Carnivale!
Wow, has it already been two weeks since my trek through the Midwest? It seems like just yesterday, perhaps because my mouth is still watering from the incredible meal I enjoyed at Carnivale. Chef Mendez and his lovely bride and Carnivale Wine Director, Liz Palmer Mendez, put together an amazing meal paired with six of my wines.
Liz Mendez with Evolution and Meditrina.
I had the pleasure of dining at Carnivale several years ago and so I was really looking forward to this wine dinner. My memory was that the décor at Carnivale was eclectic and memorable. The food was creative, full of complex and interesting flavors, and, for the most part, sustainably or locally produced. And the employees ware warm and made you want to linger longer. From my prior visit, I had a strong hunch the evening would be perfect and I was not disappointed!
The first course was called a “Tasting of Tiradito” which included three different kinds of chile pastes on three different kinds of fish: scallop, yellowfin tuna, and kona kampachi. It was delicious! We had both Evolution and Pinot Gris with this course, which was fun to try both. The Pinot Gris held its own, but Evolution was the winner because it paired so well with the spiciness of the chile paste.
The second course was a wild salmon dish with morel mushrooms, chorizo and leeks. Chef Mendez lamented that he wasn’t able to get Copper River Salmon, but he got the next best thing. Having morel mushrooms is always a treat, and the chorizo added lovely texture. Salmon and Pinot is my favorite pairing, and this dish worked extremely well with our 2006 Dundee Hills Pinot Noir.
At this point, I was in heaven after the first two courses and I had met a lot of lovely and interesting people from the Chicagoland area. Then came the third course, which was a delicious braised duck dish that was so tender and juicy and paired nicely with our red blend, Meditrina. (By the way, Carnivale serves Meditrina by the glass, so go check it out and have a glass of Meditrina!) As if things couldn’t get better, Chef Mendez presented us with three chunks of melt-in-your-mouth cheese paired with our White Riesling Dessert Wine. For those of you who have dared to try it, you know that our dessert wine pairs marvelously with blue cheese. It was fun to share this somewhat unusual pairing with a group of food and wine lovers like myself.
I also had the pleasure of talking with Michael Sands, GM of Carnivale, who was eager to share some of the green initiatives Carnivale has undertaken. Having a green streak of my own, I was eager to hear about their efforts to go green. To start, they recycle their fat fryer oil, grow herbs and veggies on a rooftop garden, source local produce, change their menu based on seasonal selections, and only serve sustainable seafood. It’s hard being green, and I applaud Carnivale’s efforts. They even have a green page on their website, which I have not seen often among restaurants. And, be sure to check out their Farm to Table Celebration dinners. They sound great, and I wish I could attend one.
Thank you to Chef Mendez, Liz, Michael and the whole gang at Carnivale for hosting me for an amazing culinary adventure. And, thank you to all the people who dined with me that night instead of watching the American Idol finale. I hope you will come visit me in Oregon soon!
