Departure Restaurant + Lounge, Portland, OR

Spring has arrived in Portland and with the warm weather comes Chef de Cuisine Gregory’s latest menu change. Don’t worry, we’ve still got all of your favorites like the pork belly and brussels sprouts, but Chef has expanded his vegan and gluten-free options while bolstering his paleo inspired meals. True to his own health and tastes, Gregory’s dishes are always Asian influenced with fresh, bold flavors such as the new kale and radish salad with pistachio and wild ginger. Local rhubarb has found its way into the menu as well as a sweet and sour component to gorgeous spring salmon. Also keep an eye on the rotating sushi menu that now features equal amounts of vegan and pescatarian rolls. All in all it’s an exciting time to visit Departure – our decks are open, the sun is shining, and new, exciting flavors are pouring out of our kitchen. And make sure to stop by the bar on your way outside and ask Chino about new craft cocktails on the way…

Spring is in the air, and the Departure Bloody Mary is Back!

Just in time for our first Mother’s Day Brunch, we have resurrected one of our most popular brunch libations from last summer – the signature Departure Bloody Mary.  This “Mary” is not for sissies!  Combining Thai chili infused vodka, hoisin, soy, samba deleck and siracha, our favorite barkeep Billy Poplarchick created this Departure original with rave reviews last summer. This sipper is topped off with a pork belly salt with orange peel, sesame seed and chili powder made by our very own Chef Gregory.  The combination of Asian flavors mixed with traditional elements of this storied cocktail make it bloody time for brunch at Departure. Check out the Departure Bloody Mary and our Mother’s Day Brunch May 12^th!

10-3pm

$44 per person

For the Table

WARM CINNAMON SPICE AND DATE ROLLS, coconut glaze

Choice of First Course served to the table

DUNGENESS CRAB CAKE, kumquat mustard, herb salad

ROASTED ONION, bacon, ginger and egg tart

PULLED PORK, scallion crepes, ginger-scallion condiment

CRISPY COD, marinated cucumber, toasted garlic nam prik

Second Course all served to the table

TOMAGO NIGIRI

DUNGENESS CRAB AND MISO SOUP

SMOKED SALMON AND TEMPURA ASPARUGUS ROLL

CUCUMBER AND SEAWEED SUNOMONO

Choice of Third Course served to the table

ROASTED HAM, ginger roasted pineapple, clove

5 SPICE DUCK CONFIT AND SWEET POTATO HASH

ADOBO CHICKEN, soy-vinegar, charred onion, kuri squash, taro

GRILLED LEG OF LAMB, garam masala, mango chutney

Dessert for the table

DONUTS, chili lime salt, calamansi curd, thai basil soda

CHOCOLATE AND CURRY PEANUT BAR, passion fruit caramel, puffed rice, mango sorbet

Chef Gourdet’s Paleo Dinner Menu

$60 per person

PICKLED HERRING, wild greens, wasabi leaves tempura, ginger, acorn, white ponzu

GRILLED BUTTER CLAM & SWEET POTATO CHOWDER, nori, crispy chicken skin, toasted chili

WILD OREGON DUCK, wild boar lap cheong, coconut creamed kale, five-spice

GRASSFED CARMEN RANCH SIRLOIN, root vegetable bo kho, basil, coriander

SMOKED PEAR, GINGER & BACON TART, salted wild honey caramel, shaoxing, hickory nut ice cream

To commemorate the Year Of The Snake, Chef Gregory invites you to celebrate the Chinese New Year with us by sharing in a unique feast incorporating classic Asian ingredients that each represent well wishes for the New Year.

From  February 18th to the 24th, all our guests may celebrate the last week of festivities by enjoying a bountiful menu served family style with ingredients that, according to Chinese tradition, bring long life, fortune, strength, fertility and prosperity.

