KC Magazine Review of bluestem Oct 2006

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THE WRITING’S ON THE W ALL  A T BLUESTEM BY G.E. FELLRATH PHOTOGRAPHY BY JACK HARPER  ABOVE: Just a sample of the tender morsels available on bluestem’s menu, the hamachi sashimi made our writer shiver .  A fter a long wait, the gentleman emerged from the washroom with one comment: “Good reading.” What kind of excuse is that? As it turns out, a good one. Inside, the walls were crowded with framed accolades. Chef/owner Colby Garrelts’ Food &Wine’s Best New Chefs of 2005 award is just one of the dozens of clippings singing his praises and those of his wife, pastry chef Megan Garrelts. An odd place for trophies? When you see the restaur ant, you’ll know why . It’s tiny . But the cozy comfort is part of its charm. Having eaten at both Charlie Trotter’s and TRU, the culinary meccas where the Garreltses worked and met, I can say that bluestem has the master’s touch without the unnecessary fuss. Eating at bluestem is, as a friend once described as his glimpse into a very wealthy acquaintance’s home, “like peeling away layers and layers of shock.” At rst, you’re overwhelmed by the scope, then the presentation, followed by the quality and nally, taste. By the end of nearly a dozen meals in three months, I was like an over-conditioned Pavlov’ s dog—yearning for shocks. Since my rst visit more than a year ago, service has bumped off its few edges, rounding into a nice rhythm. Courses are well-paced, drinks topped off without question and silverware replaced seamlessly. There’ s also more elbow room. Although bluestem’s Wine Lounge— which opened in March in the adjacent space—didn’t signicantly in- crease seating capacity in the 40-seat dining room, it has helped alleviate 183 LUXURY LIVING & FINE HOME DESIGN

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THE WRITING’S ON THE WALL AT BLUESTEM

BYG.E. FELLRATH PHOTOGRAPHY BYJACK HARPER

ABOVE: Just a sample of the tender morsels available on bluestem’s menu, the hamachi sashimi made our writer shiver.

After a long wait, the gentleman emerged from the washroomwith one comment: “Good reading.” What kind of excuseis that? As it turns out, a good one. Inside, the walls were

crowded with framed accolades. Chef/owner Colby Garrelts’ Food &Wine ’s Best New Chefs of 2005 award is just one of the dozensof clippings singing his praises and those of his wife, pastry chef Megan Garrelts.

An odd place for trophies? When you see the restaurant, you’ll knowwhy. It’s tiny. But the cozy comfort is part of its charm. Having eatenat both Charlie Trotter’s and TRU, the culinary meccas where theGarreltses worked and met, I can say that bluestem has the master’stouch without the unnecessary fuss.

Eating at bluestem is, as a friend once described as his glimpse into

a very wealthy acquaintance’s home, “like peeling away layers andlayers of shock.” At rst, you’re overwhelmed by the scope, then thepresentation, followed by the quality and nally, taste. By the end of nearly a dozen meals in three months, I was like an over-conditionedPavlov’s dog—yearning for shocks.

Since my rst visit more than a year ago, service has bumped off itsfew edges, rounding into a nice rhythm. Courses are well-paced, drinkstopped off without question and silverware replaced seamlessly.

There’s also more elbow room. Although bluestem’s Wine Lounge—which opened in March in the adjacent space—didn’t signicantly in-crease seating capacity in the 40-seat dining room, it has helped alleviate

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trafc. Now, instead of disrupting diners in themain room, patrons enter through the lounge

to park at the bar for a simple meal of steamedmussels in a buttery bath of white wine, saffronand Dijon ($6). Or, as the name suggests, you canrecline on the plush couches for wine and aplatter of charcuterie.

Yes, accommodation and exibility arebluestem’s mantra. The menu is a goodexample. Inspired by the dinner he hosted at

the prestigious Beard House in New York in July, Colby Garrelts changed bluestem’s à lacarte menu to a prix xe format. This allowsdiners to choose their own three-, ve- or seven-course adventure from seven categories: Caviar,Crudo (raw sh) & Cold Appetizers, HotAppetizers & Pasta, Soups & Salad, Fish, Meat,and Dessert. Or, if you can’t decide, leave it

to the chef in a twelve-course SpontaneousCollection. The affable wine director (andGM), Jeremy Lamb, can suggest wines by theglass, bottle or multi-course pairings.

Both Colby Garrelts and the chef de cuisine,David Crum, like to source locally for ingre-dients. Farms like Campo Lindo (Lathrop,Missouri), Beau Solais (Hughesville, Missouri),Brunner Beef (Ramona, Kansas) and Crum’sHeirlooms (Crum’s family farm is inEdwardsville, Kansas) dot the menu. Under-standing this attention to quality lowers anyeyebrow-raising at the prices.

