Cafe Juanita/ by Shelley Lance, Blog Editor
Frank and I celebrated our 20th anniversary at Cafe Juanita, in Kirkland, last night. Holly Smith, chef-owner, is a Tom Douglas alumna and friend, but unfortunately she was sick at home and we missed our chance to visit with her. However, the mark of a great chef is great team, and even though Holly was not in the restaurant, our dinner was pretty much flawless.
For starters, I had the beet salad (photo top) and Frank ordered Blackmore Wagyu with Parmigiano Reggiano and crostini (photo second from top, right). I always love a good beet salad, but Holly’s is unusually inventive. Nicely dressed, brightly colored disks of beet are topped with a single bombolino, a round fritter filled with La Tur cheese, which is a very soft cheese made in Piedmonte. The whole thing is set on a thin pool of almond butter. Earthy beets, fried dough filled with melty cheese, and a smooth nut butter merge into one of the best beet salads imaginable.
But Frank’s starter might have been even better. We were told by our very young and very professional server that the Blackmore Waygu from Australia is the only authentic Waygu beef raised outside of Japan. I’m not sure I understand all the Kobe and Waygu issues, and I don’t know if this crudo carne was splendid because of the beef itself or the way it was seasoned, but I’m pretty sure it was the best steak tartare I’ve ever tasted. On a crisp crostini topped with a sweet, mellow shard of cheese, the flavor was mouth filling and magical. I stole as many little bites from Frank’s dish as I could get away with, though not as many as I wanted.
For our second course, I had a small portion of the risotto. The rice was cooked with red wine and braised beef- I think trimmings from that same Blackmore Waygu. This dish was rich and delicious. Frank had the radicchio and balsamic salad (photo second from top, left), covered with shards of Parmigiano-Reggiano. I actually remember Holly playing around with the flavors of this salad years ago when she still worked at Dahlia. It is an exquisite play of bitter radicchio, caramel-y sweet balsamic, and salty, crystalline Parm.
For entrees, I had the fish special of the evening- Steelhead trout on a puree of celery root with a butter sauce and microgreens (photo third from top, right) which was beautifully cooked and moist. Frank had the saddle of lamb on a parsnip gratin (photo bottom, left). The lamb was flavorful with a tender, velvety texture.
We greatly enjoyed our bottle of wine, a Barbera d’ Alba (photo third from top left) that seemed to pair perfectly with every dish.
We were too full for dessert, but the kitchen brought out a lemon-thyme sorbetto (photo bottom, right) with a candle in it. Holly is a master of all things gelato and sorbetto, and this was no exception. I especially enjoyed the slight bitter edge of lemon which paired well with a fragrant, honeyed glass of moscato.
All in all, a splendid Anniversary celebration!
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