ok

los huevos el jueves-- "eggs on thursday"!

$8.50!

winter

tonight Mathew (of the black door bistro) and I served our final dinner in the three season tasting menu-
serving this dinner in this time (a bit early, maybe for winter, though it does kind of feel like winter already, and often does this time of year), was a bit of an adventure- we both wanted the menu to be an expression of what we both felt most exciting about winter, while also acknowledging the depth, darkness & simplicity of the season.. I wanted to start by a fire, and we did, with whiskey and apple donut fritters- and we wanted the courses to be full filling- filling- and with the expression of simplicity.
Unfortunately, just a week before the dinner, I was notified that my very close friend was suddenly loosing her battle with brain cancer- in this last week i spent many hours with her, and asked Mathew to be prepared to serve the meal on his own.. In many ways, I feel like these last ten days & this dinner too- have been an opportunity for me to fully and completely experience the truth of the season. The depth of winter is so true and absolute- especially here- and we have only the very simplest of things to get us through- and then we do- and suddenly there is spring.....again.
For now,
we have this-
WINTER looming and yet familiar- we have celeriac and beets and carrots- we have the pot Au feu, - the "pot on the fire"... and that we have each other (even though the other may seem a bit distant they are there, believe me)...
Don't Forget-
don't forget to get together- cook gratin- make winter salads- learn new things- and be silent sometimes.

spring will come-


& in the meantime-
we're here-
see you soon.

in the news

Next monday, Mathew (of the black door bistro) and I will prepare and serve our third tasting dinner. Though the event is fully booked, and is the final of our three season theme, we have decided to continue these special tasting menus begining agin in November. Our next series will be entitled "warmth in the winter" and will feature celabratory menus from three different regions of the world, begining with Indonisia, followed by Latin America and concluded with North Eastern Europe. I will write more about these next week- but in the meantime, check out the article in today's Time's Argus.

you can also read more of our interview with Sylvia on her blog

falling in

and suddenly it is the end of September.

Crisp mornings, frost on my nose, on my prized petals, on the tips of kale. I have tomatoes, ginger gold apples and seckel pears ripening in my storage room (i gathered them two weeks ago, just in case of a sudden winter snap) and they are there, ripening, and attracting a few of the remaining fruit flies- I look at my little pile of fruit, my jars of pickles, and my bulk bins of herbs and mushrooms and wonder-- will it be enough? It's hard tellin' not knowin' i guess.. But we always get through the winter- and why should this one be any different?

Kismet has been promising a move since spring of this year-- and TRUST me, I've been working on it!

Sometimes it feels like the weeks move more quickly than i can believe, and as summer gives to autumn, already i have next summer menus in mind while booking solid with weddings for 2010!

These last few weeks have been particularly full with transition- Mathew and I served our second collaboration dinner last Monday ("fall") and we have been working on up-coming menus and themes for dinners to come- and in the midst, i have been making the way for kismet's new home-- it's all so complicated though- so many hoops to jump, loops to untangle, and cliffs to fall off of- and then there is the every morning waking to the questions within my own head-
does Montpelier want kismet to move downtown? what next? how? when? what if...? & there are definitely moments that i stop and look at everything (my desk overflowing, my children wanting my attention, order forms, bills to pay, menus to write, email full, phone ringing, dog scratching herself raw, leaves changing, car falling apart, line of brunch customers out the door, fruit ripening in the pantry, meat curing) and ME in the middle of it all- and I am suddenly very overwhelmed-- how do i take ALL OF THIS and make MORE?

in this industry there is a strange life that happens behind doors- in walk-in's, in meetings, in the middle of the night- there is this constant scraping the bottom to make enough for everyone- then there is what happens out on the floor- the abundance, the fluidity, the grace and charm- I have always been intrigued by the paradox of the restaurant ecosystem- and yet have always gotten a thrill when it all would come together, and the sounds of laughter and conversation mixed with glasses toasting, silver on porcelain, and music fills a room. I love to see people enjoy food- and most of all, i love LOVE love to cook that food that people enjoy. But how do i keep it simple in the midst of it getting more complex?

in ways, i look forward to the lights dimming for the winter skies; kismet is cozy and bright, the lines are shorter or non-existent, and there is more time for introspection. But there is also the awareness that this slowing down is an opportunity to organize and be prepared for the spotlights of the new spring..

& what do you want this winter to be?

tell me what you think-

grow local fest

oh -

you might want to know

that kismet will close

our barre street doors

in full support of the

Grow Local Fest on September 12, 2009 (a little thing to help there be a garden project in every Washington county school)-

INSTEAD

we will be serving a very yummy and local menu up there with them on the college green.

join us,

& we will see you there--or on Sunday (brunch!) September 13, 2009

for our usual hours (8am-2:30 pm)

and don't forget to think about this:

part II: fall collaboration

well-it is kind of crazy that another season is at it's peak (it does sort of seem like spring summer and fall just sort of bloom and wither rather quickly...), and soon another season will follow. in these last few days, i have heard so many happy voices proclaiming their love for fall-- ah, yes, it is so nastalgic, and romantic, and plentiful... there is woodsmoke in the air (it is september, mind you) and there are still warm afternoons and quick swims while we can get them..
and then there is this:
mathew and i are planning part II of our three part seasonal collaboration menus-- and Fall is really around the corner!

if you cant read the above photo- (it is kind of small) it details our next chef collaboration meal, to be held at kismet (all candle lit and cozy), with just mathew and I and our guests.. we have a few reservations already, b ut there are still several open seats- please do consider joining us, and if you miss it this time-- dont you worry, WINTER is just around the corner (our winter menu debuts october 19>>about the time of the first snow.) .
to RSVP for either meal, please contact us through this blog, or through http://www.kismetkitchen.com/, there is a contact us page there, and you can reach us there very efficiently.

would yo like a squizz at the fall menu?

i thought so..
stay posted--
but it may include smoked duck ham, candied crab apple, willow hill cheese, venison, and (amongst other things..) mulled cider and emily's family-made bourbon whiskey...