When we opened Mckendricks 15 years ago we started out with a menu that was very basic. No real pizzazz  and as the months rolled by I would sit and trade menu ideas with Claudia Mckendrick. We tested menu ideas constantly, added new items to the menu and worked hard to quickly develop a brand. One item that has become a signature menu item is the Baked Oysters. Claudia came up with the idea and I developed the recipe into a fantastic dish that has been on our menu since the beginning. The Blue point oysters we use are a good steak house oyster from Long Island and are a medium size oyster with just...

Two new photos that I really don’t like, but these dishes are fantastic if cooked correctly and  the pictures are taken properly. The pictures are terribly off. I got so caught up in all the functions in the “M” mode ( manual mode) that I actually have no idea what I am doing. This will get better. Since purchasing my camera, the Canon Rebel EOS XSI,  I have taken one class and really thought I new what I was doing and as you can see I need work. So what to do! I guess more classes are in order. I don’t need a photographer and a food stylist. I want to learn to take great...

In the summer months when fresh day-boat Alaskan halibut becomes available, my taste buds begin to salivate. Halibut is most likely one of my favorite seafood of all time. As a young child fresh halibut reminds me of how  my grandmother loved to treat her Grandchildren to dinner. I think taking us to dinner was more of a treat for her than for us. Being from a large family we did not have many opportunities for our parents to take us to a restaurant for dinner. We  did enjoy many wonderful meals from my mothers kitchen but my parents could not afford to take all nine children to dinner....

Finally, wild salmon season is here. As I have said here before, I love spring and the bounty of fresh seafood this time of year brings. Questions, what can I do better and different than I have done before with the abundance of fresh seafood at my fingertips. Lets start with wild salmon. Wild salmon feed all winter long and fatten up in order to take the long journey up river to fresh water where they were born and spawn. Columbia River “Springer” king salmon are some of the best if not the best of all wild salmon, better than the coveted Copper River salmon. The first of the year salmon...

I sampled some Tomahawk Veal chop from http://www.catellibrothers.com/ out of Collinswood, New Jersey. Catelli is one of the largest veal and lamb distributor’s in the United States. Season the veal chop with freshly ground pepper and kosher salt. In order to get some char on the veal chop, turn over a cast iron skillet and place over high heat until extremely hot and sear the veal chop on both sides. Place the veal chop in a 350 degree oven for 5-8 minutes. Saute the lobster meat in butter with salt and freshly ground pepper. Mix the warm lobster with fresh Yukon gold mashed potatoes. Place...