![]() But Barker has high standards, it turns out. She far prefers her Thai Chowder to that one-and indeed, the spring chowder we tried has already been swapped out for a summer version. "It's my least favorite on the menu," she says. If you ask owner and chef Julie Barker, you really shouldn't get the Northwest Spring Clam Chowder at her ice-cream and chowder shop tucked away up some stairs and past an antique store. ![]() Gracie died in February, but both restaurant and chowder survive beautifully.ģ5915 N Highway 101, Nehalem, 50, .Ī hearty chowder with a huge volume of garden-fresh local veggies and a surprising richness of clam flavor beneath it, in an almost hidden chowder shop that doubles as one of the best ice-cream parlors in Oregon. The soup is spiced just to a tickle, deep with herbs and potato and plenty of clam, and leaves behind an unctuous depth that lingers long after each spoonful. The chowder is made fresh daily from scratch, with East Coast rather than West Coast clams, peppered to a light bite, cooked with a host of spices, including basil and thyme, and thickened with a light roux of flour, milk and butter.Įach bowl is given a dollop of fresh butter, parsley and paprika-it's an old cook's trick, but it works. Nonetheless, says Grant, the recipe has remained unchanged for at least 40 years. Turns out nobody quite knows which cook in the Sea Hag kitchen came up with the chowder recipe, but it's been featured in The New York Times Heritage Cookbook as one of the best in the country. "She made everyone at the restaurant feel like it was their own," says Clary Grant, who bought the Depoe Bay restaurant 10 years ago with her husband, Jerome, after serving as its manager for 10 years, where it sits alongside multiple ice-cream shops and a place serving saltwater taffy from an ancient puller. At the 53-year-old Sea Hag, Gracie was an entertainer, a consummate hostess, and a player of the bottles. (Another Believer/CC BY 3.0) (Another Believer/CC BY 3.0) I ate every bowl of coastal chowder between Astoria and Yachats that somebody said was "the best," be it another food writer, friend or even convincing internet advocate. Nonetheless, 100 years of grab-bag chowder tradition has also made for some beautiful soup. Our mollusks' subtle nature probably also inspired the West Coast habit of adding extremely unsubtle bacon. It may hurt my pride as an Oregon native, but most of the best chowders in Oregon are made with imported East Coast clams. Or so I learned after eating at 25 chowder spots along the Oregon Coast while working on Going Coastal, our glossy 2016 outdoor magazine that hits stands June 8. ![]() When it comes to chowder, Oregon's razor and butter clams are delicate and mild, less suited than the East Coast's much brinier sea clam. This despite the fact that, as it turns out, our clams don't make good chowder. Like saltwater taffy and fudge and ice cream, it pervades the beachfront because tourists expect it. If you're a restaurant on the coast, you serve clam chowder. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |