchased this one) how right I would be.

This year Gabriel Rucker (Le Pigeon, Portland) pitched us a compelling idea: to bring together a group of nationally admired chefs who have chosen a life of sobriety and wellness within the restaurant world – where abuse of alcohol and substances is not only tolerated, it is often celebrated. Join Gabe and a group of friends he personally invited to showcase one of the most inspiring collaborations in our festival’s history. We welcome chef and television personality Andrew Zimmern (Lucky Cricket, Minneapolis), Southern trailblazer Sean Brock (Husk, Charleston), Israeli food pioneer Michael Solomonov (Zahav, Philadelphia), and our own hardest working man in Portland Gregory Gourdet (Departure, Portland) to bring front and center a growing global movement at Portland’s culinary festival. Even some of our most respected bartenders have shown they can work in this industry and be sober, accordingly, Evan Zimmerman (Knucklehead, Washington DC) will create a tasting menu of non-alcoholic drink pairings. Come experience how being sober has changed the way these chefs cook as well as changed their perspectives on food and life.

The surprise for me – and probably everyone – was how emotional it was to attend as a guest. Even though I do not practice a sober lifestyle, I totally unanticipated how affecting it was, and how it affects me still. After this dinner even hours later at another party, for the rest of the weekend festival every time there was a drink, and even this whole week every time there was a drink of alcohol, my awareness has been raised.

But to start, most of us had never heard of Blockhouse PDX, which is where the dinner (and several of the Feast Dinner Series dinners) were held. It is in a sort of hidden area of North Portland, but after entering through the doorway it becomes almost an escape as you become surrounded by the greenery of a garden from Pomarius Nursery and a large open chef’s kitchen. Although there were no walls so you were still dining al fresco, a roof structure over our heads would have protected us from the elements if it had rained (luckily it did not). The only minor ding on the atmosphere was the train tracks that surprised us!
Zero Proof Dinner for Feast 2018 Dinner Series, held at Blockhouse PDX with an al fresco dining area complemented by green gardens from Pomerius Nursery Zero Proof Dinner for Feast 2018 Dinner Series, held at Blockhouse PDX with an al fresco dining area complemented by green gardens from Pomerius Nursery
Zero Proof Dinner for Feast 2018 Dinner Series, held at Blockhouse PDX with an al fresco dining area complemented by green gardens from Pomerius Nursery Zero Proof Dinner for Feast 2018 Dinner Series, held at Blockhouse PDX with an al fresco dining area complemented by green gardens from Pomerius Nursery
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