http://www.primogrilltacoma.com/blog/ Latest blog entries from staff at PrimoGril en-us Tue, 07 Sep 2010 05:54:19 PDT Tue, 07 Sep 2010 05:54:19 PDT Primo Grill CMS http://www.primogrilltacoma.com/blog/exciting-new-venture-primo-grill/ Jacqueline and I are pleased to announce the opening of our new restaurant, Crown Bar, in fall 2007. Crown Bar is located just a block from Primo at 2705 6th Avenue in the space formerly occupied by Gary's Steakout. Crown Bar will be open at 5pm Tuesday through Sunday and will close at midnight Tuesday through Thursday, 1am Friday and Saturday and 11pm Sunday. Crown Bar will offer a full bar with hand mixed specialty cocktails, and an eclectic affordable wine list of wines by the glass and bottle. The menu will offer "World Street Food" appetizers including currywurst; quesedillas; and chicken tikka, cajun shrimp, spicy beef and veggie kebabs. We will serve Gerry Stokesberry's organic chicken, buttermilk fried, and Thundering Hooves range fed beef in our burger and bratwurst in addition to trout, scallops and spice rubbed steaks. We will continue to source meats and produce from local farmers Terry Carkner and Cheryl Ouelette   Desserts will be made in house and will be anchored by apple pie and chocolate cake. We have partnered with Phyllis McGavick and Bill Brioch of McGavick winery and Clover Park Technical College to create a Culinary Arts Scholarship which will be our principal charity funded by pre opening and anniversary events and sales of McGavick wines at Crown Bar and Primo Grill. Crown Bar will not accept reservations. Opening is slated for early October.     Thu, 30 Aug 2007 12:16:00 PDT http://www.primogrilltacoma.com/blog/great-guacamole/ Guacamole is the ubiquitous Summertime dip and a huge favorite in our house. We've made it lots of different ways, but last weekend I went low tech with few ingredients and thought the result was very close to the incredible guacamole in Mexico. The key for simple dishes like guacamole is of course to obtain the best possible ingredients. Here's the recipe... what there is to it. 2 ripe avocados 1 clove garlic 2T lime juice good quality sea salt 1 T extra virgin olive oil Cut the avocados in half , remove the seed and scoop the pulp into a bowl. smash the garlic clove with the side of a chef knife, then mince and add to the avocado. Add a nice pinch of sea salt and crush the avocado with a fork, mixing until it is smooth. Add and mix the olive oil and then add lime juice and more salt to taste. Get the chips on the table and eat immediately!   Sat, 07 Jul 2007 14:47:00 PDT http://www.primogrilltacoma.com/blog/yukon-king-salmon-in/ The Yukon King season opened a couple of days ago and we should have fish tomorrow. Rich in Omega 3 fats, from totally wild stocks fished in a sustainable manner the Yukon salmon is absolutely delicious. The Copper River season opened slowly this year, with high prices. There are still openings for Copper River which is late in the year. There is no word yet on pricing or availability for Yukon Kings.   Tue, 19 Jun 2007 10:59:00 PDT http://www.primogrilltacoma.com/blog/my-favorite-summer-chicken-recipe/ I owe it all to Jacques Pepin for this one. Hat's off to the master chef and his recipe for Grilled Chicken with Tarragon Butter on Green Beans, pancetta and shallots. His recipe but my adaptation.... Enjoy!      Grilled Chicken with Tarragon Butter and Green Beans for 6 For the Tarragon Butter:  1/4c picked minced tarragon, 2 T minced shallots, 1/4t minced garlic, 1T lemon juice, 1/2 t lemon zest, 1T olive oil, 1T apple cider vinegar, 12oz unsalted butter, salt and pepper to taste. Place all ingredients in food processor and process to smooth consistency. Check seasoning. Butter can be refrigerated or frozen until used. For the beans: 1.5# small green beans, 6 slices pancetta or 3 slices bacon, 3 sliced shallots. 1/4 c olive oil. Salt and pepper. Blanch the beans in boiling salted water until they are partially cooked, about 3 minutes. Drain and chill under cold running water. Refrigerate until ready to use. Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium high heat. Add the pancetta and shallots. Cook until the pancetta is colored and the shallots begin to wilt. Add the beans and cook until the beans are slightly colored and cooked, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. For the chicken: 2 fryers, cut in half. Olive oil, Lemon, Salt and pepper. Rinse the chickens and dry with paper towels. