Restaurant Week: Exploring Hutch Bar & Kitchen
Running for ten days, Oakland Restaurant Week ended tonight. It was the opportunity to experience Oakland restaurants offering pre-fix lunches and dinners at special pricing.
My friend chose Hutch Bar & Kitchen in Uptown and she made a last minute reservation for three of us. The focus of Hutch is Southern food.
The special pre-fix menu for Restaurant Week was a 3 course meal and a drink for $40. I thought that was a bit too much food so I ordered off the regular menu. I started with a snack of bourbon chicken liver. This really seemed more like a large appetizer that can be shared with a large group rather than a snack. I enjoyed this smooth, flavorful spread on top of my crostini. It’s fairly rich so even after sharing, I had to pack this in a doggie bag.
For my entree, I selected the fried chicken which came with rice and sherry herb gravy and bacon braised collard greens. The fried chicken was juicy and crispy, but didn’t stand out to me flavor wise. I really liked the rice and gravy, and the greens were good too.
My friend and my sister both ordered the pre-fix menu which included a choice of house wine or a house bourbon cocktail. Since my friend doesn’t drink, she gave me hers. I asked her to order me the Kentucky Mule which is bourbon and ginger beer. I was happy.
The 1st course of the pre-fix menu was an oyster, turkey & black eyed pea gumbo. It came with a scoop of rice in the center. They both enjoyed this very much. I had a taste and also liked it a lot. The flavor of the oysters made this gumbo shine.
The 2nd course was catfish with a spicy creole sauce and cheddar cheese grits. The catfish itself was delicious. It was tender and flakey but still held a nice crispy batter. The creamy grits complimented the catfish well. I didn’t feel the sauce was required.
The 3rd course a warm bread pudding a la mode. The dessert was humongous and we had two of them to share. I liked the texture of the bread pudding which were made with large chunks of bread that were dense and chewy. It was not overly sweet and was a good ending to the meal.
Thanks to Restaurant Week, I was able to explore Hutch Bar & Kitchen. The staff are friendly, the portions are generous, and the food is pretty good. Next time you have a show at the Paramount Theater, you may want to consider Hutch for a pre-show dinner.
