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Swine and Dine Dish #2 – Chef Andrew Cowan @ Hundred Bar & Kitchen
The rain didn’t slow us down as we headed over to Hundred Bar & Kitchen for our second Swine and Dine Dish (in fact I think the rain made me run faster).
We were escorted to the back of the restaurant and as I had hoped – everyone switched it and sat with new people for our second course. Swine and Dine was turning into a truly social event.
As everyone’s drink orders were attended to, I snuck into the back to see what Chef Andrew Cowan had in store for us. I had heard that he had a Southern theme in mind- and when he started plating I saw some serious comfort food coming together.
By the time Chef Cowan’s team was almost done plating, I literally came skipping out of the kitchen. Unfortunately as a celiac, I knew I wouldn’t be able to experience Chef Cowan’s Southern inspired creation, but I was still excited for the rest of the swine and diners to get a look at his generous portion of pork inspired comfort food.
The oohhs and ahhs were unanimous as a massive plate of pork was presented at our private table in the back room of Hundred Bar & Kitchen.
Chef Cowan creation – Southern Fried Pork and Waffles served with Red Eye Gravy, Bacon Sriracha Popcorn, and Mustard Melons.
No chance at dropping any pounds with this dish, we learned that the pork shoulder was confit in duck fat before being breaded and deep fried. The enormous pork portion was placed on an a massive beer, bacon, jalapeño and cheddar waffle. (After just one bite, my friend Lena whispered in my ear that she could eat bacon jalapeño waffles every day.)
Smothered in red eye gravy, Chef Cowan added a spicy texture to his dish by topping it with spicy Sriracha bacon flavoured popcorn.
I’m still not entirely sure what a mustard melon is – normally I’m not a fan of melons, but somehow Chef Cowan made them taste sweet like peaches, a wonderful conmpliment to the savoury delight.
As my friends bit into their plate of southern-fried goodness, more than once I heard… oh Sharman, I am so sorry you can’t eat this. Thankfully, Chef Cowan accommodated my gluten-free diet with a succulent pork chop accessorize with most of the flavours of my dining companions. When I was done I had to go back in the kitchen and ask how Chef Cowan made my pork chop so tender. He informed me that the secret is to brine pork chops… I told him I would be back for a full explanation for another blog entry.
Even though the portion was enormous…. most people were sending their plates back to the kitchen licked clean. For a cold and rainy evening, it was the perfect dish to stick to your ribs and keep us warm. I’m pretty sure there was a button or two that was loosened as we said our goodbyes and expressed our culinary gratitude to Chef Andrew Cowan and the staff at Hundred Bar & Kitchen, and walked across the street for dessert with Chef Cory Welsch at Moriarty’s Bistro & Wine Bar
