Feast Raw Bar and Bistro was the result of a collaboration of longtime chef/restauranteurs Steve Kuntz and Caroline Doern. Unfortunately Caroline is no longer on the team but Executive Chef Nikki Dupre does a very fine job. They stress using local ingredients and produce, meat and fish that are harvested in a sustainable manner. The medium sized place, hidden in a shopping center has lowered lighting, music in the background, lots of interesting light fixtures, some windows to the outside (screened for sunlight), bookcases to divide the small tables and an L-shaped bar that sells only beer and wine. This one I would definitely put on your list to visit.
Set-Up
Food
We started with the raw oysters, all from Maine. There were 3 varieties so we had 2 of each kind. They were excellent and so was the red dipping sauce. Also on the tray was vinegar and lemon but the red was just the right balance to accent, not overpower, the lovely oysters.
A special today was Alaskan halibut en papillote (cooked in parchment paper) with fennel, pepper, garlic and orange with a side of whipped feta cheese and orzo and broccolini. The moist fish was delicious but unfortunately, this preparation did not allow the limited juices to blend with the other plate’s ingredients. It had a very Mediterranean flavor. The feta and orzo made a nice combination.
Catch of the Day today was Bluenose Snapper and it was plated with Jasmine sticky rice, coconut sauce, mango salsa and a seasonal vegetable which was broccolini. The generous piece of fish and sauce were topped with crispy slices of coconut and underneath were a few pieces of Delicata squash. The rice under the fish soaked up the wonderful sauce and melded with the fish and coconut into something totally delicious. This was an outstanding plate. The flower portion of the broccolini was charred yet the stems were still quite al dente.
For dessert, they offer changing flavors of ice cream served with a toffee cookie. Today’s flavor was pistachio almond, two favorite flavors of my husband. It was a generous amount of ice cream that was very green and very good. The cookie had some almonds in it too and it was crisp and good.
The Carrot Parsnip Cake came with lime cream cheese frosting and I couldn’t resist it. It was decorated with long thin dehydrated pieces of carrot. They were sweetened, either naturally or with sugar, but added a fun and tasty texture. I wasn’t sure about the lime frosting but it really grew on me and turned out to be lovely with the dense moist cake. It was a delicious option
