Dining
Special Promotions & EventsChef Alan Crosby and Dining Room Manager/Sommelier, Dan Tanner are always surprising us with special culinary events and experiences. Here is what you can look forward to...
"Chef's Magic" with Chef Alan CrosbyComfort Food Some of my favorite comfort foods are split pea soup with smoked bacon, any pasta with traditional slow simmered Bolognese sauce, roasted root vegetables, tortiere, and hearty meatloaf with mashed potatoes. Although delicious, and so good for you, does a light artisan lettuce salad with herb vinaigrette offer any satisfaction when the mercury is below zero and the echo of the furnace coming to life fill you with worry over the impending oil bills. I say no! But a beautiful meatloaf with garlic mashed potatoes, roasted carrots and red wine reduction will keep the ice and snow at bay. And when coupled with a rich Rhone red wine, you may in fact, even see your way clear into April. I’m enclosing a favorite recipe of mine for a meatloaf that we featured on our menu in past winters. Might I suggest matching it up with fennel mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables and nice bottle of your favorite rustic red wine! Rustic Country Meatloaf In a large frying pan, cook chopped bacon till soft. Without removing rendered fat, add onions, garlic and mushrooms. Cook till tender and most liquid is gone, Cool slightly. Combine ground beef with salt, pepper, thyme, rosemary, bread crumbs, eggs and mushroom mix. Kneed to combine and place in selected baking pan. Bake at 350 till cooked through. Allow to cool, and for my favorite presentation, cool over night, slice 1 inch thick and pan fry the slices till hot through. (also makes a great sandwich!) See these recipes and more visit my recipe section now! "Off the Vine" with Sommelier Dan TannerConfessions of a Culinary Arts Student Don’t get me wrong, I spend a lot of time around the kitchen and have learned much of the basic knowledge, but even in the last two months I’ve developed a new respect for the people behind the line making the dishes that are being served. It’s been about 10 years now since I’ve been in a classroom on a daily basis so the first few weeks before entering the kitchen were a bit hard to get used to. Studying is not like riding a bike. It’s something that you can easily get out of practice with. Luckily the program is much more hands on than sitting in a classroom. Just yesterday I looked up from chopping vegetables to see a full pig being wheeled past me which was being prepared for the second year students to divide for various uses in the kitchen. Think back to when you were in school. How many times can you say that a pig was wheeled past you? Definitely keeps things fresh! The instructors are excellent, Reimer Fuhlendorf and Eric Matuchet, two former White Pointers’, are tasked with keeping us in check and making sure we don’t burn down the place. And may I say, I have new found respect for these two Chef’s who year after year have to control 18 fresh young cooks who are stuffed full of questions and manage to get all the food out for the campus by 11:30 am. I know I bothered them dozens of times a day in my first week with the dumbest little questions that must have made them wonder if I’ve ever really worked in the restaurant. But honestly, do you really need 8 different buttons to push, just to start an oven? On the service side of the line it really is surprising to learn how much you don’t know about what goes into your plate. While I’m familiar with deconstructing flavours of a dish so I'm able to pair the best wine with it, but to be in the kitchen putting those flavor combinations together - the right combination - is much more challenging. Finding just the right balance with many subtle ingredients is a difficult fine line to walk. But it’s a great to create your own dishes and we have a fair amount of freedom in the kitchen. As long as we explain what we’d like to do before hand, it’s likely the Chefs will be fine with it. I haven’t completely forgotten my wine roots though. By now, my class partners will tell you that my secret ingredient in most sauces or marinades is white or red wine. They all chuckle when they see me coming with my cup of wine for the sauce. Personally I think wine goes well in just about everything, including me…but there are rules about that during class time. Of course there is also the fact that we’re not cooking with the finest of Bordeaux so I can safely pass on the wines that we’ve used in cooking. So here’s to new education. You’ll likely be getting an update from me once in a while as I switch back and forth in my monthly articles between wine and food. Keeps things fresh, and also makes things more interesting reading about the confession of this Culinary student. Cheers, Sommelier Dan Tanner Seawatch Dining Room ReservationsWe invite you to make reservations for any of our Brunches and Dinners, call us at (902) 354-2711 ext # 383, or Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it We will need to know: your last name, phone number and/or email, the date and time for the reservation and the number of people in your group. If you would like to be notified of any upcoming dining room specials, please click here. |
Dining at White Point is always an amazing culinary experience. If you prefer more of an "all inclusive" dining option, for your convenience, we have meal plans to suit all ages!