News
The Holidays are here – most important are our Holiday hours.
We will be open on Monday December 24th and Monday December 31st from 8am to 3pm. Enjoy breakfast all day, lunch, finish some last minute shopping, or pick up your holiday orders. Remember, we close at 3pm on these two Mondays, and then revert back to our Tuesday through Sunday schedule on January 2nd.
Tuesday through Friday the Café serves from 7am to 3pm, while the Market stays open until 7 with a great selection of food to go for an easy dinner. Saturday and Sunday we open at 8am, serving breakfast all day and lunch until 3pm, while the Market is open until 4pm.
Download our Low Stress Holiday (kind of an oxymoron, I know) Menu here in PDF format. Orders close on Thursday December 20th for the 24th, and Thursday December 27th for the 31st. Count on La Cuisine to provide you with everything from Hors d’oeuvre to Dessert, and everything in between.
Food
One of the joys of this business is getting to know the people that actually produce the items we sell. Some of the most interesting in the lot are those involved in olive oil and vinegars. Albert and Kim Katz started a restaurant in San Francisco at about the same time we began La Cuisine. The intervening years have allowed the Katz’s to develop their passion for artisanal ingredients as founding members of the original California Olive Oil Council. Today, their Katz Kitchen Line is a leader for beautifully balanced oils and vinegars.
We just received our prized allocation of the newest crop of oils – the December’s New Oil. Brilliant green, amazingly peppery without being too acidic, this is simply great fun to play with. I wouldn’t cook with it, but use it on a piece of bread, drizzled over polenta with wild mushrooms, or finish a bowl of pasta with winter greens with a drizzle. Give it to someone who will appreciate it’s unique qualities, and use it up by April! It will definitely age in the bottle, and much like a Beaujolais, loose some of the sparkle it has today.
Equally delightful and even more tightly allocated is Katz’s Gravenstein Apple Cider Vinegar. Also just made and bottled last month, the hit of apple is the first flavor you get, followed by the more familiar vinegary taste. We’ve made superb salad dressings, used it to deglaze a pan of sautéed chicken and spinach, and are finding new uses every day.
We have limited quantities of both of these. Feel free to call the Market, 488.7779, and buy a bottle (or more) today. We will be happy to ship any of our products for you.
Other Holiday items:
Festive Gift Baskets combine products we make in the kitchen with those we find elsewhere, ranging in price from $25 to $150.
Cookie Trays filled with 8 varieties of our house baked treats, small, medium and large.
June Taylor Preserves are back, from Berkeley, probably the highest fruit to sugar ratio on the planet. The flavor of organic fruit, cooked just after picking in very small batches, is truly amazing.
The Mountain Fruit Company Jams, also from California, are back in stock as well.
Rick is an ex Yalie with a passion for all things pickled. Based on the Lower East Side in New York, the mother ship of pickledom in many minds, Rick and his talented crew will pickle just about anything, and pickle it well! Try Kool Gherks, Windy City Wasabeans, and the rest of the line. Rick’s Picks – Great Stuff!
Gift cards in any denomination can be sent to anyone on your list.
Rosa Mexicana came up with a Pomegranate and Black Bean Salsa that is a welcome new twist on the tomato based theme.
The Napa Valley Tapenades are back in stock just in time for Holiday parties, or savoring the day after, privately, after the crowd leaves.
Cheese of every description, many from New England, as well as around the world. Try a jar of Dalmatia Fig Spread with your selection, coupled with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc.
Artisanal Salamis and Hams from the country’s best producers – Fra Mani and La Querica. Great pork, small batches, careful aging, truly special.
And please be sure to check out the Holiday Baked Goods - download the menu here in PDF format. You will find the traditional Bouche de Noel filled with mocha buttercream and covered with a dark chocolate ganache, our Linzer Torte, redolent of cinnamon and almonds with farm fresh raspberry preserves, and a full range of pastry geared to make breakfast extra special.
Events
We are in the final week of the Holiday catering rush as I write this. It has been a great opportunity to see many of you, and to showcase new menu items and presentation schemes. We have a few smaller, intimate events scheduled for New Year’s Eve we are looking forward to. If we can help with a last minute event or a selection of platters for you to take home, call catering today at 488.7100
It has been a year of many changes – the opening of the Café and Market expanded our staff, our workload, and most importantly has brought us into contact with many new guests who are enjoying our approach to full flavored foods coupled with caring, attentive service. Our catering menus have benefited from our increased product line as well, and will continue to reflect each client’s vision. We truly appreciate the support you have given us, and look forward to seeing you in the Café and Market, as well as at catered events in 2008.
From all of us at La Cuisine, to each of you, sincere best wishes for a safe, happy and healthy New Year.
© 2007.
Published as often as time allows by Ben Bloom and La Cuisine Café • Market • Catering.
All articles written by Ben Bloom unless otherwise noted. All photos copyright Ben Bloom unless otherwise noted.
La Cuisine Café • Market • Catering
750 East Main Street
Branford, CT 06405
email:
Phone: 203.488.7100
Fax: 203.488.7144