Wildfire Restaurant Review

Wildfire is like finding a refuge of dining in a town of diners. Nice, tasteful, muted decor. A big woodfired oven in direct view. Impressive. But then, the music was loud and raucous, jangly rock mixed with loud ballads.

Service strike one- asked for water with no ice, so the server poured the water while holding the ice. Ice water. Thoughtless. Was this to be another Olympic Peninsula dining disappointment?

It began to improve from there.  The menu had several items that were appealing.  Mussels stood out, but we passed.  The meat too.  We passed on the artichoke dip- too mundane.  The thing we wanted for an app was smoked salmon, baked brie and crostini.  We then selected pizza, what we were there for.

The app was good, decent salmon, if a bit on the small side for the price.  It is definitely a very light app for one, and sharing makes it an amuse bouche.  We ordered pizza with white sauce, artichokes, capers, and one called a meat lover's- sausage, pepperoni.

The pizza was good, a perfect crust.  The ingredients were very good also.  They were compromised though by someones pathological need to load on cheese.  The cheese was heaped in the middle, what we call "center loading" in the business, exacerbating the problem.  The problem?  These well conceived pizzas, cooked in an oven with a lovingly tended wood fire, were undercooked and soggy in the center.  All this potential compromised in a gooey, wet pile of cheese.  So sad.  Of course when you charge $17 for a 12" pizza, you may feel compelled to load it up and compensate with weight.

I will go back, and will request less sauce and half the cheese, hoping that will solve the issue.

Sunset on Day One of '11

Auspicious beginning one hopes.



- Exechobo

Beachwalk- First of the Year

This little crab carapace presented itself to my probing lens.


- Exechobo

Dockside Grill at John Wayne Marina

Why, because we live in a small town, do we accept mediocre food and service when we dine out?  Should we?  Should there be a sliding scale of expectations as one travels away from San Francisco or New York?  NO!  Not unless there is an equivalent diminution of price.  But since we pay as much (or shockingly, more), out here, lets hold restaurants to the same standard, shall we?

We have been anticipating our visit to the Dockside for some time.  A good friend suggested we go together, and we made arrangements to do so.  Good friends alway make a good meal better- brighter, over too soon, shared enjoyment; and a bad meal worse- uncomfortable, embarrassing, slow.

This review is a bit longish, I want to cover this little place well, since we have less than a handful of similar establishments out here.  It is appropriate to get into some detail about them.  Unfortunately, it also lacks pictures, so I substituted a couple of links.  You will have to read the review to find them.

The John Wayne Marina is out of town, and there is almost no advertising for this little place in town or on the highway going past the marina road.  The Dockside Grill is part of the marina, so its survival and prosperity depend solely on word of mouth.  The restaurant is located in the building with the harbormaster, what was the chandler's store, the public restrooms and showers.  So is it worth a drive on dark winding roads to get there?

As we walked in, the exterior is not inviting- there really is no sign, no signature entrance.  In fact you have to kinda know where you are going to find the door in the dark.  On the sidewalk leading to the Dockside you pass the vent for the hood fan blowing out of the side of the building, kind of a warm breeze at face level.  The aroma was good, if overpowering.  It announced that we were getting closer to our destination.  But it was a bit unfortunate to be hit with what you imagine is a greasy wind!  Open the door, and the aroma changes to a smell.  Musty, sewery.  Reminded me of Hong Kong, not pleasantly.

The floor is carpeted with a brown industrial carpet.  Effective at noise abatement, inexpensive, but could that be the source of the smell?  Working to ignore what my nose was sensing, I looked around.  The decor is tastefully warm- brown and lightly nautical, as it should be.  Big banquet chairs, and nice sized granite tables.  I am favorable impressed by the dining surface being a statement like that.  Wine is prominently displayed, but in what would be kindly called an eclectic collection of make shift wine racks.  Lighting is effective, not bad, not dramatic.  Music is just the right volume, nice acoustic guitar vibes.

