Sacramento Magazine
page 181
By Gloria Glyer
Photography by Michael Powers
Yvette and Matt Woolston’s Supper Club is the place to Dine with a capital D—a place to savor with the eyes and the taste buds incredibly prepared food at tastefully adorned tables. This is an “occasion” restaurant.
Because the Dining Divas do not do dinner, the Woolstons agreed to prepare a fixed-price lunch with five courses and appropriate wines for us; their dinners usually comprise seven courses. To make it more of a true Supper Club experience, the Woolstons invited three other groups: a pair, a foursome and a party of eight.
Supper Club features a fixed menu each month; our lunch repeated many of the same dishes planned for March dinners, with wines to match, chosen and poured by Doug Bellamy of Wine Warehouse—a sommelier if there ever was one.
The Menu Our menu included Sonoma Moulard duck foie gras on brioche toast with basil pesto aioli and tomato tartare (served with Renwood Barbera 2000, Amador); puréed asparagus soup with aged Asiago cheese crisp and white truffle oil (Shooting Star Aligote 2001, Washington); buttermilk-bathed pan-fried poussin—baby chicken—over scalloped garnet yams with white gravy (Roche Estate Pinot Noir 2001, Carneros); pink-peppercorn-crusted filet mignon of Atkins Ranch lamb over cranberry beans and huckleberry gastrique (Mas de la Barben “La Danseuse” 1999, France); and for dessert, a choice of Meyer lemon cake (Yarden Heights Wine 2000, Israel) or assorted cheeses (Prager Winery & Port Works 1999 Petite Syrah Port, St. Helena). Matt Woolston announced one surprise, which arrived between the brioche toast and the soup: a bit of lobster encased in filo with carrot emulsion, fresh ginger and pea sprouts. The chef always slips out of the kitchen to set the stage for the meal with a few words about the food and its preparation.
The Setting The restaurant is simple and slightly warehousey looking. The walls, said guest Kim Cemo, are an “Ultrasuede brown”; Fudgsicle also comes to mind. One wall is exposed brick; the ceiling is high and industrial looking. “It reminds me of something in San Francisco,” said Diva Gayla Mace. “I like the feel.” “Great setting,” agreed guest Susan Peters. “Love the Sinatra music.”
About the Food This is a place to appreciate the presentation as well as the flavors. The first course arrived encircled with dots of color, echoing the clear, colored stones scattered across the tabletop, as noted by guest Muriel Johnson, a Sacramento county supervisor. The foie gras on brioche was one of her favorites—“delectable,” she called it. Most comments on the food ran to superlatives. The lobster’s carrot emulsion added not only color but intense flavor. “It’s almost a caramel sauce in texture,” said Peters. “The lobster was a great presentation that was very balanced,” said Diva Bernice Hagen. “The pairing of the lamb and wine was the best,” said Diva Paulette Bruce. “The carrot emulsion with the lobster surprise was especially innovative.” Cemo called the poussin “Southern-fried-chicken comfort food with California lightness. Awesome.” Guest Merrilee Plesha also loved the poussin. “Wow,” she said. “What memories. My mom’s gravy was never this flavorful, and the poussin was moist, tender and yummy.” Added Diva Peg Tomlinson-Poswall: “This is not your mama’s gravy.” Matt made the Meyer lemon cake because a friend had given him so many lemons. The cake had body and was not too sweet, with a fresh lemon taste.
An Unusual Presentation Although even diners who don’t love lamb praised the filet, many did not care for the cranberry beans. However, the huckleberry gastrique added a surprisingly sweet/tart taste to the dish. Together, the three were workable. Matt explained he had a staff member painstakingly clean the huckleberries, which he then reduced into a very thick, very tasty and colorful sauce. The asparagus soup arrived in a martini glass, which led us to think it was chilled. Wrong. It was hot, and some questioned serving the soup in such a container. I thought it was a fresh approach, matching the fresh flavors of the soup, which did need a sprinkle of finishing salt from the miniscule crystal dish. Cemo made use of the Japanese sea salt Tomlinson-Poswall always carries for emergencies. Tomlinson-Poswall, the foie gras queen, loved the liver but thought the pesto overpowered the delicate treat. White truffle oil seems to be appearing everywhere, just like cilantro did a few years ago. “Truffle oil is way too ubiquitous these days and can be overpowering,” said Leineke. “This was pretty subtle, though. Eating the cheese crisp with the soup, however, brought it all together.” June 2003 Sacramento Magazine