Lucca
By Jim Duncan CVFDude@aol.com
Des
Moines was designed to service
the obesity of Iowa agriculture.
The state leads the nation in
corn, soybeans and hogs, while
the city maintains the world's
largest water filtration system
to cope with Big Ag's poisonous
run-off. Restaurants here mostly
cater abundance with garish décor,
gargantuan portions and Styrofoam
containers for leftovers. Minimalism
is a hard sell. Yet Lucca daringly
commits to "less is more"
thinking.
For starters, it's more work.
When Steve Logsdon first told
me about his East Village cafè,
he expected to open in August
of 2005. But architect Kirk Blunck's
1880s building had been dormant
for decades, and the faithful
restoration took much longer.
The main kitchen, a wine cellar
and a cheese cave were built underground.
Blunck dropped white stained ash
and Plexiglas designs within the
unadorned brick shell, creating
a bar, a cheese area and an open
kitchen. Bathroom boxes look like
something by Minimalist superstar
Donald Judd. A black piano parks
in the dining room, not the bar.
Even flowers are stunningly singular.
In its first three months, the
restaurant buzzed with talk about
the fixed-price menu, the cheese
course and the smaller than normal
portions - all foreign concepts
here. People talked even more
about whom they saw and what they
were wearing. This is "the
New 801, without the secondhand
smoke" for politicians and
high-profile professionals. Service
has become jaded at times; we
have fielded "attitude"
complaints, including one from
two Los Angeles food pros who
noted that they work in "the
world capital of attitude."
Since opening in June, the restaurant
has seen both head chefs and pastry
chefs come and go, from France
no less. Logsdon plugged in new
talent quickly. Derek Eidson moved
over from Sage, where he had been
Andrew Meek's sous chef, and pastry
chef Hannah Dodds came along.
Both followed head waiter Marcus
Walsh. When the most respected
kitchens in town are raided for
talent, a city's dining scene
has matured.
Seasonal, fixed-price, three-course
dinners were offered on all our
visits, though there has been
talk about a la carte, four- and
five-course menus. Fittingly minimalist,
the best first course was salad
with greens so fresh they should
not be allowed out at night. The
excellent organic Coyote Run Farm
in Lacona supplies the restaurant
with produce and flowers, plus
beef, poultry and eggs. The most
interesting first plate was citrus
glazed chicken livers with polenta
sticks. This could be a signature
for Lucca, as chicken livers are
synonymous with Italian (Calabrian)
cafˇs in Des Moines, and these
are distinctly personalized. The
polenta had people begging for
more. A bresaola was memorable,
with prosciutto's beefy brother
treated to shaved reggiano.
On earlier visits, the open kitchen
was overwhelming with salmon's
strong aroma. No such problem
came when halibut was subbed on
my last visit. Fish courses have
always been strong suits for Logsdon,
with simple preparations so rare
in Des Moines. A braised pork
shank with gnocchi, a duck ragu
with rigatoni, and a prosciutto-wrapped
chicken roulade were all splendid
second courses.
The cheese course featured more
imports than regional artisan
cheeses but never anything adventurous.
They were preparation for the
traditional specialty of any Logsdon
kitchen - pastry time: a triple
chocolate bombe with candied orange
and raspberry sauce; a challah
bread pudding with peaches, nuts
and a sweet bourbon sauce; a roasted
peach on an almond cake/marsapone
mousse; a pineapple cake; and
a Belgian chocolate mousse with
walnut caramel and espresso reduction.
All used fresh, ripe fruit to
augment rather than just decorate
desserts. Desserts were the most
inconsistent course, however,
from one night to the next.
Lunches featured good fresh-baked
bread, sandwiches, pasta, homemade
soups and the freshest in organic
salads. Overall, service was adequate
by Des Moines standards but inattentive.
It is the weakest link in the
restaurant's petition for big-city
star status.
Food Skinny
Former Lucca chef David Baruthio
is now offering his services to
private parties. The Alsatian
who once cooked for Nelson Mandela
can be leased for your next event:
210-5272. CV
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