Bee Appetit: This monthly meal is the hottest ticket in town, and it’s a bargain
In the process of chasing the wild-caught California King salmon from sea to plate, I visited Mulvaney’s B&L to see how they were preparing the fish they had purchased from Ferrari Fisheries.
Chef John Trujillo was slathering the filets, all 22 of them, in a marinade in preparation to be grilled on cedar planks as part of the restaurant’s family meal. That was just the main course.
Mulvaney’s family meal is a regular event, usually on the fourth Monday of the month; this time they pulled it back a week so as not to coincide with the holiday. It’s a four-course meal of the restaurant’s signature farm-to-fork cuisine, served family style, all for just $50, plus drinks.
It started as a love letter to people in the industry, who are more typically free on Monday evenings. However, it didn’t take long before word got out and it became a hot ticket. Each family meal is announced on social media the day after the previous one, and it usually sells out swiftly.
On this occasion, they ended up with a few extra seats. The Mulvaneys invited me to join, and food was provided by the restaurant.
The evening kicked off at 6 p.m. with cocktails and mingling. The evening was pleasantly warm, and the winds had thankfully abated. The restaurant utilized all its space, including its banquet hall, which opened out to the street, as well as streetside outdoor table and its charming courtyard. It was ample space for the well-heeled crowd to mix and chat.
Family meals are generally centered on a theme. This month, with a nod to the return of warm weather and of course the salmon, it was all about the promise of summer.
The first course was a tumble of fresh vegetables, ribbons of zucchini plus Romano beans, sweet peppers and radish from Fireclay Farm, tossed in a delicate bagna cauda dressing.
The pasta course harkened back to springtime, with a housemade pappardelle, silky noodles tossed with the restaurant’s bacon, baby artichokes, asparagus and wild fennel.
At last, the salmon arrived, served on cedar planks with simple white rice from Bosworth Farms, Soil Born Farms’ broccolini and chef Trujillo’s Japanese-style pickles. Cooking the salmon on cedar planks helps it cook more slowly, resulting in a lush, buttery texture.
For dessert, Patrick Mulvaney made a pistachio custard on a base of shredded phyllo, served with blackberries.
As the evening progressed — and the wine flowed — the room became boisterous and convivial. After the final course, guests began to trundle off into the balmy evening.
