photo gallery and insights
I’ve decided my passion for documenting all things beautiful and food should be shared with all of you, the lovely people who have been supporting this wild endeavor of hyper-local dining. Who am I, you ask? I am the Chef and Proprietor of Dinner. My name is Lee, and you may not have met me because I spend nearly all of my time in the kitchen preparing food, or visiting farms. In the rare moment that I’m not wielding a knife, I am wielding my other favorite tool, my camera. In fact, all of the photos on this website were taken either by myself, my lovely friend Alex who built this website, or my Fiancee, Brian. The following photos however, are my own, and I am excited to share them with you! Like us on Facebook!
Dungeness crab and wild watercress salad, grapefruit, pistachio, brioche crouton, fried quail egg, and parsely oil.
Habenero Margaritas are amazing, a little muddled cilantro, some super spicy habenero infused tequila, citronge, lime juice, and simple syrup.
Beet and Blood Orange soup
This is the Vesper, it is the cocktail that coined the “shaken, not stirred” in the Bond movies
I found some sweet antique glasses for cocktails
One of my favorite shots, walking the beach in Port Townsend
A lovely friends party, Pork Rillette Sliders
Winter kale is so delicious, the sugars concentrate and the flavor is outstanding. Here I sautéed red russian kale in bacon fat with caramelized cauliflower. It was very simple, and delicious!
The clearest days are the coldest days of winter, we had a beautiful frost that left frozen dew drops everywhere.
For two weeks in January, there was an incredible sunset every night. This was taken off of HWY 101 of the Nehalem Bay.
For two days in a row, a heavy low fog hung over the ocean, as it crept closer to Manzanita it rose and enveloped us as we tried to photograph it. It was an incredible feeling.
We have had so many beautiful sunsets this year, and I’ve been so lucky to get to experience them.
The sun sets early these days, but I can’t say I wasn’t excited about this one!
Sometimes I love the beach more in the winter.
Driving to work on a beautiful misty morning, this is the Nehalem Bay.
Brioche bread pudding, nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla, and currants. It’s heavenly with buttermilk ice cream.
Just down Highway 101, Nedonna Beach has a ton of driftwood, and these amazing forts pop up over the summer. I was excited to see this one survived the storms we’ve been experiencing.
Snow!!
I love these guys!
Cows from a neighboring farm
Brussels sprouts are something I detested as a child, now, I can’t get enough of them! I core them, saute the petals on high heat until they caramelize around the edges, add some shallots, (of course), and boom. Best vegetable ever.
Before
After
Even in the winter, without everything blooming, it is beautiful here. Oregon is a great muse. If you look closely, you’ll see our cauliflower and chard bed. Every year, Nasturtium takes over, I enjoyed using the peppery flowers in salads and even to garnish soup in late summer.
The winter on the beach is absolutely beautiful.
The chalkboard is up! Now you know what we are getting, and from where. It will change constantly!
This was taken at a ridiculously early hour from the window in the Cottage.
This was taken on a beautiful Indian Summer evening on Manzanita Beach
Rabbit Liver Mousse
My favorite vintage salt cellar
Fall harvest at Revolution Gardens
My lovely waitron, Natasha, and I went mushroom hunting. We found beautiful, though inedible mushrooms.
I take breakfast very seriously. Every day should start with something beautiful and satisfying, which is why we decided to offer brunch on Sundays. This is the Smokey Croque Madame.
Taken just up the road from the Inn, rainbows happen more than usual around here.
Ginger, who makes the magic happen at Revolution Gardens, is on a well earned vacation this winter. While she is enjoying delicious food in Vietnam, I will be harvesting winter crops myself. I certainly appreciate her more after every rainy, cold, harvesting adventure.
Every week for Brunch, I offer the Chef’s Breakfast. Usually, it is something over the top with as many seasonal ingredients as I can pack into a bowl. Always healthy, but a little rich… I’ve also become addicted to the effect of smoked salt on a runny egg yolk, you’ll see it a lot. The crunch, and the smoke with the richness of the yolk is unbeatable.
We don’t just source our food locally, we also forage for interesting plants/branches/berries/flowers for the arrangements on the tables. Natasha is the genius behind these creations, using texture and simplicity to reflect the natural beauty surrounding us.
This band of wild turkeys was seen down the road the day before Thanksgiving.
This is Possum, the donkey that lives at Meadow Harvest, where I source some of my lamb and beef. Brian and Sage do wonderful work!