The Mercury's (sort of) anonymous food critic, Chris Onstad, stepped into Castagna's kitchen for a peek into Chef Justin Woodward's magical world of classical meets modern cooking, and is put to work peeling fresh (un-blanched) fava beans and peas. One by one. "...we take a paring knife, notch a particular place, then pull off the lid and strip away the casing. Thousands of times. Together, we spend four man-hours on one ingredient of a six-ingredient dish." According to Onstad, and a Mercury poll, Portland's idea of fine dining tops out at places like Toro Bravo, "Why don't more people visit this monastic temple of food? This is ingredient-forward, locally sourced cooking based almost entirely on classic and ancient techniques, and a crystalline form of all the messages we value in local dining." [Portland Mercury]
Image of Castagna courtesy Avila/EPDX
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