Park Kitchen

422 NW 8th

Portland Oregon 97209

503 223-7275

http://www.parkkitchen.com/

The Chef and the Saint chose Park Kitchen, a cutting edge restaurant focusing on local seasonal cuisine, for their night on the town with the CA Scotch Couple. And, as the two couples strolled through the the North Park blocks, a hip and happenin' arts area in the Pearl District, they noticed that the temperature had dropped and the breeze had picked up. It was almost cool, certainly cool enough to sit outside — a very pleasant surprise.

The second pleasant surprise came when the very friendly and highly efficient waiter presented the drinks' menu. There was a relatively decent smattering of single malt whiskys, and a rather large stock of interesting looking bourbons. Since the CA Scotch Couple's past bourbon experiences could be characterized as hit or miss (mostly miss), they were excited to take the opportunity to try something new. They settled on a Four Roses Small Batch, since they considered the regular Four Roses Bourbon to be actually worthy of the Drinks Table.

Park Kitchen's Drinks' Menu

The highly efficient and friendly waiter returned with a generous pour of the Four Roses Small Batch, and the CA Scotch Couple gave it a try. Alas, it was a bit disappointing. While the palate was caramelly sweet with a hint of citrus, the finish was harsh and bitter. They were lamenting not being able to add Four Roses Small Batch to their list of worthy bourbons when their highly efficient and friendly waiter stopped by and overheard them.

He advised the CA Scotch Couple that if they wanted to sample a really special bourbon, they should give the Pappy Van Winkle 20 year a try. He also pointed out that he could serve them a half a pour in case they didn't like it. Did we mention that he was highly efficient and friendly? The CA Scotch Couple jumped at the offer.

Pappy Van Winkle 20 Year was certainly worthy! Its most remarkable characteristic was its lush, round, chewy body. The palate was infused with butter with just a hint of maple, honey and vanilla. And, while the finish was a bit fizzy, it was still quite nice.

Later the highly efficient and friendly waiter filled the CA Scotch Couple in on what else made this bourbon so special. Supposedly, the entire state of Oregon was only allocated 1 case of this nectar, and 1/2 of that ended up in Portland. Park Kitchen's bar manager, Shane King Feirstein, is both a spirits aficionado and connected, and he had managed to snag a bottle for the restaurant as part of his ongoing effort to stock Park Kitchen with interesting spirits. The highly efficient and friendly waiter offered to introduce them to Shane, and the couples had a rousing discussion with this incredibly informed and quite nice bar manager.

Soon the food began to arrive, and arrive, and arrive. The Chef and the Saint had ordered the Small and Large Tasting Menu for the table, and the CA Scotch Couple were treated with wave after wave of wonderfully interesting dishes. Each dish was unlike anything the CA Scotch Couple had experienced before and reflected a blend of fresh ingredients and fantastic flavors. The highlight of the meal was chocolates from Xocolatl de David which combined sweet and salty to perfection.

The Chef and the Saint and the CA Scotch Couple, wiled away the summer evening and then ambled over to nearby Powells books for a perfect ending to a perfect evening. Join us next time, Loyal Scotch Chix Fans, for CA Scotch Chick's review of one of her favorite bookstores.

Also, below, please find CA Scotch Chix' review of Four Roses Small Batch and Pappy Van Winkle 20.