One day, a Grape server’s wife gave her husband a St. Martha figurine. The figurine, which represents the patron saints of cooks and servers, has been a part of the restaurant ever since. While she generally sits by the POS machine, she got to be in the main dining room last night. And if you stop by The Grape tonight or tomorrow, she’ll be there to greet you.
The restaurant is celebrating the Feast of St. Martha. For the next two nights, you can get a three-course tasting menu for $36. Five dollars from each meal will go to the Stewpot Alliance.
The Grape co-owner Courtney Luscher says Brian, her husband and “the creative part of the team,” came up with the idea after seeing the figurine. The couple wanted to do the event last year, but with the slumping economy and being named best hamburger by Texas Monthly, the two had other things to plan.
Luscher says she’s excited for what she hopes to become an annual event. I got to test the tasting menu last night. Jump to see what the feast is all about.
I had a reservation at 7. When I got there, the dining room was already bustling. The first course is a local salad with Lemley’s tomatoes, pain au lait croutons, Wes and Sean’s hydro greens, marinated Texas goat cheese, and organic chive, zip code honey vinaigrette. For me a salad is make or break depending on the dressing. Rather than have a dressing I don’t like, I’ll go dressingless. I honestly could not get enough of this vinaigrette. It was tangy and sweet and gave the salad a fresh, zesty taste. The entrée was the roasted suckling pig with Napa slaw, a warm fingerling potato salad, and a corn, mushroom, and spinach fricassee. The enjoyed the mix of colors and textures on the dish and the varying degrees of temperature as I made my way around the plate. The pig, which was roasted overnight and then seared before being served, was melt-in-your-mouth delicious. The dessert was Cooper’s Farm peach shortcake. Peaches are at their prime right now. They made the perfect end to a delicious meal. The shortcake was a cornmeal butter cake. It had a dense texture which soaked up all the juice from the peaches and strawberries surrounding it. As I’m typing this, I realize I could definitely go for another serving.
It appeared as though the guests around me were all ordering the feast and enjoying it with their wine pairings. As I walked out the door, I realized the restaurant’s business had definitely picked up. I was worried that your readers may not even be able to get a reservation to participate in the feast, but Luscher says the Grape will have some room tonight and tomorrow. So call now and support your favorite servers and cooks and give some money to a good cause.
- Roasted suckling pig, Napa slaw, fingerlng potato salad, corn, mushroom, and spinach fricassee
