Sexy, Amazing Food You Must Try
This post is about choices: eating local or eating at a chain. Restaurant chains have created the perfect balance of cost, quality and consistency to be able to offer the same item in whatever city, state or country you’re in. A Big Mac is more or less going to taste the same no matter where you are. Just take one trip to Costco to understand the obvious advantages of buying in bulk. By buying in bulk, chains are able to offer less expensive food because of their purchasing power. This also means that the food you’re eating at most chains is not from around here and maybe not even from a country you would ever wish to visit. No one lovingly picked out that fish you’re eating at a local market or talked to the bakery owner to understand how they make such great bread. Restaurant chains have their place in society but choose them sparingly.
Eat Local If You Care About What You Eat
On the complete opposite side of the spectrum of corporate-owned chains are locally owned restaurants. The chefs at locally owned restaurants have the latitude to experiment in the kitchen. Often the source of their passion stems from meeting with other locally owned businesses who are also exhibiting their passions by perfecting their crafts. Whether it’s the creation of the tastiest microgreen or feeding their livestock a more nutritious diet, the foods that come out of the kitchens of locally owned restaurants are more exciting than their big chain competitors.
The Great Problem At Fat Ox
Having the freedom to experiment in the kitchen creates an entirely new problem: deciding what to eat because everything on the menu is so tempting. This first world problem is what I encounter every time I step into Fat Ox as the chefs there are wizards in the kitchen. Last week I had the opportunity to try quite a few of Fat Ox’s seasonal items and it was all spectacular. Let me tell you, if you’re a foodie and haven’t been to Fat Ox yet, find a date on your calendar, make a reservation and go visit. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
My favorite dish is….
While I love their prosciutto that’s served with hazelnut, local honey and amazing Noble bread, I also enjoy their meat platter which is a smorgasbord of meats, cheeses and olives that seems to get better every time I go. On this day though I was craving their seasonal rosso crest di gallo pasta which is cooked in red wine, with duck sausage, mushrooms and huckleberry topped with dandelion greens. While this dish isn’t particularly photogenic, every bite is a perfect blend of texture and taste and it makes me want to turn to the diners around me and ask if they had tried it. It’s a dish you want to hoarde and share at the same time!
It’s Green, Try It!
It’s great to have one favorite dish at a restaurant but if you only try one thing at Fat Ox, you’re doing your taste buds a disservice. While green tortellini doesn’t sound all that exciting, I mean unless it’s Saint Patty’s day and you want to be particularly festive, forget about the name and order it anyway. Besides amazing tasting pasta, the secret may be in the ricotta cheese from family owned and operated Bellwether Farms in Sonoma County with its pillowy texture and balanced taste, this ricotta stuffed inside the tortellini is a must-try dish. The green tortellini is served with pickled strawberries, which I didn’t even know was a thing, pistachio, pecorino and saba. This is a dish that when it’s set in front of you, stop your conversation and take a bite while it’s hot. It’s amazing!
Kitchen Wizardry
There are many amazing items at Fat Ox that are worth trying just because you have a couple of wizards in the kitchen with Rochelle Daniel and Chops Smith. Their passion for food, innovation and culinary exploration is contagious and exciting. For example, I am not a clam or mussels kinda girl, oysters yes, clams? Icky, but just like when I tasted my first brussel sprout that was grilled and not steamed, I changed my mind about clams after trying the spaghetti alla chitarra with clams which is served with cute yellow tomatoes, olives, nduja and Calabrian oil. Tastes change gradually and just because you didn’t used to like something, doesn’t mean you should eliminate it from your diet for your entire life. Venture out, man! When you go to a restaurant like Fat Ox, with people like Chef Rochelle and Chef Chops at the wheel, just trust the judgment of the kitchen. The chefs are passionate about what they do and have the freedom to make the types of dishes you want to talk about later. Go on! It’s time to try Fat Ox. Do yourself a favor and try one thing you wouldn’t normally order: you’re going to be delighted!
