This recipe is adapted from the cookbook “Passion & Palate” by Seattle chef and restaurateur, John Howie. I ate his food for the first time when I was staying at the Pan Pacific Hotel in the city for an article for EnRoute. The first bite of his seasonal peaches, nectarines and plum salad with candied pecans, local greens and a sweet-and-sour mustard vinaigrette floored me. It had been a long day of traveling, but I wasn’t expecting to be blown away by room service. 
The food came from the Seastar restaurant and raw bar downstairs, and it was a Sunday night. Howie certainly wasn’t even in the kitchen, but the quality of the produce was incredible.
Then came oysters (juicy, plump west coasts, not easts), followed by sesame-crusted local sustainable seared ahi tuna with beautifully blanched snow peas, gluten-free tamari dipping sauce, and wasabi purée.
Then the main: Southwestern cedar planked Pacific King salmon (again, sustainable – all the seafood was sustainable. Boy I love the west coast) with roast fingerling potatoes. And to end, blackberry and lemon sorbet.
Plus wine pairings of all Washington and Oregon wines. I was so full, and so impressed.
Not to mention, the room was stunning, with a view overlooking the Space Needle and a large conference table set for dinner. You walk into this suite and you can breathe. It was by far the best boutique hotel experience I’ve ever had. The staff was friendly without being too casual, and they adapted readily to individual guests personalities and needs.
Not that I was an overly demanding customer. But when I toured the hotel later and simply noticed the Seastar chef’s cookbook on display, my tour guide sneaked a copy up to my room the next day while I was out. It was signed by Chef Howie…
The cookbook is beautiful. It favours fresh seafood and local Seattle products. And the chapters reflect the menu at the Seastar well – ceviches, sushi, southwestern fish, Mexican-inspired sauces, and lots of butter and cream — Seattle comfort food. First I looked up that incredible salad recipe, but back in Montreal peaches and plums just weren’t what they were in Seattle. And ceviche would make me cry because of our sad versions of what we call fish here. But I did find some respectable local, sustainable Arctic char (farmed but without antibiotics or growth hormones added to the feed, so somewhere between sustainable and unsustainable depending on what fish they eat and how those were fished, most likely). And I didn’t have a cedar plank, but I did have ancho chili powder and knew the spices and sweet hollandaise would overpower the bland (read “farmed”) fish anyway. So I made this recipe, adapted to my more northern city.
And it was great. Egg yolk and spices and sweet and bitter molasses plus salt and butter and dinner is perfect. My version wasn’t as great as his southwestern wild salmon (pictured above with the charred broccoli), but I think Chef would have liked with my version with butter-rich grated potatoes (I like more texture in my mashed potatoes, so I boil them, peel them, and then grate them instead of mashing), and seasonal artichokes. He maybe wouldn’t approve, but I don’t know the guy that well. I just like his cookbook.
I can’t give the recipe, but I’ll tell you to buy this book and find some ancho chili pepper, chipotle chili pepper and some blackstrap molasses. Or come to my house for dinner. Better yet, go to Seattle…and get a room with a view.
Leave a Reply