The servers are dressed in black pressed shirts and slacks.  Just like in the city.  None are obese, no facial piercings or tats, so I am encouraged.  After all, my expectations, if not my standards, have been lowered by life in the sticks.  On approaching, I am also impressed by our waitress' ability to speak clearly and in real good english.  Sentences.  No "umms".  What is the point of being able to speak well if you have nothing to say?  Our server had plenty to tell us about- specials of all kinds, apps, entrees, fish, meat, all kinds of good things.  She does it perfectly, helping us understand the off menu items, and listening to our questions.

The menu is broad and interesting, and lunch is not a downsized dinner, it requires its own visit to evaluate.  The offerings are imaginative and if the off menu specials weren't so compelling, I would dive into this menu.

Bread is served warm, from a very nice local bakery, with a very good olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  I would prefer if the vinegar were left out of the oil, but I know most people like the mix.  The Martinis were served quickly, cold and correctly.  We chose two starters, clams and mussels, both locally sourced from our great Pac Nor fisheries. The clams are prepared in a traditional way, butter and white wine.  There is perhaps more sauce than there should be, and the garlic and herbs could be dialed back a bit to let the clams come through more- they are beautiful little morsels.  I had a bit of sand in the couple I had, maybe this is unavoidable.  The mussels are in a coconut milk curry flavored sauce.  Again, they are tender, perfectly cooked mussel morsels.  The sauce was replete with fresh garlic.  May have been better toasted to remove the bite, but really that is cutting it a bit fine.  Both apps were delicious ways to start.  As an afterthought, we added some oysters harvested a few mile away.  They were well shucked, cold and clean.  Delicious!  The accompanying three sauces were a bit of a puzzle though.  A cocktail sauce, unimaginative but typical; a kind of aioli-like ranch dressing; and what was called, but did not resemble a mignonette.   We enjoyed them straight out of the shell.

Our main courses consisted of New Zealand venison, and locally caught steelhead.  I wondered why the venison had to be imported, but then recalled that there has been a great deal of pressure to close game farms here due to diseases getting out of the captive stock and into the wild.  The steelhead season is just getting started, so I was looking for some inspiration to get out on the rivers and extend the fishing season.  It was also topped with Dungeness crab, that I fancied had been brought into the marina earlier in the day (as we drove in, the commercial buyer had just pulled out).  This is the epicenter of the Dungy Kingdom.  Along with the entrees we had several choices of sides- soups, starches and vegetables.  These were, happily, difficult choices.  They all sounded delicious.

The steelhead first.  When ordering fish, the first thing I check is for cooking.  Ours was perfect.  Just past the translucent stage.  Its flavor was delicate and fresh.  Nothing added to detract from the fish.  I couldn't get a handle on the butter cream sauce, that was broken, but do appreciate it stayed out of the way.  The topping of crab was abundant, almost an entree in itself!  It was delicious, and complimented the fish with its sweetness.  Adding crab to a center plate protein is something done more often than it should be.  With the steelhead, it was a good idea.  The sides were uneven.  The bean soup was very well flavored, but very salty.  The polenta was quite nice, with good flavor from the red bell peppers and cooked well, it was just too thick, if you want to split hairs.

The venison was a real surprise.  We were eating with people raised on venison, and this they rated up with the best.  It was tender, perfectly cooked (rare), and the flavor was deep with its grassiness coming as a hint at the end. The demi-glace was spot on, and enhanced with dried plums and apricots.  Really fine, traditional cooking.  The soup served with it was french onion, also salty.  Could it be these soups are held warm all day?  Surely not, but that would explain them reducing to a concentration of salt like this.

We were shown the desserts in a very well executed presentation by our server.  They all looked very, very tempting.  But they were also very, very mono-chromatic.  Varying shades of cream and chocolate. Nothing light and fruity, nothing new.  But all executed very very well.  We shared salted caramel pudding, and it was truly good, balanced, tasty and restrained.  Mmmmmm!

OK, the summary?  Service as good as it gets, professional, trained, pleasant and informal.  Better than I have seen in several years, including in NYC! Congratulations, someone is working hard at this.  The kitchen can cook.  Dishes are well conceived, and recipes well designed.  Execution is inconsistent with the potential of the dishes, but the central items are so well done they deserve to be enjoyed.  The owners are rightfully proud of their well deserved awards, reviews and experience.  They have been here for over 3 years, so it seems to be working.

