Et Al. makes Tulsa a dining destination
Paprika not on the menu for Japanese Breakfast!?!
A nasty nerve impingement kept me horizontal much of last week, but when I tried to call in sick the line was busy because that’s what happens when you try calling yourself.
This week I’d planned to write about my visits to Krell’s Delicatessen in Yukon, but I had to postpone the last planned trip for knish.
Luckily, I had some stuff banked from a couple of recent trips to Tulsa. So, I’ll share the first of my thoughts about what’s going on up Route 66 in dining.
The trip to T-Town was inspired by the spate of James Beard Foundation nominees it has recently produced. Et al. is nominated for best new restaurant, Ben Alexander (McNellie’s Group), Lisa Becklund (Farmbar) and Paul Wilson (Sans Murs) for best chef southwest.
The best meal I had in two trips was at Mr. Kim’s, where chef Alexander has fashioned an upscale, late-night dining venue that includes grill tables for communal dining and a food-forward bar menu most restaurants would kill to be able to execute. You don’t have to be a gastronaut to enjoy Mr. Kim’s, but if you are it will only enhance the experience.
As much as I enjoyed dinner at Mr. Kim’s, the meal I can’t stop thinking about was at Et Al.
Not a traditional restaurant concept, Et Al. offers weekly dining services Sunday (Japanese Breakfast) and Wednesday (Dumpling Night). Bischix (biscuit sandwiches) is offered one Sunday per month. Et Al. also offers catering and pop-up dinners called Butter Bar (a dessert event) and Yuki (a Japanese hot pot concept). It operates out of Foolish Things Coffee Co. when it’s closed.
I attended Japanese Breakfast along with chef Kurt Fleischfresser and his wife Jayne, who happened to be in town to help Thirst Wine Merchants honcho Alex Kroblin celebrate turning 50.
Don’t be put off by the fact that the best thing we ate at Japanese Breakfast was French. Furthermore, don’t be broken-hearted to hear the breakfast service did NOT include a playlist of music from Michelle Zauner’s band. Nor did the sound system play Zauner’s reading of “Crying in H Mart.” A pity to be sure, but not enough to dull the shine of an inspiring meal.
Last month, I cited the Pot de Crème that chef Colin Sato of Et Al. recommended we try.
“It’s just really good,” Sato told us. “It’s one of those things that’s so good it really doesn’t matter if it matches the cuisine. It’s just … good.”
Sato didn’t lie. The three of us swooned with every mouthful.
It was also the Pot de Crème that put into perspective the entire meal. The Pot de Crème represented a landmark achieved; what preceded it was pure aspiration.
Japanese Breakfast is inspired by chef Sato’s childhood dining experiences. His sister Maya also contributes to the menu, which includes 8 dishes.
Those 8 dishes arrive together to make a low-key tabletop smorgasbord of elegantly plated components.
Those components included Shiozake, a half-cured salmon dish, onsen tamago (soft egg in soy sauce), hiyayakko (cold dressed tofu), homemade miso soup, homemade pickles), braised seeweed), dashi dipped greens, and steamed rice.
Roasted brown rice tea instead of coffee beverage.
Those components made for true culinary adventure to a table full of gaijin like us. A combination of flavors, textures and techniques to mix and match one bite at a time.
Onsen Tamago is the sippable poached egg in soy sauce breakfast I’ve been looking for my entire life.
That a consortium of young chefs found the discipline and resolve to pull this off and keep it going is worth a standing ovation. That it drew a Beard nomination makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside.
Youth in pursuit of its calling fueled by unleaded passion is a fleeting flavor profile. Catch its scent, and you run to it.
I don’t know if Et Al. will win a James Beard Award or deserves one, but what these chefs have accomplished is worthy of your attention and attendance. It’s been over a month, and the thrill hasn’t yet left my memory.
Next time you’re in Tulsa, check out Et Al.
I’ll have more local dining news on Wednesday, including more details about “Eat, Drink & be Local” premiering this weekend and the otherworldly mashup of barbecue and Lao cuisine that went down on Monday evening.