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DineOut
by Shelley Barnes
Balanced Epicure
Reveling in the delectable tension
of the opposites at Sierra Grill
Balance
is the operative word in Charlie Watkins’ life.
And balance, asserts the charismatic Sierra Grill chef
and owner, should be the watchword for the entire eating
experience. From a neutral, warming décor; to
the exciting contrast of flavors; to affordable prices
in a welcoming, unpretentious environment.
If
you’re envisioning mantra-chanting Zen Buddhists,
let me clarify. For Charlie Watkins, balance is not
remotely about serenity. It’s about kindling every
sensation on your palate, an osmosis of heat, sweet,
sour, salty, and bitter aerating in the tiny alcove
called your mouth, climaxing like a delicious orgasm
and leaving you slightly giddy. This, my friends, is
what Charlie Watkins means by balance. It’s enough
to make you need a cigarette, but since I don’t
smoke, we’ll just move right along.
When
it hit the lower Montrose scene in 1992, Sierra Grill
became the instant darling of Houston. I’m not
talking trendy. Trendy establishments burst on the scene
with their 15 minutes of pan-seared fame, then fade
into insipidity with the next new restaurant debut.
Trendy is where power players cut deals and wannabes
go to see and be seen.
Sierra
Grill probably offers both functions at times, but few
care, especially Watkins. From the moment it opened,
Watkins and his waitstaff treated every guest as though
that person alone was their reason for living. There’s
something inherently sexy about a man who quite literally
sees all food as a potential aphrodisiac, whose goal
is to arouse your every taste bud. This, coupled with
Watkins’ decree of “fine food, fine wine,
in a casual atmosphere,” has consistently drawn
Houstonians and out-of-towners alike. Oh sure, it didn’t
hurt that upon its debut Sierra Grill was named by Esquire
magazine as one of the best new restaurants in America
and deemed one of the most exciting new restaurants
in America by Bon Appetit. Still, I’m certain the
halo would have evaporated had it not been for Watkins’
democratic vision of serving reasonably priced knock-off-your-socks
food to even the jeans-clad.
Watkins
loves an anomaly, and every dish is intentionally altered
to heighten your eating experience. Under his hand,
the appetizers become plates of edible foreplay intended
to pique your imagination. Start with the Chinese tea-smoked
salmon tower ($9.99), a statuesque spire of fresh tomatoes,
tea-smoked salmon, spinach, and sun-dried tomatoes,
reflecting in an orange citrus pool. Almost too exquisite
to eat, but with your first forkful you’ll be happy
you did. Equally artistic are the Tatake beef strips
in a Ponzu dipping sauce ($8.99) that my companion described
as “meat-lover’s sushi.” This is perhaps
Watkins’ most definitive statement of contrasts,
both in temperature and flavor. Thin, cold strips of
lean beef marinate twice—first in a Yuzo vinaigrette
of soy, Mirin, and lemongrass, followed by a Thai-spiced
bath. Still cold, the beef is seared in a wok coated
in hot sesame oil, leaving a cool rare center coated
by a warm brown crust. Wrap each strip inside a perfect
basil leaf and dip it into wasabi-spiked Ponzu sauce
made of soy, rice wine vinegar, Mirin, and chili flakes.
The oral explosion of heat, sweet, cool, and warm was
an E-ticket ride so thrilling I was afraid the other
courses would pale in comparison.
They
didn’t, and the mere vision of blue cornmeal-encrusted
oysters made us lunge like deprived nymphomaniacs. Swimming
in a shallot beurre blanc sauce with slivers of tortilla
strips and spinach, these golden specimens will make
you forever intolerant of saltines and cocktail sauce.
As with his other inventions, Watkins creates beurre
blanc sauces that, chameleon-like, alter with his mood.
Although his traditional French training calls for shallots
and vinegar to keep the butter from separating into
oil and milk solids, Watkins often opts for the Asian
approach: For contrast he’ll add orange and pineapple,
or perhaps vanilla bean, furnishing the required acidity,
but with an added sweetness and tang, as well.
While
Watkins was educating me in the finer points of emulsification,
my companions were scooping up paper-thin sheets of
venison carpaccio ($8.99). Swathed in basil-infused
olive oil, balsamic vinegar, capers, chopped onion,
tomato, and grated Parmesan, the venison was, we were
told, relatively low in fat. Delicious even for dieters,
this spruced-up Bambi converted the four of us into
game lovers.
For
those less adventuresome and partial to fattening Tex
Mex fare, I have three words: Smoked. Lamb. Nachos.
Watkins manages to transform basic bar food into a silky
plate of queso-drenched moist tortillas accompanied
by deliciously tender lamb—so creamy we lapped
up those last teaspoons of cheese with manners-be-damned
abandon.
More modest appetites (and the etiquette conscious)
can experience the urban harvest of Sierra’s salads.
No one can contest the award-winning Caesar with its
southwestern chili and herb croutons, nor the tossed
field lettuces with sun-dried tomatoes, jicama,goat-cheese
medallions, and a chili-infused tarragon vinaigrette
($5.99). But the salad sine qua non is the field greens
with thinly sliced pears topped with warm Gorgonzola
($6.99). The four of us politely listened as Watkins
passionately explained how he and wine director Antonio
Sunko carefully pair foods with wine from their 19-page
list, but our glazed expressions were a dead giveaway.
We were experiencing simultaneous Gorgonzola convergence.
This did not go unnoticed, for Watkins immediately brought
out samples of sweet corn and roasted salmon bisque.
Its thick, hearty flavor snapped us back to reality.
On
to dinner. We reclined in unison, four replicas of Henry
the Eighth, as Cory, our impeccably trained and knowledgeable
waiter, placed platters of breathtaking shapes, smells,
and textures in front of us. A spicy soft-shell crab
($19.99) posed majestically in a sweet-pea cream, its
crispy skeleton shielding the tender, flaky inside.
The sweet cream is blended with 15 secret ingredients
that give it a slight kick. As we grew quiet and focused
inward, trying to discern those subtle spices, we looked
up to find my normally reserved friend polishing off
the last claw with a look of guilty pleasure.
A
lighter seafood choice is the rare-seared sushi tuna
($21.99) dressed in sesame seeds and splashing in a
lemon soy broth. Simple and unbeatable, it was as tender
as the beef tenderloin—trumpeted on the menu as
“cut with a fork tender”—sheltered by
a wild mushroom sauce. This is a perfect pairing of
land and sea (far preferable to steak and lobster) and
should be tried by any couple cozy enough to swap entrees.
The Brazilian clouds of ancho-chili mashed potatoes
make a pleasant escort, as do the heavenly offering
of crisp vegetables. Sierra, in fact, harvests some
of the crunchiest, tastiest, chubbiest vegetables in
the country, creating magic with Asian-marinated green
beans, fresh corn cut straight from the cob, a hollandaise-topped
broccoli with a pepper kick. These are how vegetables
were meant to be—not flaccid and bland, but with
marinades and sauces highlighting individual flavors.
The green beans are prepared in a garlic-butter hoisan
sauce stir-fried in ancho honey glaze. All that effort
for some simple green beans! That alone speaks volumes
about Sierra’s attention to detail.
One
main attraction soliciting a Pavlavian response was
the chili and thyme-cured lamb chops resplendent over
a mound of very addictive chili-spiked onion rings.
The usual bloodrare preparation of lamb induces visions
of Anthony Hopkins devouring them with Fava beans and
a nice Chianti. Not so here: These chops are the Hannibal
Lecter antithesis—succulent, lean, and perfectly
browned. They were, however, upstaged by a Fred Flintstonesque
15-ounce buffalo rib eye ($34.99), served with a bone
that would tip the plate over if not leveraged by a
heaping portion of vegetables and those alluring onion
rings. Watkins admits he had to return filets to his
buffalo supplier in Montana three times before he convinced
the man he really did want the entire dinosaur-like
rib bone intact. Before you recoil, let me assert that
I typically do not do game. This, however, is possibly
the most flavorful piece of meat you’re ever likely
to encounter, sauced with an unbelievable troika of
wild mushroom demiglaze, honey mustard, and wasabi cream.
Don’t
make the mistake of thinking Watkins’ myriad taste
sensations end with his entrees. Trust me, they don’t.
Make a vow with your dining companion beforehand to
at least split a dessert despite any feelings of over-indulgence.
Because even with dessert, Watkins manages to scoop
up several surprises. Himself finding a simple dish
of vanilla ice cream the perfect finale to a fine meal,
Watkins turned his own cravings into a partnership with
Dolce & Freddo. Ice cream is paired carefully with
each dessert like a red wine with beef—coconut
ice cream adds a tropical flair to moist carrot cake,
a pear Chianti sorbet accents a firm but creamy raspberry
tart. The stand-out chocolate mousse taco (made from
almonds fashioned into a toffee-like armor) is accompanied
by cappuccino ice cream. But the real finale comes with
Watkins’ chocolate bread pudding martini (served
with rum raisin). Rich, dark, and creamy, this is pure
sensuality simmered into a spoon.
