So my "regularly scheduled" blog post for the weekend was pre-empted by a totally unexpected email on Friday afternoon.
I've been anxiously awaiting the grand opening announcement for Restaurant Insignia (Chef Jason's new downtown place; www.twitter.com/chefjasondady) and even brazenly asked for an invite a few weeks ago on Twitter. Imagine my surprise, then, when I received one!
Chef Jason invited all four Dady's Underground Kitchen hosts (see earlier post), as well as several others, to a "soft opening" on Friday evening. After meeting friends for drinks at Tre Trattoria, Bruce met me downtown (his evening plans having been hastily rearranged.)
The restaurant is located adjacent to the Fairmount Hotel, at S. Alamo and E. Nueva. Turn south on S. Alamo from Commerce and use the Fairmount's valet parking (Restaurant Insignia will validate one hour of parking for every $25 spent). According to Chef Jason, the cuisine is "Modern American with Texas Roots." The decor was warm and inviting, with a bright central bar area. We joined about 50 other invited diners, including @cmfoodie's Mary Martini and @SavorSA Bonnie Walker.
We were pleased to discover that our favorite waiter from @Bin555, Derek, had received a promotion to General Manager of Restaurant Insignia. Our server Ashley handed us a menu and informed us that the Chef would be making the selections. After watching the activity for several minutes, Bruce correctly observed that this evening was a "stress test." Chef Jason was testing his wait staff and kitchen by serving nearly everything on the menu to different tables.
For starters, he has developed a marvelous "chef-inspired" cocktail menu. Bruce enjoyed a licorice drink; I unfortunately failed to record the name, but it was delicious. Our "snack" of garlic fries with a harissa aioli began the meal perfectly.
Next, Chef sent out a tuna tartare "poke" with a pineapple mojo. (Here was the only service hiccup of the evening. For all other courses, he sent out one dish for Bruce and I to share. In this case, we got two, which given the amount of food served during the evening, was one too many.) The flavors and textures were perfectly balanced. A wedge salad followed. Bruce described it as a "BLT without the bread." A light dressing complemented the balsamic bacon very well.
The sous-chef in charge of the wood-fired oven kept busy all evening, and a "bacon and egg" pizza arrived next. The crust was tasty and crunchy, and the toppings of quail egg, red onion, bacon and pancetta all blended. Our entree was cast-iron fried chicken with piloncillo waffles and a maple gravy. It sounds super-sweet, but wasn't. As with all his other creations, the flavors all balanced, and the maple in the gravy was perfectly subtle.
Bruce chose a "tres leches" cheesecake for dessert (marvelously light), and I chose a classic Chef Jason nutella mousse cake.
Throughout the evening, Derek and Chef Jason wandered around the restaurant, making sure everyone was enjoying their experience and their meal. I saw a lot of happy diners. Several (myself included) snapped photos throughout the evening.
Restaurant Insignia opens Monday (October 19) for dinner at 5:00 pm. Regular hours will be Sunday - Thursday, 11:00 am - 10:00 pm, and Friday-Saturday, 11:00 am - 11:00 pm.
Good luck to Chef Jason as he begins his new adventure!
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