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil and lemon. Let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes. Heat the grill to high heat. Brush any excess oil and lemon off the chickens and grill, skin side down first, lid of barbecue down, turning every 5 minutes until the chickens are golden, crisp and cooked through, about 15 to 20 minutes. Cut the chickens into manageable pieces, and serve family style on top of the beans on a large platter. Finish with some tarragon butter on each piece before serving. The tarragon butter recipe is enough for two batches of chicken or could be served on wild king salmon. Enjoy! Thu, 24 May 2007 20:00:00 PDT http://www.primogrilltacoma.com/blog/local-organic-chicken-at-primo/ In our efforts to bring you local sustainably grown food we connected with Gerry Stokesberry, a farmer from Olympia. On Monday he delivered our first batch of local sustainably grown chicken. I have to say it's probably the best chicken I've ever tasted. That's the good news. The bad news? ...No more chickens for two weeks as a dog got into Gerry's chicken enclosure and destroyed 130 birds! But in 2 weeks and thereafter, great grilled local chicken at Primo! Swing by and try it. Thu, 17 May 2007 13:01:00 PDT http://www.primogrilltacoma.com/blog/brining-pork-chicken-great-grilling/ The forecast is for 73 degrees and sun today, the "official" start of the barbecue season. I barbecue all Summer long on my trusty rusty Char Griller with cast iron grill racks for pro grill marks and attached smoke box for smoky ribs. I also use the very reliable Cowboy charcoal from Lowes for great results. The high direct heat of an outdoor grill can suck the life out of grilled food, and brining pork and chicken can make the difference between so so and truly delicious grilled food. Brining is a simple technique that adds moisture and flavor and breaks down muscle so that chicken and pork grill up tender and juicy rather than dry and chewy. Mon, 07 May 2007 10:59:00 PDT http://www.primogrilltacoma.com/blog/copper-river-king-coming/ Here is some information about the Copper River opening for this year. The first opening is slated for Monday May 14th. In previous years wholesalers have been able to book Alaska Airlines planes to ship to Seattle, however Alaska got burned by a non opening in 2006 so will not allow planes to be reserved. In fact wholesalers are quoting Wednesday 16th or even Thursday for the first fish. Last year was a poor year for Kings but great for Sockeye, reflected by the very high opening prices for Kings. This year wholesalers expect prices to be up again. Wed, 02 May 2007 19:07:00 PDT http://www.primogrilltacoma.com/blog/local-food-connections/ As food production has become more industrialized, globalized and disconnected from our lives it becomes more and more important to cultivate relationships with local small farmers so that we can understand and appreciate the connection between the land, the farmer, good food and our own health. At Primo we work mainly with two locals, Terry Carkner of Terries Berries who supplies most of our greens, berries and Summer vegetables during the growning season, and Cheryl Ouelette, AKA The Pig Lady who farms pigs and chickens and brings fabulous free range whole pigs to the restaurant which we roast in our wood oven.  Mon, 30 Apr 2007 16:24:00 PDT http://www.primogrilltacoma.com/blog/state-primo-blog-1/ Welcome to my "State of Primo Blog." In it I will give my take on culinary trends, equipment and seasonal foods as well as a sense of what makes a restaurant tick. Cheers!Springtime for a chefOf all the seasons Spring promises the most for a chef but delivers very very slowly starting in March. Spring also gives an indication of availability of many foods for the rest of the year, especially local wild fish. The first big event is the start of the halibut season at the end of March. Halibut is a favorite around here but especially when it first becomes available. Wild salmon usually becomes available around the same time, however this year fish is scarce and pricing is close to Copper River levels. Columbia River salmon are beautiful right now. Of course Copper River Salmon itself is available in mid May with Yukon King Salmon in mid June. Thu, 05 Apr 2007 18:50:00 PDT