Obviously,
I find it almost impossible to find any fault with Sierra
Grill. Not that Watkins and his doting crew wouldn’t
jump at the chance to rectify a problem, it’s just
that they seldom have the opportunity. Rarely does a
restaurant so consistently over-deliver on one’s
expectations, making the food and service simply transcend
criticism. Of course, it may just be me. But I think
not, judging from the expressions on surrounding faces.
They look slightly giddy. Or maybe it’s balance.
Sierra
Grill, 4704 Montrose Blvd., 713/942-7757. Hours are
Sun.–Thu., 5-10 p.m., Fri.–Sat., 5-11 p.m.
DineOut
Extra
by Tim Brookover
Pigging
Out Positively
Restaurants support
the community, and you can too, by eating asmuch
as you can on March 16, with Dining Out for Life
by
Tim Brookover
This is no day to diet. Lives are at stake. Those of
you who live to eat (and you know who you are) can nosh
all day on Thursday, March 16 and benefit more than
just your tummy. Through the aptly named Dining Out
for Life, patrons at nearly 30 restaurants will raise
funds for the Body Positive Wellness Center, which offers
fitness and nutritional services for individuals with
HIV/AIDS (see article, p. 58). These restaurants, including
some of the community’s most popular hangouts,
will donate a portion of the day’s proceeds, ranging
from 10 to 25 percent. At last, extra calories can mean
much more than love handles and heavy thighs.
Here
are some modest suggestions for your Dining Out for
Life day: Bright and early, sit down to a stack of pancakes
at Eleventh Street Café in the Heights. You will
need the carbs. After breakfast, motor over to the Wellness
Center (3400 Montrose Boulevard) and view this innovative
facility, which offers services such as weight training,
massage, chiropractic programs, and peer counseling
not elsewhere in the city. On the way, pop in to Acadian
Bakers for some peanut butter cookies. Time for lunch.
Head to Barnaby’s (the funky original on Fairview
or the sleek new edition on Shepherd) for a California
salad and a buffalo burger with a glass of lemonade.
Finish up with a slice of cheesecake. Go ahead and splurge,
because the more you order, the more Body Positive earns.
Then while away the afternoon people- watching at Boulevard
Bistrot, with a glass of pinot grigio and a copy of
this magazine. Gracious, look at the time. For dinner,
linger over lasagna at Riva’s Italian Restaurant.
Weary but sated, conclude the day with something chocolate
and a champagne cocktail at Sonoma. Relax outside on
the second-floor patio with the downtown vista or inside
with the nightly musical entertainment.
You’re
full. You’re a philanthropist. Star-struck diners
(and you know who you are) can swoon at the thought
of rubbing elbows with participating celebrities who
will be dining throughout the day: City Council honcho
Annise Parker, Channel 2 weatherman Chuck George, Channel
11 anchorwoman Lisa Feronda and weatherman Dan Meador,
Channel 55 talk-show hostess Laura Bell, 1995 Miss Universe
Chelsi Smith-Blair, society fixture Carolyn Farb, Mama
Ninfa Lorenzo, celeb philanthopist Warner Roberts, photographer
Evin Thayer, KODA personalities Weaver Morrow and Dana
Tyson, local radio legend Dayna Steele, 104 deejay Maria
Todd, and talk-show diva Debra Duncan.
Other
participating restaurants (at press time) include Baich’s,
Benjy’s, Bocados, 43 Brasserie, Cafe Edi, Cafe
Montrose, Golden Room, Jalapeno’s, Kim Son (Jefferson
location), Niko Niko’s, the Original Tila’s,
Rainbow Lodge, Solero, La Strada, El Tiempo, Treebeards,
Travis Café, Urbana, and World Beat Grill. Local
sponsors and underwriters are Enron, Cole Haan Shoes,
Vilven Design Group, and Fogerty Klein. Dining Out for
Life is a national effort that raises hundreds of thousands
of dollars for AIDS service organizations every year.
Body Positive board members Carlos Arcos and Pete Sharpe
(the latter is also the agency president) co-chair the
effort in Houston. More than 25 restaurants participated
in the program and raised over $8,000 locally for the
Wellness Center in 1999, the first year for Dining Out
for Life in Houston. So on March 16, make plans to eat
across the city for a good cause; and throughout the
year, remember and support the restaurants that support
the community.
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