Fire and the Feast — now open for takeout

Chef Schubert Ho spoke about Monday’s opening, number six, in the group of enterprises operated by Feed Me Hospitality and Restaurant Group. He and his partner, Andrew Leckie, have expanded into the former Epulo Restaurant at 526 Main St. with new partners Eleni and Evan Voltsis, longstanding family friends from Edmonds.

Ho hasn’t done a “classic Italian” restaurant to date, and he is excited about the opportunity. His formal training as a chef at Seattle restaurant Piatti, under his mentor Chef Felix Acosta, has prepared him well for this newest endeavor. All the parts come together in our community.

The Pacific Northwest region provides access to the freshest seafood. Wineries and vineyards are a short drive. In Eastern Washington, our farmers grow an abundance of the best produce available in the U.S. The combination provides diners at Fire and the Feast choices of innovative new dishes, aloing with classics like Chicken Penne and Bucatini Bolognese.

Today brings full circle, so many life events in Chef Ho’s life.

He shared that he and his wife’s first child was born on this day. A bittersweet memory, as this first daughter’s life was way too short. He also reflected on the coincidence and timing of events. Open another restaurant during a pandemic, “Why not?”

The very first place Shubert worked as a chef in Edmonds was at Epulo (now located at 190 Sunset in Salish Crossing). After a year, he decided to follow his dream and joined his friend Andrew, to open Shooby Doo Catering in a small space at Five Corners, shared with their first restaurant, Bar Dojo.

More circles were completed. As we spoke about the pizza dough, which is made from scratch at the restaurant, I learned that Victorimo — the individual hired to manage all things pizza at Fire and the Feast —  trained Shubert on pizza making, back at Piatti.

The last “circular connection” we spoke about is how Shubert, of Asian descent, learned to love Italian cuisine. Turns out his Chinese grandmother married an Italian the second time around. His grandma taught him to make chicken parmesan, and ragu — a meat-based red wine sauce that shows up on menu in dishes like Bucatini Bolognese and Nona’s Lasagna.

Speaking of penne and bucatini, all of the pasta is made in-house, and is available in gluten-free versions as well. I was treated to a demo of the Arcobaleno pasta machine. Brass fittings extruded delicate dough with ruffled edges called mafaldine. Staff bragged that this machine has the capacity to produce between 15 – 18 pounds of pasta in an hour.

Somewhere in the YouTube archives is a video of a very young-looking Chef Ho cooking up a storm on television show New Day Northwest to promote Seattle Restaurant Week 2013).  Chef has developed a robust set of skills since opening Shooby Doo and Bar Dojo over seven years ago.

“These last two (years), I’ve been doing more building that cooking,” he said. Ho refers to restaurants SanKai and Fire and the Feast, and his experience with building them out, learning new skills outside the kitchen. “I can do everything from running wiring to baking pizza,” he added.

A pleasant experience will greet customers when dining inside is again allowed. Touches such as new ighting fixtures and the color on the walls make the space lively and inviting. Daylight, via windows over the bar area, is reflected on mirrors that seem to enlarge the whole interior.

“A sense of community,” is how Ho explains why he and Leckie love Edmonds. “We are lucky to do business where our people live; our staff is part of the community,” he said. He appreciates the long-term commitment from staff like Alex Marek, general manager of this new location.

Marek carries on the tradition of sharing experienced in the nine years he’s been with Feed Me Hospitality’s organization. “I learn from Shubert, and pass that wisdom on to the rest of the staff,” he said.

Now on to the food…

Antipasti items — sure to get your taste buds perked up and ready for more

Burrata: Fresh-made cheese sits atop pickled fennel and apples, fennel fronds and orange oil. Focaccia accompanies this salad, perfect to capture the glorious ooze of cheese and dressing on the plate.

Classic Caesar: Fresh romaine, lemony dressing and anchovies grace the top of a cloud of shredded Parmesan and tiny croutons, a treat to fork up with each bite. Attention to detail makes a good restaurant an epic one, an example on this salad the lemon wedge kissed the grill, just enough to stimulate juices to flow. Pretty as a picture and tasted exquisite. This salad took me straight to dinner in Italy, a restaurant on the Adriatic coast, with a menu of fresh seafood: scallops, marinated octopus salad and grilled anchovies.

Herb Focaccia: Crisp crust on exterior, tender moist interior, rosemary, thyme and marjoram accent the top but don’t steal the show.

Fire — items from the pizza stone oven

I sampled Spicy Italian pizza: Toasty fennel adds delightful crunch to the  sausage, mozzarella, Mama Lil’s peppers, roasted garlic, red onion slivers, grana Padano, san Marzano tomatoes, burrata, basil

Feast — items from the stove

Chicken Penne: A dish that Ho demonstrated via Facebook in April of 2020 when he felt “everyone could use a little comfort.” Italian comfort food fresh-made from scratch penne, topped with chunks of chicken, broccoli, Calabria chili pepper flakes, fresh tomatoes, Grana Padano, and  a little parsley to bring that green out in the broccoli. The white wine and chicken broth sauce is so creamy and rich you’d swear there was real cream in this recipe.