The bill was reasonable for the quality of the experience we had.  I will go back.  I would recommend anyone make a significant side trip to visit.  We were at Dockside around 6:30 on Saturday night.  The A team should have been cooking, and the dining room should have been full.  Sadly, it wasn't.  We saw 3 or 4 other parties, all more than 4 diners, but not a full house.  In any city, a restaurant this good would have been on a wait.  But around here, people patronize places they have always patronized.  It is the hill up which a restauranteur pushes his business.
http://www.portofpa.com/marinas/john-wayne-marina.html

Pheasant

Driving out the driveway I passed a couple of pheasants. If I had The Judge with me, we could have taken the big male. The shot was clear. Take the shot!







- Exechobo

Snow!

Not a very original title, but descriptive nonetheless. It was predicted well in advance, but out here it is always a pleasant surprise to see snow like this. Mrs. Hobo is shrieking with delight like a five year old. I immediately recall vivid memories of shoveling before school and at 11:00 at night. Good and bad things, but somehow all happy now.

I sit inside next to a fire, looking out big windows in the home we built and enjoy a moment of complete satisfaction.



- Exechobo

Razor Clam Dig

Here in the Northwest we have traditions. When winter storms hit the coast, and the low tides come before sunup or after sunset, we dig razor clams. People head to the wide sand shoals the receding Pacific reveals as it retreats. They walk down to water's edge in small groups until there is a collection of hardy souls wandering in small patterns with eyes intent on the sand. You see a great slice of Northwest outdoorspeople.



In the center of this picture is a young family, with an infant less than a year old in her mother's arms. Was mom watching her husband dig? Or was she pointing out clam "shows" for him? No. She was down on her knees in the surf, baby cradled in one arm, the other digging after the clam up to her shoulder. What a great way to raise a kid!

At the end of the day the die-hards are still at it, headlamps and lanterns ablaze, looking for the last morsels of sweet claminess.


For us, we broke out pocket knives and sat around with glasses of Scotch, cleaning clams and bullshitting.

With a buttermilk soak, then some Zatterain's fish fry breading, and a 60 second dip in the hot oil jacuzzi, they are mild, sweet and delicious.

- Exechobo

In the Elk Fort

Elk hunting has many methods.  One is to sit and wait. I look for areas with good fields of view, and where I can be screened from view so my inevitable movements are less visible.  I found this natural blind that was just right.  It had been created at the base of a massive ancient cedar tree, logged and re-logged, then the stump cut up to make cedar shingles.  Here there was a pile of roots and new growth the made a nice three foot tall wall covering most of 360 degrees.  Here I sat in the rain and sleet.  Here I heard the shots that were on the other side of the ridge, the right side, downing an elk.

Once In A Lifetime Opportunity

How often is it a true statement? Especially when applied to real estate? We had a chance to look at such a opportunity this week, a certified once in a lifetime opportunity to buy a piece of land on a lake inside a National Park. A pristine lake, where there are 5 other such lots and the last one sold over 60 years ago. Three quarters of the shoreline will never be developed, and it is accessible year round.


- Exechobo

Afield

That is where I am, in the rain forests of the Olympic Peninsula west end.  M is holding the fort.  She has had enough firearm training to gain my full confidence that she is as likely as I to harvest our winter meat.

As I write this, the weather is Autumn perfect.  Crisp in the morning and bright, warm afternoons.  The smell of burning leaves and wood perfumes the air.  Too bad that just about 60 miles and 34 hours away it will be grey, rainy, wet and raining.  It will rain almost all the time.  Every day will bring rain.  Rain.  That is why it is a rain forest, and that is why we hunt elk there, to ensure that it will rain.  And to make sure we experience the rain.

Why do we love to hunt elk? Are you kidding!?  Have you ever been close to a Roosevelt Elk in the woods, with a rifle in hand?  Nothing can make one feel more intent, focused and in a zone.  These are the largest of the elk, and the herds on the Peninsula are in very good shape, especially after last year's mild winter.  If we manage to see one that is the right size, and in a place we can shoot, the entire group will be set for meat for the winter.

It beats deer hunting all to hell.

Matsutake Madness

We found a glen deep in the forest carpeted in lush green moss. The blowdowns were thick, but we were able to pick our path carefully through it all. The stillness and wetness emphasizing the primordial nature of the Olympic Peninsula.