Naturally, the ever-evolving menu spellsseasonality and blissfully favors the horticul-tural. Soups—like a brilliant pea soup pouredtable-side over pillowy ricotta ravioli and afrothy turnip soup tumbled over a nest of asparagus and caviar—tasted like a freshlyharvested eld of the star vegetable condensedinto one bowl.

If vegetables aren’t the centerpiece, they com-plement the wonderful sh and meat courses.Chic Rosenthal china satellite bowls bore gor-geous cuts from the ocean like a vibrant orangelet of Tasmanian sea trout nestled on a bed of shell beans and succulent oxtail.

Waves of shock continued with buttery esco-lar, a white-eshed deep-sea sh, atop heirloomgreen beans and giant sea scallops, caramelized

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yet quivering within, siding with sweet corn anda nob of miso butter. Shivers. The meat category

was represented by tender Wagyu (AmericanKobe) beef reclining on sturdy fava beans andasparagus, tender Berkshire pork with grilledpeaches, duck breast with eggplant and so on.Not one missed a beat.

A good half of the menu is devoted to whatI call prurient eating—food that makes youfeel sexy and naughty all at once. Caviar

seduces you with accompaniments like but-tery oat-away blinis and sweet corn pannacotta. If you can’t afford the Sevruga orOsetra supplements ($20 and $50, respec-tively), I recommend you at least submit tothe briny golden trout roe.

Tell me crudo isn’t foreplay, and I’ll callyou a liar. I blushed through a plate of

garnet-red beef carpaccio—paper-thin slicesglistening with walnut oil—and gushed overthe lump crab, raw tuna and poached rockshrimp on a swath of magenta beet paste.

But caviar and crudo are mere teasers com-pared with the pastas, which verge on obscene,like lusty thin tubular dua tossed with escargot,smoky linguica sausage and garlicky sofritto. Ca-vatelli and crushed heirloom tomatoes toppedwith shaved Parmesan and bottarga (wonderfullypungent cured tuna roe used as a condiment inthe Mediterranean) both titillated and aroused.

At my table, desserts are usually negotiable.But, the Malted Cocoa—a malted chocolateoat served with warm honey beignets—wasa non-negotiable commodity. I’ve also crossedspoons over Megan Garrelts’ silky RaspberryParfait and her uffy soufés.

Sunday brunch is when Crum’s love of LatinAmerican and Mediterranean culture shinesin offerings like Arroz de enfermo , a Spanishrice soup with poached egg (said to curehangovers), and Socca, a crispy Provençal-inspired chickpea our crêpe topped with grilledvegetables and a fried egg.

Like so many before me, I’ve found bluestemto be a restaurant worth writing about. If yound yourself reading my review on the wash-room wall, be mindful of the people waiting toget a glimpse of the good news. ■

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bluestem ÈÈÈÈ (Excellent)

900 Westport Road816-561-1101

bluestemkc.com

Ratings:ÈÈÈÈ (Excellent)ÈÈÈ (Outstanding)ÈÈ (Commendable)È (Good)

- Acceptable to Poor

Executive Chef Colby GarreltsPastry Chef Megan GarreltsChef de Cuisine David CrumWine Lounge Hours: Monday-Sunday5:00 p.m.-1:30a.m.Restaurant Hours: Monday-Saturdaybeginning at 5:30 p.m. Brunch Sunday

11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.Recommended: Caviar service; Crab,tuna and rock shrimp; Foie gras autorchon; Sweet corn soup; Fidua pastawith escargot; Tasmanian sea trout;Wagyu beef; Duck; Raspberry parfait.Fellrath’s Table of Envy: Intimate: Table#34; Large Parties: Table #43.Price: $55 3-courses, $65 5-courses,$75 7-courses and $100 12-courseSpontaneous Chef’s Collection (availableMonday-Thursday only). Both wine andnonalcoholic pairings available foradditional cost. Wine Lounge: $4 - $13.Dress: Business casual.Smoking Policy: Non-smoking only.Parking: Street parking and limited park-ing in lot behind restaurant.Reservations: Recommended. bluestemaccepts reservations on Fridays-Saturdaysat 6:00/6:30 p.m. or 8:00/8:30 p.m.Handicap accessible: Yes.

Review Policy: Reviews are based on

a minimum of three visits, and menu

items are widely sampled. Meals arepaid for by the reviewer, and reviews

are conducted anonymously. Restau-

rants are generally not reviewed until

two months after opening.

A l l Ye a r L o n g

� � �

Come see our showroom3050 S. 24th Street • Kansas City, KS 66106

913.831.6100

L e t t h e

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