His preparations incorporate many labor-intensive components other kitchens would probably require twice as many people to pull off this menu. Siegel is a hands-on chef in a tiny kitchen that serves a dining room of 45 seats, assisted by only a sous chef, salad person, expeditor and dishwasher. What’s on the menu one day may be gone tomorrow, but there’s always something equally good to replace it. Another time the fish was Petrale sole with clams in a miso shiso broth ($32). On another visit he paired local ling cod with braised short ribs ($32). He uses a similar surf-and-turf theme regularly. There’s a lot going on, but again Siegel ties everything into a tight package. It felt familiar and exotic at the same time, with every element in harmony.īolinas black cod ($32) was partly buried under its garnishes of roasted potato slices, cauliflower, individually seasoned purple tatsoi and cubes of pressed pork belly. With an extra crisp skin, the chicken was arranged on the plate with halves of tiny tomatoes, slices of squash and a few twists of baby bok choy. In the presentation, the components played like a symphony. Herb-roasted chicken ($28) with roasted peppers and Red Hawk potato puree seems like a very straight-forward combination. In 1998 Siegel became the first American to win the original “Iron Chef” in Japan, and since then he’s straddled borders with subtly and purpose. He jumped on the Japanese bandwagon long before most other Northern Californian chefs in fact, he led the parade. Siegel is a chef who effortlessly blend cultures, making every dish his own. Lassen trout ($15) is placed in a dramatic, wide-rimmed bowl filled with dashi, paper-thin slices of cucumbers and radishes and two crisscrossed leaves of tatsoi that reinforce a subtle Japanese theme.
He intuitively balances ingredients and turns out dishes that excite but never overwhelm the senses.ĭevil’s Gulch rabbit tortelloni ($16) ring a third of an oversized plate, along with chunks of chanterelle mushrooms, greens, a meat broth and three puddles of aerated Parmesan cream (or spuma) that interact with the other ingredients in a more precise and refined way than if the cheese was merely sprinkled on top.Ī crisp-skinned fillet of Mt.
It could all go horribly wrong - expect that Siegel has proven time and again to be one of the best chefs in the Bay Area, whether he’s cooking at the Ritz Carlton and Michael Mina in San Francisco or the quirky Rancho Nicasio in Marin.ĭuring my first dinner near the end of summer I realized that Siegel illustrates the difference between a competent chef and an inspired one. The dictionary can’t be retired until the main courses, where the ingredients seem more familiar but far from boring. What is a “toma scoobies,” listed as part of the heirloom tomato soup? Turns out to be a bite-sized turnover filled with cheese and greens.
#Madcap marin dress code plus
Although there are only a dozen dishes on the menu, plus Brickmaiden bread ($6), diners confront terms like oboro kombu and Parmesan spuma.Ī salad of summer melon and cucumber ($8) at first sounds familiar, but that ends with the addition of a atika, a cheese from Cowgirl creamery. While Siegel is a great chef, I questioned how the combinations would play. The dishes aren’t the familiar comfort food one expects in Marin. When I glanced over the menu at Madcap, Ron Siegel’s new restaurant in San Anselmo, the offerings seemed a little edgy. John Storey/Special to the Chronicle Show More Show Less John Storey/Special to the Chronicle Show More Show Less 5 of5 Chef Ron Siegel cooking in the kitchen at Madcap in San Anselmo, Calif., on October 20th, 2017.
John Storey/Special to the Chronicle Show More Show Less 4 of5 The Mt. John Storey/Special to the Chronicle Show More Show Less 3 of5 Dishes by Ron Siegel include a chocolate sesame cake. John Storey/Special to the Chronicle Show More Show Less 2 of5 People have dinner at Madcap in San Anselmo, Calif., on October 20th, 2017. 1 of5 The Rabbit Liver Mousse at Madcap in San Anselmo, Calif., is seen on October 20th, 2017.
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