Here we found a patch of Matsus. This prized mushroom defines toothsomeness. It also has a very strong flavor of it's forest. Fir, moss, decay. Grilling retains that flavor best, but caramelizing makes it more palatable to some. Commercial pickers would love to find a treasure trove like this. These mushrooms sell for $25 in San Francisco, and up to $300 in Japan. We will never tell!


- Exechobo

Apple Harvest

In between fall storms the peninsula is paradise. We have been reveling in days of little wind, intense sun and cool mornings. The shortening days make one appreciate these days even more.


One of the activities that get our attention is harvesting apples. Apples of all kinds, including the derelict orchards we sometimes find in the woods. But today it was a friend's mini orchard that needed pickin. A ladder, a bucket, a trailer behind a tractor and three of us can pick a tree clean in no time, enjoying the weather and companionship as we do so.



- Exechobo

Crazy Mushroom

What can it be? Nothing in our field guides is similar. Bizarre fungus genitalia.

Mushroom Hunt

We spent a few happy hours in the woods, scrambling over fallen trees and scooting amongst alder scrub.
With our field guide in hand we sampled fungi from a couple of areas. Lo and behold, we found a few edibles! Most interesting was the shaggy mane. We found a perfect eating specimen as well as a couple that were starting to consume themselves. When they do that the result is an exuded liquid that makes excellent ink

Walk in the Woods

I feel the forest pulling me deeper into its mossy dark depths. The size of the old growth firs, spruce, hemlock and cedars at first dominate my mimd. Then, Quiet, cushioned steps lead to minute discoveries. Tracks, slugs, plants, insects. Off piste is a world within the woods. Trod mostly by Roosevelt Elk.


- Exechobo

Working for Food

We are now executing plan F for lunch on Saturday. The list we worked through includes:
Crab Fest
Sabai Thai
Kim's
Viaggio Pizza at the market
Cedar Brook Farm
These are the places we tried to eat at. I am perplexed with a restaurant industry that takes Saturday off. I had always found that day to be the second most profitable of the week, accounting for about 35% of the total weekly profit.

No, the hunger to succeed is muted out here. Except for Viaggio, who were rained out- the oven won't keel temp and the make table is unusable when wet!

But we actually benefitted from the long search for an open restaurant. We ended up at Alderwood Bistro.


This tiny place on Alder Street is a serious restaurant. Most important they take great care in planning and preparation of dishes made around local and regional food. Highly recommended.

- Exechobo

Fungus Finds

Hunting season is here- deer, grouse, elk and mushrooms. It is a great season to be in the woods, and there is no better reason than to bring home something good to eat.



Mycology is the proper name for the study of fungi. It is a field important to mushroom hunters, for making a mistake in identification is potentially fatal. We have begun our schooling, fortunately there is a good Mycological Society locally.

Field work begins today in the fir forests known to be a favored environment for chantrelles.


- Exechobo

On the Water

Fishermen= Optimist. We all know salmon fishing is now a matter of pure chance. The runs never achieved a level that generates confidence that we will catch a limit. But we go out between storms to try, trolling vast areas, intently watching the fish finder.

Of course any day on the water is a good day, and fellowship makes it even better. Sunrises like this don't hurt either.

Crab Fest

Not a festival of my ex-wives, but a celebration of this, the meatiest of all the crabs, size for size The Dungeness Crab is possibly the most significant wild food of our area. We build our calendar around it. We have not yet forgiven our daughter for interrupting the crab season for a mere wedding.

The festival is in Port Angeles. Crabs and crab cooking dominate the event. The smell of crab is in the air.


When we arrived, I went first to the back of the tents to see the crabs and the kitchens. The booths, music and attractions didn't faze me. All I wanted was to gaze at Dungies.

Saturday Fair

The worst thing about our little farmer's market is the name- Open Aire Market. Aire! What the fuck!? How about ye olde farme faire? The pretension is appalling. Quite.





Anyway, once you overcome your loathing for the name, it is a decent Saturday market. I especially like that the food booths are local people. This pizza cart is better than any you get anywhere else on the peninsula. Strolling the market is a good way to socialize and meet your townsmen.