Dolci — my favorite course, of course

Hands down my dessert choice was Tiramisu. Middle Fork coffee infused the lady fingers, layered with mascarpone mousse. Cocoa dusted the top of this creamy, rich dessert.

Lursia sparkling water was the perfect beverage to complete my meal. The bubbles were a delightful palate cleanser between dishes.

Flexibility is the by-word at Fire and the Feast. I marveled at the conversion of the front windows at 526 Main St. Ones that face the street were simply opened wide and became the “take-out window.” Tables were stacked with pizza boxes and take-out containers were bagged and handed to customers.

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Such a deal at Cheesemonger’s Table

“Strom can’t pass up a cheese deal,” they said. Restaurant News is so glad that Cheesemonger’s Table owner Strom Peterson scored on this one.

This is what 60 lbs. of provolone looks like! Auricchio Provolone is an Italian provolone that is particularly sharp and is aged for over a year. It is often regarded as one of the best-tasting provolone cheeses in the world. In Italian grocery stores, this cheese is often seen dangling by rope from the rafters, which makes it a very well known cheese throughout Italy. The aging process allows for the flavor of the cheese to develop over time, which ultimately adds character to its eventual taste. This is different from your grocery store provolone and well worth the effort.

Taste test confirm – it is indeed sandwich worthy. We ordered both options that featured this provolone: SME(Seattle’s Own Most Excellent), which pairs Salumi’s Original Salami, provolone and roasted garlic aioli on ciabatta. Simple and elegant, the combination allows both products to shine, a balanced taste in every bite.

The “special” that featured the provolone was a grilled sandwich, and the cheese was the headliner. Salami and thin slices of fresh tomato were great supporting cast, but the melted, creamy Italian took center stage, and rightly so.  To properly enjoy this cheese, go for the grilled version.

Warning- this next bit may add inches to your waistline…

A special pop-up appears at the Cheesemongers Table on Saturdays and Sundays is a Whidbey Island bakery called Sweets N Tarts.

They set up in the area not currently used as indoor dining and offer their delectable goodies.

Names like Ooey Gooey Duck Bars — blonde brownies topped with toasted marshmallow and chocolate bits — are tempting. Photos of lemon bars and triple chocolate walnut brownies, which make one’s saliva production kick into high gear ,are dangerous enough, but the real-life versions, oh wow.

Quality ingredients are the hallmark of every item: Nuts used in the brownies and bars are crisp crunchy fresh. Sweeteners are used with a light hand in recipes, so the lemon bars truly have citrus forward flavor, and sweet from a dust of confectioners’ sugar, not too much in the filling.

After a tiny sample of the pecan bars, I decided then and there… buying one bar for each of us instead of a whole Pecan pie, for three people, would be the best dessert this coming Thursday.

Portions are generous, making these treats a bargain, and I was assured they store well in the freezer too.

Satisfy your sweet tooth, and support local baking endeavors.

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Thanksgiving meal- the updates continue

Still deciding on what to serve this Thursday?

Salt and Iron’s Thanksgiving special features four delicious sides for your holiday dinner — you only need to shop for the bird!

Pre-order your Thanksgiving dinner sides for pick up on Wednesday, Nov. 25!

To order, visit saltniron.com, select online ordering, and be sure to set your time and date to Wednesday evening. From there, you will be able to select the Thanksgiving menu to order sides, and view special and optional wine pairings.

See my previous column for other Thanksgiving options.

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And if you still need to settle on the drinks…

Edmonds-based Scratch Distillery offers Holiday Gin, a festive blend of traditional gin botanicals like juniper and citrus with warm, wintry baking spices including cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and pink peppercorns. The result is a crisp, seasonal tipple that will bring light to your glass throughout the season. You can order it here.

And they have WAcino back on the shelves: Black walnuts, cinnamon, nutmeg, coffee bean, and clove blend in a thick, rich and layered liqueur. Enjoy WAcino in cocktails or after dinner over a single ice cube.

Scratch hours for this week are Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 2-6 p.m. for pickup. But they are also equipped with tents and fire pits at their Salish Crossing location (190 Sunset Ave.) for patio fun. Reservations recommended.

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However you celebrate Thanksgiving this year — on Skype or Zoom with the whole family from far and wide, or at a small table with those you love — please be safe, please be kind and remember to keep a finger that mute button.

— By Kathy Passage

A specialty gourmet food broker for over 30 years, Kathy Passage has in-depth knowledge on food and the special qualities of ingredients used in the exquisite products she helped bring to market. Kathy brings this unique perspective from the “other side of the plate” to writing about the food and restaurant scene in Edmonds, Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace.