In This Issue
	Features • Nantucket: for the Birds • Man Behind the Music • Banking Under the Stars • Limerick Challenge Events • Tour of Historic House • What's New & Happening Island Cooking • The Holidays Island Essay • Island in Winter Featured Restaurant Island Science

Oran Mor:
Join Them on a Culinary Adventure

Ordering a Chef’s Tasting Menu is like going on a culinary adventure.  It is an escape from ordinary dining out—the ultimate relaxing evening, no decisions necessary.  Your meal is the whim of the chef, and when that chef is a master like Christopher Freeman, you are in good hands indeed!

Chef Freeman has been at the forefront of the Nantucket culinary landscape for more than a decade. Before purchasing Oran Mor in 2006, he cooked in Hawaii, in Connecticut, at several Relais~Chateaux properties, including The Wauwinet.  His cuisine is marked by very fresh ingredients in innovative preparations beautifully presented.  Every item served is housemade, from the selection of breads (onion-parmesan focaccia and rosemary pepper bread the evening we were there) to the outstanding desserts (do not skip this course!). 

Chef Freeman’s menus change with the seasons and the harvests, and when he designs an entree, he doesn’t just stop with the main ingredient:  each accompaniment and sauce is specifically matched to the preparation, highlighting and enhancing the flavors of his fish, shellfish, and meats.  No two entrees are served with the same vegetable or starch.  These customized preparations make for an impressive variety on a menu with seven appetizers and seven entrees.  Because each of his dishes is so intriguing and so different, the Chef’s Tasting Menu is the perfect choice for dinner at Oran Mor. 

There’s a certain spontaneity about tasting menus that can be very appealing to the guests and daunting for a kitchen.  But not for the crew at Oran Mor.  The Tasting Menu is “fun for the kitchen,” explained Freeman.  “It’s a challenge, but it’s one we love...when someone orders the Tasting Menu, it means they are here to have an experience—that they are here to Dine with us tonight.”

The Tasting Menu changes every evening and includes seven to nine courses, each a mini-masterpiece perfectly scaled so that the diner is satisfied without becoming uncomfortably full.  Some items are featured on the a la carte menu; some are special preparations—depending on the requests, the kitchen may be able to design a tasting menu around a guest.  Each dish we savored in our nine-course menu left us excited about the next surprise.  If you’re feeling especially adventurous, order the Tasting Menu without first perusing it (just be sure to mention any food allergies). 

The Tasting Menu is available with or without wines.  Oran Mor is known for its exceptional wine list, expanded even further this season with more half-bottles and a greater range of wines and of prices.  We ordered the menu without wines, but Olivier graciously offered his suggestions.

The expert waitstaff at Oran Mor are part of the experience.  Because they work as a team, the service is very good:  an expectant glance is enough to bring someone to your table. 

	Our culinary experience began with a Glidden Point Oyster served on the half shell elegantly presented on a shimmering mother-of-pearl shell.  Voluptuous and glistening, the oyster was set on a seductively simple cucumber, watercress, and horseradish vinaigrette.  The bite of the horseradish and the fresh crispness of the cucumber and radish sticks complement the ocean-fresh flavor of the shellfish.  We made mental notes to return to the Oran Mor bar for cocktails and more of these delicate beauties.  Suggested wine pairing: champagne.
	Next to arrive was Chef Freeman’s Yellowfin Tuna Tartar.  The small chunks of sushi-grade tuna are so fresh as to need no adornment—like tasting an ocean breeze.  Freeman mixes in some pickled beet, diced small, that adds a subtle sweetness to the tartar without drawing undue attention.  A swirl of golden beet puree served alongside was a sweet condiment to add to the delicate tuna.  Suggested wine pairing:  Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay.
	The compelling aroma of the next course caught our attention before it was even set down before us:  an appealing combination of tomato, saffron, and a touch of smokiness.  To showcase his Sauteed Nantucket Fluke, Chef Freeman made an elegant soup of smoked tomato broth, scallions, dill, and a single plump mussel...liquid sunshine that formed a luscious base for the perfectly cooked fish.  A saffron aioli spooned over the gold-tinged fluke was the final crowning touch. Suggested wine pairing:  Chardonnay. Each dish in the Tasting Menu progression expands in flavor and increases in heartiness.  From course to course, the anticipation builds.
	The Crispy Chicken Lollipops that followed the fluke left us purring with delight.  The first bite into each of the two wings through the delectably crisp skin filled our mouths with a wonderful pungent blend of spices that excited every tastebud.  The meat of the chicken was tender, juicy, and bursting with flavor.  Tucked underneath was chilled salad of mango, avocado, red bell pepper, and cilantro tossed in a ginger vinaigrette.  The firm, cool freshness of the salad was the perfect counterpoint to the warm chicken.  Separately, both were superb—when eaten together the flavors blossomed. Suggested wine pairing:  Reisling.
	An intermission of splendid earthy flavors followed in a Roasted Garlic and Potato Gnocchi.  The taste of Nantucket oyster mushrooms, fresh squash blossoms, and arugula seasoned with just a sprinkling of sea salt resonated with the tender golden-brown sauteed gnocchi.  The full, mellow flavors were an ideal followup to the bold taste of the previous course. Suggested wine pairing:  Pinot Noir.
	Spice Roasted Pekin Duck Breast was next to arrive, a small version of one of Oran Mor’s very popular entrees.  The moist and tender duck is sliced and fanned out across a delightfully textured mix of emmer, quinoa, and totsoi, with richly flavored duck confit tucked between the two.  A dollop of plum chutney brightens the dish in color and in flavor. Suggested wine pairing:  Pinot Noir.
	Exquisitely flavored and buttery in texture, Grilled Wolfe’s Neck Farm Rib Eye was the final “entree” course of our Tasting Menu.  Just the eye of the eye, it was succulent and impressively tender.  Chef Freeman presented it elegantly with classic flavors:  soft and sweet cipolline onions, rosemary, asparagus spears, crisp-edged roasted fingerling potatoes and well-salted, crunchy waffle chips, all surrounded by drizzles of rich demi-glaze. Suggested wine pairing:  Cabernet.
	Press pot coffee and glasses of gewurztraminer followed with a cheese course featuring Coach Farm Triple Cream, champagne grapes, strawberries tossed in mint and balsamic, and freshly baked parchment-thin pepper crackers.  As we enjoyed this creamy, sweet, and tangy mix of fruits and cheese, we discussed the gastronomic experience we had shared.
	There was one final course, and far from being an afterthought, the Sampling of Desserts was one of the highlights of the evening.  Lemon Charlotte, Chocolate Orange Mousse Cake, and Roasted Plum and Ginger Napoleon, it was impossible to choose a favorite from this trio of spectacular sweets.  The Charlotte was fresh and cleansing, the Mousse Cake delicate yet distinctly chocolatey, the Napoleon full of warm ginger flavor.  The desserts were the perfect finale.