We were first-timers at last night’s Dinner in the Dark, the monthly six-course-plus feast put on in various venues by an ever-changing cadre of local chefs. Founded some 18 months ago by top toques Brian Okin (formerly of Verve and Fountain), Jeff Jarrett (Amp 150), and Ellis Cooley (formerly of Amp 150, now relocated to Florida), the meals are intended to raise funds for local charities while letting the culinary types have some fun in the kitchen, with dishes that they wouldn’t normally try out.
Last night’s bash was at Washington Place Bistro in Little Italy. And no, it wasn’t in the dark. The moniker refers to the fact that the menu and the participating chefs are kept secret until dinner is served.
As it turned out, dinner was a symphony of springtime tastes, with a repeating chorus of herbs, flowers, and micro greens showing up everything from the pre-dinner cocktail — the herbal Botany Collins from master mixologist Joe DeLuca, with its blend of gin, liqueurs, and fresh-picked posies — to a show-stopping seared scallop from chef Nate Barker (Welshfield Inn), accompanied by fiddlehead ferns, caramelized fennel bulb, a ruby red salad of pickled beet, red onion, and shiitake mushrooms, and a garnish of micro celery and sea salt.
This article appears in May 9-15, 2012.