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Food Date Night Dining By Bill and Christine Dull Temet Grill at Temecula Creek Inn Sometimes a Date Night means getting to experience a makeover. Not
the kind where you go to a salon and spa, but a restaurant makeover. Temec- ula Creek Inn is planning an extreme makeover of its restaurant, Temet Grill, with a major renovation of the facility scheduled to take place this spring. The first phase of the makeover has been installing a new executive chef, David Paul Fuñe. Since August, Chef David and his team have completely revamped the menu with an emphasis on fresh, farm-to-plate cooking, and the results are incredible. We got to experience the changes on our Date Night, enjoying truly fine dining with the high level of culinary talent on display at Temet Grill. Sous Chef Theorun Anderson and Chef de Cuisine Kevin Grant greeted
us and told us a bit about the upcoming renovations, with plans to open up the deck to patio dining and connect the bar/lounge area with the restaurant. They also introduced the new menu, split into two parts: Community Small Plates, starter-type dishes, along with soups and salads; and Main Plated, more substantial entrees that include side dishes. A jovial guy whose pas- sion for food is contagious, Chef Kevin was the inspiration for most of the new menu items. He brings his previous experience at innovative Los An- geles restaurants Providence, Ink, Patina and Church & State to the eclectic
menu here. “Food tastes great; I try not to mess with it too much,” says Chef Kevin. “We try to push the envelope a little here and keep it fun.”
Our first starter
was a showcase for fun, with a whimsical presentation that looked like a cup of frothy cappuccino. It was a butternut squash cappuccino “soup”, thick and rich with bold cinnamon and nutmeg flavors. The froth was a Tahit- ian vanilla infused foam that was ex- tremely light and re- minded us of our favorite coffeehouse’s winter drink. We could easily curl up in front of a warm fire with another cup of this kind of cappuccino. We paused for our Amuse Bouche – a dollop of smoked trout mousse
Since August, Chef David and his team have completely revamped the menu.
served with toast points. Drizzled with a peppery olive oil, the mousse was velvety with a very subtle hint of trout. Says Chef Kevin, “I like to use Temecula Olive Oil, and I added crème fraiche to the mousse to lighten the fish flavor.” Our next offering from the Community Small Plates was my favorite dish
of the night. The Risotto was far from your typical Italian rice; baby peas and carrots were mixed into the creamy risotto along with bits of crispy chicken for texture and a nice crunch. The artfully-arranged dish was pre- sented with a scattering of baby or- ganic greens in a light truffle vinaigrette and a tiny poached quail egg on top. When we sliced into the egg, the yolk oozed over the risotto and worked well with the pan jus sauce to add a savory component. All the separate elements comple- mented each other perfectly in a de- liciously complex creation. We moved on from the Commu-
nity Small Plates to the Main Plated, beginning with the Jidori Chicken. Jidori roughly translates to “from the earth” in Japanese, and the chicken is a type of free-range bird that is common in Japan. Jidori chickens retain less water than most chickens, resulting in a pinker breast, firmer texture, and fuller chicken flavor. Chef Kevin told us they source the chicken from a local organic farm, and the quality of the fresh poultry Continued on page 37
MARCH 2013
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