The Pinyon

Compressed watermelon with pickled watermelon rind, greek yogurt, chervil, and padron pepper

Cured salmon belly with pickled cranberries, mint oil, diced apples and shallot

Crispy soft-shell crab BLT

Milk braised rabbit, with wheat berries, english peas, colorado bing cherries, tarragon and chervil

Shaved ham with heirloom blue grits, apricot confit, and pickled scape

Bourbon glazed donuts

Ah, The Pinyon, restaurant of my good friend Theo Adly. This dinner was a complementary dinner in honor of the winning Jr. Flatiron Chef team. My friends and I were greeted warmly and seated with menus. As we sat down Theo looked over at us and said " Take the menus away, I'm feeding them". We knew we were in for a treat and a treat he gave us. Our first course was Compressed watermelon with pickled watermelon rind, greek yogurt, chervil, and padron pepper. This dish was very refreshing and hit every taste bud in your mouth. The sweet almost transparent compressed watermelon was very juicy and sweet. The pickled watermelon rind was sour and very crisp and its flavor and texture worked in perfect contrast with the compressed watermelon. The yogurt added tang and a very nice fattiness that helped cut all the juiciness. The padrone pepper added a small bit of heat in the back of your mouth, which I think made the dish. Our next dish was Cured salmon belly with pickled cranberries, mint oil, diced apples and shallot. The salmon was absolutely amazing, it tasted of the salty thing it was cured in but still had an intense salmon flavor. The cranberries were very sour but the sweet apple cut the sourness. The mint oil added an extra level of fat and flavor to the dish which really elevated it to a knew level. Next was a fantastic Crispy soft-shell crab BLT. On the plate was this cute little salad of tomatoes and lettuce with a piece bacon, and then next to it a huge crispy fried half soft-shell crab. The coating on the crab was very flavorful and all the BLT flavors complemented the crab very well. Next we had Milk braised rabbit, with wheat berries, english peas, colorado bing cherries, tarragon and chervil. This was a very great dish, the rabbit was super tender and nicely flavored. The wheat berries were very herby and acidic. The peas and cherries added the great sweetness that was needed to cut acidity of the wheat berries. The radish was very earthy and was the perfect garnish. Our final savory dish was Shaved ham with heirloom blue grits, apricot confit, and pickled scape. This dish was my favorite of the evening. The ham was just slices of juicy, fatty, salty, goodness. The grits were one of the greatest things I have ever put in my mouth. The were creamy and rich and full of flavor. The apricot confit was very sweet but in the back of my mouth it almost tasted savory. The scape was a nice acidic touch to finish off the dish. And finally a plate of Bourbon glazed donuts finished off our meal. A plate of plump, piping hot balls of goodness. The glaze was fantastic. All I have to say is thank you Theo. It was an amazing meal!