ORSO newsletter, volume #4, May 29, 2008
 From the Chef
Spring is officially here - the salmon have started to run and our guests from around the world are on there way. Fresh Fare Travels has come to a successful season’s end and will continue this fall with all new adventures. For the summer our Fresh Fare board will be highlighting the freshest seafood from Alaska. Copper River King and Sockeye salmon will kick off the start. There is much excitement at ORSO about the Copper River fishery this year do to the fact that ORSO crew member Derek Blake is skipper of the F/V “Intense” based out of Cordova, Alaska. This put us in the position of getting hand selected, top quality salmon directly from the fisherman. As the first shipments of Copper River King Salmon have come to ORSO I can personally attest to the quality and consistency that the Blakes hand select for ORSO. Click here for one of my favorite salmon recipes. During the middle of June the Norton Sound King Crab season starts up. We will be getting fresh Red King Crab right from the fisherman at Norton Sound Economic Development Corporation. Our partnerships with these local fisherman attest to ORSO’s commitment to quality and the use of sustainable Alaskan resources. Fresh halibut and rock fish will continue to be show cased on our menus as well.
We’ve opened 7 days a week for lunch highlighting our updated lunch menu with more selections like the halibut Po’boy and gilled flank steak sandwich. Click here to see the new lunch menu. We also have handcrafted daily Presto specials and our house made soups. Pastry Chef Jeff LaKomski and his team have been whipping up a fabulous goat cheese infused cheese cake with scarlet puree and fresh berries. The pastry team will also be rolling out there seasonal house made sorbets in the next couple of weeks. Flavors will range from the sublime to the extreme always a playful way to end a fantastic dinning experience at ORSO.
Looking forward to cooking your next meal - Patrick Hoogerhyde Executive Chef, chef@orsoalaska.com.
From the Cellar:
We have done some spring cleaning at ORSO and parted ways with the bar menus that have served us well for so many years. In their place we have beautiful new menus designed to celebrate the art of the cocktail. We have added twenty new libations to our list including many classics such as our Top Shelf Martini made with Ciroc grape vodka from France, VYA California vermouth and garnished with two grapes and a twist. We have also added three new Margaritas with the Prickly Pear, Godiva Chocolate and White Cadillac Margaritas. We think we are making the freshest, best tasting Margaritas in town. Next time you’re in, let us now what you think. While we changed things up a bit, we also our house favorites including the Mediterranean Mojito, the Pomegranate Blueberry Sangria and or course, the Nero ORSO (our signature Cosmopolitan with house-infused blackberry vodka). There are many more fun and interesting cocktails to sample and we would love to hear your feedback.
In wine news; we have a new featured wine arriving from Italy. By the time you read this, we will be pouring it by the glass. The wine comes from a small producer in Tuscany called Perazzeta (pay-raht-ZAY-tah). They are located in the town of Montenero d’Orcia just south of Montalcino (where the famous Brunello di Montalcino is made) and grow primarily Sangiovese. Winemaker Alessandro Bocci works his vineyards by himself most of the year, enlisting the help of 15 friends and family during harvest. One of those he calls on for assistance is his teenage daughter Sara. Our featured wine is named after her and consists of 90% Sangiovese with 10% Ciliegiolo. The wine shows bright cherry fruit with crisp acidity and tantalizing earth notes and has a typical Tuscan flavor profile except for the depth of fruit. Alessandro attributes this to the fantastic combination of round, surface stones and mineral rich soils in which his grapes grow. He also throws away twice as many grapes as he presses which may not be the best business model, but does produce phenomenal results.
I look forward to helping you select the perfect wine or cocktail in the near future. Cheers,
Chad Culley, ORSO Cellar Master, cculley@orsoalaska.com.
 Saturday and Sunday Lunch
Last month I mentioned that ORSO, by popular demand, would be opening for lunch on the weekends starting May 10th. I would like to thank all of you that chose to dine with us at lunch on Mothers Day. It was a fun and busy. “fiirst time” for us. For future weekend lunch dining, we will be offering our “Weekend Specials” board with additional seasonal choices for your enjoyment, along with our regular lunch menu.
Online Reservations
I am pleased to announce that online reservations will be available for your convenience by the middle of June. At that time you will be able to make reservations24/7 and scan for the reservation time you desire. We will have a link to reservations from our website, www.orsoalaska.com.
Still Waiting on Spring
Last month I mentioned our sidewalk dining and here a month later we are still waiting for the weather. We continue to look farward to some warmer tempratures and our sidewalk dining.
– Marion Hurst, Operations Manager, mhurst@orsoalaska.com.
ORSO, 737 5th Avenue, Anchorage, Alaska
www.orsoalaska.com
For reservations, call (907) 222-3232 |