as it goes, we were persuaded to add 2 more seats for our prelude dinners. the dining table was full including one returning guest. the bar overlooking the kitchen is now 4 people deep. the bar seats have become a hot commodity lately as it provides the guest the opportunity to communicate with ryan and ben while they do their thing. for a very detailed note on the night please visit foodiebudha.com.
a few predinner notes...
being summer time, ryan loves the idea of light, refreshing dishes. there's no need to reinvent the wheel. sometimes nice big, fat chunks of tuna with a little citrus are just what you need to start the evening.
this dish was so good, we thought we needed a few of shots devoted to it. this is the start of the ricotta dumplings. a recipe so simple anyone can make it - ricotta, parmesan, egg and a little flour. 
the finished dish... yummy. ryan added hen of the woods mushrooms, corn and basil to balance the dish. 
ryan's favorite dish of the night. spicy chorizo, smoky sweet grilled cipollini onions and crispy potatoes. bold spanish flavors to compliment the pan roasted halibut.
there are a couple things ryan has adopted regarding southern food, one is PORK BELLY. what's not to love about melt-in-your-mouth pork fat and creamy stone ground corn?
this dinner was extra special because we invited a special guest to help us out. ryan turner of muss & turner's provided the play-by-play on the wine pairings giving the guests an inside look on how restaurants view the marriage of food and wine. this was RT's first prelude dinner. he graciously volunteered his time for this one night engagement. thanks ryan!!!
thank you to all of our guests for joining us. a couple of peeps wished to remain anonymous, so to make this photo easy on everyone, we all turned our backs except for ryan turner who couldn't pass up the photo-op. cheers!
tuna crudo, belgian endive, preserved lemon, marinated olive and sea salt
ricotta dumpling, hen of the woods mushroom, sweet corn and basil
halibut, spanish chorizo, fried potato, grilled cippolini onion
pork belly, riverview farms grits and pickled green tomato relish
grilled beef, local zucchini and heirloom tomatoes, brown butter and bacon thyme jus
sweet corn custard with homemade strawberry jammenu is subject to change and there are no substitutions.
crazy that is has been 8 weeks since our last dinner. ryan + i had the nervous jitters all over again during prep before everyone arrived for sunday's dinner. luckily for me, i only had to worry about cleaning the house while ryan dealt with the food. and thank god for that.
ryan calls dinner menu number 8 one of his favorites. it included some ridonkulous heirloom tomatos that once pureed turned a beautiful melon color, making it hard to believe that no cream was added. a salad of grilled peaches and local goat cheese turned out to be the crowd favorite while we had mixed reviews on the quail. being the peak of fig season, we rounded out the dinner with a double dose of baker yard figs.
thank you to all who attended: lindsey, jeff, alex, jen, leah, ryan, lucy, patrick and don (unfortunately we forgot to take a group shot). the photos below are curtosy of jeff viscomi of adventurous tastes.
a hybrid of traditional spanish gazpacho (including tomato, bread and olive oil) with the addition of some diced zucchini and cucumber for texture.
a southern favorite with a modern twist. grilled peaches with boutique georgia goat cheese, crispy bacon, marcona almonds and a drizzle of burnt honey. the burnt honey lends a nice bitter edge to contrast the sweet syrupy peaches.
the key to a great bruschetta is the bread. light and airy cibatta bread was the perfect vehicle for these pan roasted chanterelle mushrooms. 
a southwestern take on quail. it was grilled over hardwood charcoal and served with a smoky plabano cornbread stuffing and local heirloom bean and cabage slaw. sauced with a sweet and spicy bbq sauce.
grilled pork tenderloin from riverview farms with cast iron carmelized baker yard figs, 12 year old balsamic and fennel salad garnish.
fresh baked warm fig cake topped with old fashioned homemade vanilla ice cream and finished with preserves made from baker yard brown turkey figs.
a few predinner notes...
being summer time, ryan loves the idea of light, refreshing dishes. there's no need to reinvent the wheel. sometimes nice big, fat chunks of tuna with a little citrus are just what you need to start the evening.
this dish was so good, we thought we needed a few of shots devoted to it. this is the start of the ricotta dumplings. a recipe so simple anyone can make it - ricotta, parmesan, egg and a little flour. 
the finished dish... yummy. ryan added hen of the woods mushrooms, corn and basil to balance the dish. 
ryan's favorite dish of the night. spicy chorizo, smoky sweet grilled cipollini onions and crispy potatoes. bold spanish flavors to compliment the pan roasted halibut.
there are a couple things ryan has adopted regarding southern food, one is PORK BELLY. what's not to love about melt-in-your-mouth pork fat and creamy stone ground corn?
this dinner was extra special because we invited a special guest to help us out. ryan turner of muss & turner's provided the play-by-play on the wine pairings giving the guests an inside look on how restaurants view the marriage of food and wine. this was RT's first prelude dinner. he graciously volunteered his time for this one night engagement. thanks ryan!!!
thank you to all of our guests for joining us. a couple of peeps wished to remain anonymous, so to make this photo easy on everyone, we all turned our backs except for ryan turner who couldn't pass up the photo-op. cheers!
