So, the Chowhound organized a group to show the guys at Feast some love. So, a group of about 70 of us showed up and took over the place. Luckily, my friend Julia & her husband showed up, so we have someone to talk food with... These things are nice, you're never really sitting next to a stranger, because the love of food brought you all together. That said, it's nice to have some friendly faces around.Alright, Feast, in case you don't already know; is known for using every part of the animal for their dishes. They come from the philosophy that nothing is wasted, and everything is from local. Which makes alot of sense considering alot of what we 'throw out' is considered a delicacies in other cultures. So, why not make something good out of that? I happen to agree, but just don't tell me what I'm eating, that'll be fine. Haha...
Their space is really an old house. You walk in to the 'sun room' where the they can fit several tables, and the main dining can fit 3 large tables and the official dining room can house 2 large long tables that serves 12+ people. The upstairs is just as spectacular. They have a small patio over looks Westheimer, a private dining room. But the most impressive, and on your way to the bathroom, is the wine room where they also cure the meat (see above). I have no idea how deep the room is, all I know it's that it's pretty awesome to see restaurant cared enough to cure their own meat. Don't worry, it is away from the said bathrooms, you see this on your way... not near it.There are rumors that they didn't get enough love, therefore moving to New Orleans. I'm here to tell you that, I heard it from the chefs mouth(s), they are not moving. As a matter of fact, they are opening a 2nd location, which will be in New Orleans. So... they're here to stay... for the time being, anyhow.
Alright, onto the food:
Cauliflower Vichyssoise
Recommended wine pairing: Domaine de la Janasse,
Merlot Syrah, Southern Rhone, France 2007
Smoked Mackerel Pate & Exmoor Toast
Recommended Wine Pairing:
San Clodio, Treixadura/Gordello blend, Ribeiro, Calicia, Spain 2007
Cheese Crusted Pig's Ear Cake
Recommneded Wine Pairing:
Jimenez-Landi ' Sotorrondero', Mentrida, Spain 2006
Roasted Side of Tilefish w/ Braised Vegetables
Recommended Wine Pairing:
Clos des Allees Old Vine Muscadet, Loire, France 2006
Bath Chaps, Garlic Rutabaga & Mustard Greens
Recommended Wine Pairing:
Umathum, Zweigelt, Burgenland, Austria 2007
Lemon Hazelnut Cake
Sticky Toffee Pudding & Treacle Tart
My review:
The soup is served cold and let me tell you in a hot, humid day as we get plenty of them in Houston, that was very refreshing. They have a small bit of nut and raisins in them, but make no mistake, you can taste the cauliflower, and you are not just having something sweet in your soup.
The Mackerel Pate and Toast are super yummy. I highly recommend adding the lemon to bring out the flavor potentials that is hidden in the food. I know the first hand, when you thought of pate is dry and unpleasant, at least that's what I grew up with. But, when you get to taste the pate, you know that it's hand grinded and molded in-house. Not a dry bit in the mix. The toast help bring out the salty bit of the pate as well. Thumbs up!
The Pig's Ear Cake, to be honest, I was sorta hoping to see a little pig ear on my plate. But they molded it into a thick cake like texture, just about as thick as a Texas Toast, and layered a thick layer of cheese on top. It tasted like pizza. As a matter of fact, had they sold it as a pizza, I would absolutely order that on the menu. Talk about great and not needing to know what you ate.
The Tilefish was most disappointing at best. The presentation was wonderful, they served the fish head first, biting on a piece of orange. Bring back the very image of the pig biting on an apple. We passed it around and ate whatever we can get from the head. The fish itself were served separately. The vegetable and the fish were more bland and was up-played by the dishes preceding it. The dishes before were so flavorful that you were hoping that the fish would be too, but it was more blend, and dare I say it here? I had to put a bit of salt on it. Gasp!
The Bath Chaps were great in presentation, however, at this point, we were all slowly filled up to the rim that I don't think I gave it a proper test and appreciation as I did w/ the other dishes. What is a Bath Chaps is the question on the table... without looking it up, it really tasted like bacon, and anything that tasted like bacon cannot be bad, right?! Truthfully, tho, the piece of chap have so much fat on it that I cannot bring myself to eat too much of it. Not to mention, I have to save room for dessert.
Desserts were great, we had lemon hazelnut cake, chocolate molten cake (no picture), sticky toffee pudding, and treacle tart. The lemon hazelnut cake wasn't as zesty as I was expecting, so it was nice a mellow mixed w/ the nut and fresh cream. Chocolate molten cake was pretty standard, the cake itself was denser than I would like, but chocolate oozed out just the same. Sticky Toffee Pudding is very much the trend, as much of a trend as the French macaron, mixed w/ creme it was nice and thick and not as sticky as I had expected. The treacle tart is something new. It's basically a golden syrup cake held in a thin crust. I enjoyed the crust tremendously, and the cake itself was good. The best thing is to add the lemon curd to go w/ the cake. Definitely different and not what you normally would get at a restaurant. It's very British of a dessert.
I didn't do the wine pairing and from my companion, some of the pairing doesn't match the food palette as one would hoped. Couple of the wine were too sweet for the dish presented. But, you know, taste palatte is really a subjective thing, so take it what you will.
Overall, it cured my curiosity about the restaurant. I would go back and try other dishes for sure. This experience however, was more like a B+ experience... the dishes were building you up to a climax (the fish) and it was very anti-climatic. I would hate to use a blanket statement and say that the guys can do meat better than fish, but that's certainly the case that night. Hopefully, I'm wrong.
Try the bread when you go, their sourdough is to die for. By the way, there's no parking around, so you can either try the street parking across the way, or do $3 valet.
Feast
219 Westhimer
Houston, TX
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