james beard foundation 2012 semifinalists

jen + i wanted to say congratulations to our dear friend greg hardesty.  greg is a huge part of why i am as passionate about cooking as i am, and more importantly he is a dear friend.  i credit a huge part of my cooking to the philosophy of this indiana chef.  a way overdue nod to a chef who has pioneered the indianapolis fine dining scene for the last 14 years.  if you ever find yourself in indy be sure to stop into his restaurants, recess and room four,  for some of the best indy has to offer.  congratulations old friend!

we would also like to say congratulations to atlanta's own huge acheson of empire state south and billy allin of our favorite atlanta restaurant, cakes and ale for best chef semifinalist southeast!

a february dinner

it's been a while since our last dinner as we have been working on developing our small batch program and taking steps to make staplehouse restaurant a reality, but we were back at it last weekend and here are some pics from the night.

roasted duck breast with sauteed brussels sprout leaves, confit duck leg, caramelized fennel, FL orange, mint and candied ginger.

 grilled lamb shank with herb spatzel, swiss chard and roasted cherry-black pepper jus.

cherry clafoutis with soft cream and winter spice syrup.

not everyone from the dinner is pictured, but thank you to jackson, trey, lisa, jessica, charles, cathy, justin, jonathan, jason and emmanuel for joining us!

sunday, february 19th 2012 - SOLD OUT

menu

--

oyster and clam stew, crackers, hot sauce

roasted duck breast and confit of leg, brussels sprouts, naval orange, candied ginger, mint

grilled boarder springs lamb shank, lamb bacon, herb spaetzle, swiss chard, roasted cherry-black pepper jus, goat cheese espuma

cherry clafoutis, winter spice syrup, soft cream

toasting to allen jones

an evening to celebrate one of our city's true greats!  the weekend before last, staplehouse participated in a night of food and drink, to celebrate allen jones.  who is allen jones you ask?  he is only the man behind such great restaurants as restaurant eugene, 4th & swift, bocado, miller union and many other greats.  mr. jones is responsible for helping young restaurateurs get it together.  business planning, bank interviews, networking and coaching you through every step of the process. staplehouse is fortunate enough to be working with allen and we jumped at the chance to honor the man of such great influence.  below are some pics from the event which jay swift, of 4th & swift and his amazing crew were kind enough to host.  check out more talks on the night and pictures here at liveurbanlux.com.

miles macquerrie of kimball mill

"the consultant" by kimball mill

greg best of holeman & finch public house

staplehouse char siu pork cheep with carrot ginger salad