Evening Star Cafe’s new chef is readying to debut fresh menus on Oct. 3. Keith Cabot was appointed to the executive chef position in September, bringing with him a resume that includes Suna, Table, Menu MBK, Denson Liquor Bar and Sotto across the river in Washington, D.C.
One of the chief reasons the Charlottesville-born chef accepted the job at Evening Star Cafe was the restaurant’s robust rooftop garden. “The garden is so important to me because of the idea of direct sourcing,” he says. “It does not get any more direct or fresh then the rooftop farm.”
For the fall and winter months, Cabot says they’ll grow “the usual suspects,” which for him include carrots, beets, turnips and chicory. He’s also strategizing about radishes: “We are planning on planting radishes in small trays to produce a bite-size root-to-stem product, and we’re organizing the beds so there are perennial herbs and blossoms on the outer edges, allowing us to have garnishes and flavoring agents as long as possible,” he explains.
This produce will star on Cabot’s seasonal, American menu that launches Saturday, and we got an early look. Here’s what to expect from small plates to family-style entrees:
Pork Croquette ($7.50)
marinated spaghetti squash/paprika aioli/toasted Virginia peanuts/rooftop verbena
Fava bean hummus ($7)
harissa/sesame/pita
Brassica salad ($9.50)
Roasted cauliflower/seeded lavash/crispy kale/shaved broccoli/brown butter verjus
Catfish & cabbage ($12.50)
smoked onion broth/tokyo turnips/beach mushrooms conserva/anise seed
Scotch egg ($13)
merguez/blonde frisee/orange segments/almond/whole grain mustard vinaigrette
Rainbow trout milque ($14)
roasted beets/king Richard leeks/buttermilk sorrel sauce
Family-style roasted lamb shoulder ($62)
grilled radicchio/house feta/olive mint chimichurri served with preserved lemon buckwheat tabbouleh
Family-style chicken fricassee ($55)
confit chicken/piquillo peppers/thumbelina carrots/buttermilk biscuit served with sweet potato casserole with thyme granola
The restaurant serves dinner nightly at 5:30 p.m. and weekend brunch at 10 a.m. A new brunch menu is also on the way.
Evening Star Cafe, 2000 Mount Vernon Ave, Alexandria; 703-549-5051
Laura Hayes hails from Philly (but don’t hold it against her). She’s been covering the local dining scene for three years, and her work has been published in the Washington Post, Food Network, Washington City Paper, Arlington Magazine and more. Having lived in Japan for two years, she finds herself in a constant state of craving sushi. Laura always orders her favorite savory dish again for dessert and keeps her gut in check through lots of CrossFit classes.
