Bacon? At a kosher restaurant? OK, so it’s lamb bacon. Hold on, lamb bacon doesn’t count as bacon, does it? Bacon is defined as cured meat from a pig, right? It’s not a particular cut of meat, like a chop or a shank. And why would someone who keeps kosher want to eat bacon anyway? Isn’t that like a vegetarian going to a vegan restaurant and ordering beef with broccoli, only the “beef” is actually tempeh or seitan?
But wait. Lots of vegetarians do that. Maybe serving pretend pork at a kosher bistro isn’t such a wacky idea after all. Maybe it’s OK to keep kosher and also salivate for the fatty, smoky, gristly goodness of bacon.
In any regard, no way was I going to leave my first visit to the Kitchen Table in Mountain View without trying the lamb bacon. Rarely have I met a rasher I didn’t want to tear my teeth into — be it pork or turkey or even Morningstar veggie bacon strips — so when I saw the menu listings for “lamb BLT,” “koshuterie plate” and “enhance your burger selection with smokey (sic) lamb bacon,” of course I wanted to try it all.
Let me say right here, however, that the Kitchen Table should not be defined solely by its lamb bacon (nor by its maple-cured duck ham, for that matter). It’s a high-end, smartly decorated bistro with a California cuisine–inspired menu, fancy dishware and no salt or pepper on the table (so as not to insult the chef’s seasoning skills).
Sure, there’s a knish of the day, a huge bowl of matzah ball soup and chubby pickle halves to be had, but there’s also tuna ceviche with fried plantain chips and spicy avocado relish (tablemate: “Just like my Jamaican Jewish grandma used to make”). And iron skillet roasted duck breast with fresh corn tamale, fried Anaheim chile and salsa verde. And an heirloom grain bowl finished with avocado mash.
As for the knish du jour, it was stuffed with roasted garlic, bulgar and other grains, and served with a sweet brown mustard vinaigrette and “rocket salad.” And the pickle that looked tantalizingly like a sour kosher dill was actually quite sweet and infused with, what was that, clove or anise? You get the idea.
One nice thing is eating your meal alfresco, which on a warm night in downtown Mountain View is a very pleasurable experience, further enhanced by a 30-selection, global wine list. All of them kosher. Thirty.
Let me start with the matzah ball soup, because that’s where I always start at a Jewish eatery — though the Kitchen Table is certainly no deli. The broth and matzah ball itself were classically delicious, with requisite amounts of chicken, parsley and carrots, but get this: The matzah ball was perfectly flat on one side. Huge? Yes, but still, technically, only half a matzah ball.
“How did you like your chicken soup?” the server asked. Streee-rike one. It’s matzah ball soup, my friend. “Kind of like grandma used to make,” I replied with only a hint of a sarcastic smile. Yeah, right, grandma always shaped her matzah balls like half a grapefruit.
Most portions were quite large, such as the koshuterie plate — a takeoff on all those trendy (and delicious) (and pork-laden) charcuterie plates. It included a heap of peppery, tangy pastrami, available in a sandwich at lunch, that could be the best in the Bay Area.
The appetizers — such as the black bean hummus and the hot smoked salmon crostini — were the stars of the meal, with the non-dairy desserts a close second. The entrees, averaging about $21 per, were interesting, inviting and large, and while one’s taste buds could be equally or more pleased at many similar-style restaurants in our food-obsessed region, here’s the point: None of those dinners would be kosher.
As for the lamb bacon, I tried it on its own, atop my oversized ground chicken burger and in a side dish. House cured to a sweet yet savory sticky crunch, smoky and not very thick, and more porky than lamby, it was true bacon nirvana. I give it two hooves up.
Andy Altman-Ohr can be reached at [email protected]. Read about the Kitchen Table’s closure.