Vera
We work with some exceptional farmers and I wanted to showcase their product. We use Slagel Family Farm, Elysian Fields lamb, and Gunthorp Farms. We made a mouse with the chicken liver, a country-style pâté with the Slagel pork and Elysian Field lamb, pickled Slagel beef tongue, and Sonoma foie gras torchon. We garnish with a homemade blood orange jam, Slagel egg, mustard and pickled piparra peppers. I think something like this is a must at a wine bar, they just go so well together. At a small place like Vera, we have to make use of everything that we have. We also make four different kinds of sausage/chorizo so we always have lots of product in-house. I wanted to find a way to utilize everything, making sure nothing went to waste. As for the foie gras and tongue, well I just think they taste good. One of the things I wanted to do at Vera was serve things I couldn’t serve at other restaurants where I had worked for whatever reason. Part of the fun of having your own restaurant is being allowed to express yourself freely. It might not be exactly Spanish, but it still fits within the concept of a wine bar. We did use some Spanish seasoning (espelette pepper) in the pâtés. It also is something I see other chefs doing and have wanted to try my hand at it. I am really pleased with how they have turned out so far and will continue to experiment and change as the seasons change. I think some sort of vegetable based items in the summer?
$38.00
For more about Steaks see: CHICAGO’S BEST STEAKS & STEAKHOUSES