Scratch Update

We couldn't stand it. My husband and I went back to Scratch today for lunch. I got some photos of the suppliers and daily specials:

 Again, a very, very local bunch. Clark Farm in Danvers is where I buy my compost, actually. Furthest supplier is in Corinth, VT.

As we pondered our menu and the specials, our waitress provided us with a basket of homemade potato chips. Slightly oversalted, they were nonetheless a tasty appetizer. My husband ordered the Scratch BLT with their homemade bacon and sourdough white bread. He inquired after the tomatoes and was told they came from a hothouse in Maine. I had a bite and thought the bacon was thick and flavorful but not all that remarkable. I ordered the "Happy Pork Belly" special: "beer-braised heritage pork belly with sweet-heat pepper relish + pesto mayo + cabbage slaw served on a baguette." I asked that they hold the slaw; I love cabbage, but it hates me. We also shared a side of the grilled asparagus from Wilson Farm in Lexington.

Pork bellies sound like some weird political joke. I assure you, they're pure deliciousness when done well, and this pork belly was done very, very well. Pork belly consists primarily of fat, with thin strips of muscle layered in. I don't know how they did it, but Scratch Kitchen gently teased the muscle out of all that fat, resulting in thin filets of pork. Pork belly can also be quite tough, but this meat was tender and juicy, with a slight residual tang from the beer. I wasn't convinced that pesto mayo was going to blend well with a sweet pepper relish, but I was happily wrong about that. The relish was excellent, sweet and bursting with pepper flavor and carrying a very slight kick that countered the smooth creamy mayo. The subtle pesto flavor permeated the bread, which was crusty enough to stand up to both the mayo and the relish, so that I found myself tasting layers of flavor with every bite. Excellent.

The grilled asparagus was served with beurre noir, made with lemon juice. It was the tastiest preparation of asparagus I think I've ever encountered. The cook also cleverly peeled the tough ends of the asparagus so that the spears were tender all the way down. My husband adored these and wolfed down most of them. Both our sandwiches were also served with a pleasant surprise: bread-and-butter pickles including not just cucumber slices but zucchini, summer squash, red and green peppers, carrots, celery, and onions. They were sweet, tangy, and pleasantly firm, not at all mushy. I ate all of mine and most of my husband's, enjoying them far more than the asparagus, which is saying something since asparagus is my favorite vegetable.

For dessert, we had the rhubarb crisp. I have a soft spot for rhubarb. It's early spring comfort food, since it cannot be eaten raw and thus is always served thoroughly cooked and warm. Poorly cooked, it retains a bitter flavor that many people dislike. I tolerate it well, but I didn't have to. This rhubarb was perfectly cooked, not at all bitter, and yet not too sweet, topped with a simple oatmeal crumble. The dish usually comes with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream, which I waived in favor of tasting the lovely rhubarb and because, at this point, I was feeling very, very full.

We inquired on a few points. The waitress told us that their hot dogs are made at Smokehouse of Boston, which appears to be a meat shop in Mattapan. Also, their clam chowder is made using an older recipe that includes no flour, so it's gluten-free and safe for my younger daughter to eat. She'll be delighted.

Once again, we were impressed by the prices. The BLT was $8.50, the pork belly sandwich was $12, the asparagus $4, the rhubarb crisp $7. I can't say it enough: these are great prices for the exceptional quality of the food. Yes, the sandwiches were served in plastic baskets on wax paper. Who cares? That lunch was probably the best meal I've had in months. Hmm... I still need to try the fish tacos. How soon can we go back?

That Elusive Oxymoron: Inexpensive Local Food

Since The Green Land restaurant closed in Salem, we've been having difficulty finding a good locavore restaurant on the North Shore. And then we came across the Scratch Kitchen. Located within easy walking distance of the Peabody Essex Museum in the heart of Salem, the Scratch Kitchen is something I never expected to find: an inexpensive, family-friendly restaurant that serves locally-sourced cuisine.

I took the family there last week, and we were uniformly delighted. My husband, a serious blue cheese lover, ordered the Maine Fries and Great Hill Blue Cheese Fondue, which was utterly delicious. My elder daughter turned up her nose at the stinky cheese, which just meant more deliciousness for the rest of us. One caveat: while this dish is on the menu as a main course, it really is just Maine-grown potato fries and blue cheese fondue. Next time we go, we intend to order it as an appetizer. My elder daughter ordered the kid's mac 'n' cheese, which she loved and which definitely did not come out of a box, creamy and cheesy. My younger daughter ordered the hot dog, which she loved. We're not sure whether the hot dog was locally sourced, but it looked nicer than your standard Nathan's. Minor gripe: my younger daughter is gluten-sensitive, and their menu did not particularly have GF options, but we've learned to carry GF bread with us to new restaurants, and they were happy to take it back to the kitchen and toast it for her dog.

I ordered the fresh catch of the day, which happened to be hake. It was marvelous, extremely well done, buttery and flaky and substantial enough for me to share with my husband. It was served with rice over cooked spinach and accompanied by a sauce that wasn't quite tartar but was delicious.

Don't look for that on the menu. In fact, there were a lot of things not on the menu: rhubarb crumble, soups, and sandwiches designed to take advantage of what's currently locally available. The waiter apologized for being out of fiddlehead ferns. In fact, unlike most locavore venues, they don't post a specific list of suppliers on their web site because that list is constantly changing according to season and availability. Nonetheless, the photo on their web site impresses me with the sheer number of suppliers that aren't just local but very, VERY local: Salem, Wenham, Danvers, Essex. These are all towns within spittin' distance, which means that the owners have done a fantastic job making connections with the farmers in their local neighborhood. And naturally, they take advantage of being just down the coast from Gloucester and use locally caught fish in their dishes. Cheeses come from farther afield in New Hampshire and Vermont, but that's still within the 100 mile radius we strive for.

Scratch Kitchen uses locally raised beef, pork, and eggs, and they smoke their meats on site, including their bacon. They make their own black bean burgers and use Bob's Red Mill flours and oats. They have an impressive selection of locally-produced sodas and locally-brewed craft beers.

What I liked most about Scratch Kitchen was how gracefully the ingredients were selected and harmoniously prepared. My main gripe about Nourish in Lexington is that, while each individual component of a meal is fresh and local and delicious, they have a tendency to throw things together just because they have them and without really thinking about how they should work together. My meal was a seamlessly complementary selection of fish, vegetable, rice, and sauce.

My hake was the most expensive dish at $20, which you have to expect with fresh fish, but everything else was amazingly inexpensive. The fondue was $10, and the kids' meals were about $5 each. I've never seen a locavore restaurant with such good prices, much less one with a good kids' menu. I am looking forward to returning again and again to work my way through all their other offerings: fish tacos, goat cheese panini, burger with bacon and onion jam. Mmmm. Can't wait.