The Catbird Seat: The Fifth Iteration
Even though I have found a sense of contentment in my hometown, I miss traveling terribly. There’s something so exhilarating about tasting new food and trying new wines. You can learn more about culture and heritage in one meal than you often can reading a book or wandering through a local museum.
As Nashville reopens, there are more and more opportunities for dining experiences. To say that puts a smile on my face is an understatement. With the long holiday weekend upon us, I decided to treat myself with dinner at The Catbird Seat. I've been fortunate to follow this culinary incubator from the outset exploring wines and cuisines that awaken my palate. While prior chefs have been sourced from some of the best restaurants in the world ( Josh Habiger, Erik Anderson, Trevor Moran, Ryan Poli, and most recently Will Aghajanian and Liz Johnson), the fifth iteration of The Catbird Seat is lead by someone who once called Music City home for a short time, Chef Brian Baxter.
I first met Baxter while enjoying the tasting menu at Bastion where he served as Chef de Cuisine. Prior to arriving in Nashville, Baxter worked under Sean Brock at McCrady’s in Charleston and then transferred to Music City where he also spent time at Husk as Chef de Cuisine. Most recently, Baxter helped open Cold Beer in Atlanta.
Given that Baxter has free reign to transform the space and menu has he sees fit, I was anxious to see what the night had in store.
With plans to support as many local purveyors as possible, expect a menu filled with seasonal ingredients, some of which make an appearance multiple times throughout the tasting menu. Mimicking the seasonality and evolution of the menu, The Catbird Seat space has yet again transformed and decorated with watercolor paintings from friend and artist Todd Saal.
Rather than share a dissertation on every single course, I thought I’d highlight my favorites. I’m a firm believer that you can never have too many tomatoes. When our first course was comprised of three different interpretations of tomatoes, I was elated. Each bite presented a different texture and flavor profile, but the standout was the tiny tomato pie (middle) with smoked tomato, sauce choron, and cheese fat. I’m going to go ahead and say it, it’s definitely one of my top bites/dishes for 2020.
While you can’t see much from this photo, I really enjoyed the flavors in the Banana Pepper + Grilled Bread + Royal Red Shrimp dish. Not only was it delicious, but this was one of the many dishes we watched be assembled that evening.
If you’re a mushroom enthusiast like me, the Chanterelle Mushroom Toast is a rich yet satisfying bite that makes you feel like you’ve curled up with your favorite blanket in front of a fire, leaving you cozy and content.
If this dish taught me anything, it’s to expect the unexpected. While this may appear to be a beef dish, once you dive inside you realize the beef is covering the most amazing raw tuna which was prepared with watermelon dashi. Certainly a standout of the evening.
Throughout the menu, guests will see the incorporation of Japanese flavors and the dish below is no exception. Chef Baxter sourced courgettes from Bloomsbury Farms and created a magical dish with Alabama blue crab. This dish was served with a fried squash blossom that was topped with a Japanese curry spice that left you savoring every single bite.
Pro-tip: If you have any of the decadent butter sauce leftover, make sure you drag a bite of your squash blossom through it. Total game-changer.
Traditionally, diners have come to expect a “beef” course when enjoying a tasting menu. Rest assured, this is far from your average beef course. Chef Baxter does a remarkable job of fusing various textures and flavors in each course. Along with the Dry-Aged Beef from Bear Creek Farms, I had the opportunity to experience corn three ways. Chef Baxter prepared cornbread muffins, corn fritters, and corn chawanmushi. While I was familiar with the first two courses, in fact, the corn fritter was reminiscent to the one he prepared at Bastion, it was my first time to experience corn chawanmushi and OMG. Talk about a dish that will leave you reeling!
I mentioned earlier that tomatoes made an appearance multiple times throughout our tasting (which I was NOT mad about) but I was most surprised when they were incorporated in our palate cleanser. I have found that palate cleansers typically lean towards the sweeter side and have some sort of fruit base. However, the Catbird Seat team crafted the most magnificent course of tomatoes dressed in clarified gazpacho, tomato leaf oil, salted elderberries, lovage ice cream, topped with herbs from their garden. Many of you may be toggling over to Google as I had to that evening to find out what “lovage” was and why it was so damn delicious. The flavor reminds me a little of celery and each bite was herbaceous and fresh.
Despite feeling downright glutenous, the Catbird Seat wanted to make sure that you are properly fed and quite frankly one dessert isn’t adequate which is why they serve you four brilliant dessert courses. Picking a favorite bite out of this line up is incredibly challenging, therefore I chose two. First, let’s talk about this perfect little donut filled with foie gras bavarian cream and topped with cherries. Be still my heart. All of my favorites in one bite. Second, the unassuming Beef Fat Butterscotch had me making noises I didn’t think were possible. I don’t care how “full” you may be, don’t leave this bite behind.
Welcome back to Music City, Chef Baxter!
For those of you who missed out on his delicious creations at Bastion, take this opportunity to enjoy a meal at the Catbird Seat. After all, we’re in the midst of a pandemic and deserve to treat ourselves from time to time. For my less than adventurous eaters, this is one of the most approachable tasting menus I’ve experienced at Catbird. While there are a few ingredients that you may have to Google, each course is enjoyable.
Until Next Time!
Tariff: Prepaid reservations are $135.00/ person. For those who are interested in a wine pairing, it can be purchased the evening of your dinner for $75.00/person. Cocktails and wines by the glass are also available. Tax and a 20% service charge are added to all checks.
Can’t Miss: I think it goes without saying, but the Tiny Tomato Pie was my favorite bite of the dinner, followed closely by the Crab + Courgette and Chanterelle Mushroom Toast. And I can’t forget about the Donut filled with Foie Gras Bavarian Cream and Beef Fat Butterscotch. Be still my heart.
Potential Pass: While others may disagree, there wasn’t one course that disappointed me. Typically, I find at least one course that doesn’t impress me, but I walked away from this meal feeling excited and inspired for what’s to come.