When we want to go out to dinner in Salem, there are but a few places we gravitate to.
The one that seems to set our mouths to stun and our which is universally reliable for a distracting and pleasurable meal and exceptional service is La Capitale, David Rosales’s downtown French bistro.
You know La Cap — shoestring fries so crisp and melty you’d almost rather wear them than eat them?
We’re lucky to have David here in town.
He’s my favorite kind of Salemite — been around the world, learned his stuff, and came back to better the scene here.
But sometimes, Salem can suffocate, and you gotta get out (my thought, not his).
That got me thinking:
WWDE?
What would David eat?
So I gave him a call one day when he wasn’t fresh squeezing tomatoes on toasted bread or steaming mussels in broth you could bathe in yourself.
The result is my newest blog feature: “David Digs.”
Periodically, I’ll be speaking with hometown boy David Rosales about his favorite places to eat and forage for in the Willamette Valley.
Rosales doesn’t get out of his own kitchens much, but when he does, he’s looking for something memorable, special, something he wouldn’t cook at home.
Me, too!
Thanks, David, for sharing your knowledge.
David’s Autumn picks:
1. Mt. Angel Sausage Company — Rosales can think of no lovelier autumn setting — the rain drizzling, a wood stove lit, a cozy, darkened room — the one offered by this charming German sausage restaurant in our neighbor to the northeast. Rosales often orders the Bratwurst on a bun with a side of ‘kraut with a locally brewed Oktoberfest ale. If you haven’t boned up on your sausage etiquette lately, check out the MASC’s page devoted to just that. And if you really want to go all melancholic and German on me, read this Rilke poem.
2. Luis’s Taqueria in Woodburn – Rosales’s family is from Mexico — his father owns La Margarita in downtown Salem -- so I imagine his bar for Mexican is rather high. Whenever he’s in the area, he stops at Luis’s for an affordable tacos de lengua (tongue taco), where the meat is slow-cooked, and finely chopped and where the customers can choose from a huge menu of menudo, tostadas and traditional Mexican fare. I’ve taken a detour there myself, if only to see where President Obama’s handlers sent him when he was visiting the area.
3. Silver Grille Cafe, Silverton – If you’re going to the Silver Grille, and like David, you harbor a deep love of working with local ingredients, you go for the blackboard. This is where the SG chef and owner features his constantly rotating menu of seasonal dishes exquisitely prepared and plated and served in a sleek setting frequently mostly by locals. Rosales recalls a lamb-stuffed cannelloni dish that has lodged in his memory. “His style is awesome,” he said.
By the way, these are all excellent choices if you need to escape from the Oktoberfest for a few…