Chef Gourdet’s Chinese New Year Menu

$45 per person

 Items to be served family style in courses:

CRISPY DUCK SPRING ROLL, ginger-plum sauce

HOT AND SOUR SOUP, shiitake, bamboo, toasted chili, white pepper

STEAMED COD, ginger, scallions, sesame-soy

BEEF CHOW FUN, gai lan, garlic chives, chili bean sprouts

TENDER PORK, winter melon, crispy shallot, long black pepper, hoisin

CHOY SUM seared in sizzling ginger-scallion oil

Dessert Trio

CRISPY SESAME BALL, sweet red beans

ORANGE-COCONUT SHERBET, kumquat, jujube

PINEAPPLE CAKE, cashew brittle, honey caramel

In addition to dinner at Departure, Gregory is pleased to be working with Lan Su Chinese Garden in offering hors d’oeuvres during their lantern viewing.  More information on the garden’s new year celebrations can be found on the Lan Su Chinese Garden website.

New Cocktails Brewing at Departure

As the winter blues approach rainy Portland, our bartender Billy Poplarchik has created some new cocktails to brighten everyone’s mood: the Ro Season and the Three Headed Elephant. The Ro Season is the winter season when tea is ceremonies are prepared in a sunken hearth. This inspired Billy to create a tea inspired cocktail using Absolute Wild Tea Vodka, green tea syrup and Matcha (green tea powder) as a powdered rim among other ingredients.

The Ro Season

1 ½ oz Absolute Wild Tea vodka

½ oz St. Germain

¾ oz Green Tea Syrup

¾ oz citrus juice(lemon and lime)

Served on the rocks with a house made Matcha sugar rim, topped with Cranberry juice

Billy started with the idea of creating an Asian inspired margarita…. adding a little Sriacha to a classic smokey Anejo tequila really brought the flavors together. Adding just a touch of Apricot really sweetened up the spice and created a little East meets West combination. The Three headed elephant is a mythological creature who carried a hindu god “INDRA”. His thoughts were “Anejo, Apricot Sriacha…three powerful flavors”!!

Three Headed Elephant

1 ½ oz Cazadores Anejo

½ oz Apricot Liqour

½ oz Citrus juice(lemon and lime)

½ oz Grapefruit juice

Splash of sriacha

Shaken and served up with a house smoked Jacobson Ses Salt rim (half)

This New Year’s Eve we are going “Gangnam Style” with a Korean Inspired 4 course family style menu with options including DEPARTURE favorites for $50 per person.  The menu features Chef Gregory Gourdet’s unique takes on traditional New Year’s dishes from Korea in addition to Departure menu favorites. Our K-POP Party kicks into high gear from 11pm to 2am, DJ Sasha Couture spinning Korean Pop as well as the most popular party songs of 2012!

Guests will experience dinner family style, however, every guest gets to choose an option from each course. We recommend diners order different items from each course to experience as many flavors as possible. As always, vegan and gluten free options will be available to accommodate dietary preferences. And, no New Year’s Eve would be complete without some amazing cocktails from our bartenders infused with the spices and flavors found throughout Southeast Asia yet made with spirits and ingredients found in the Northwest, global wine offerings, and the city’s largest sake list.

New Year’s Eve Tasting Menu

$50 per person

Guests select one choice from each of the courses below (all served family style):

First Course
SMOKED SALMON ROLL, asparagus tempura, black sesame dill
UNAGI-BEEF TENDERLOIN ROLL, barbecued eel, roasted garlic soy caramel
DEPARTURE WINGS, sweet chili glaze
BRUSSELS SPROUTS, chili, lime, mint
KOREAN SEAFOOD PANCAKE, mussels, grilled scallops, roasted jalapeno
BEER AND MISO MARINATED PORK BELLY ssam, butter lettuce, garlic

 Second Course
KANI AVOCADO ROLL, Dungeness crab, citrus, crispy aromatics
CHILI PRAWNS, candies walnuts, hearts of palm, scallion
CURRY NOODLES, chicken, pickled mustard greens, toasted chili
TUNA POKE, chili, sesame, whit ponzu, rice crisps
CRISPY PORK BELLY, pickled cherries, ginger, pumpkin seeds
BEEF KALBI, marinated beef short ribs, Korean chili, grilled onions

 Third Course
BIBIMBAP, KOSHIHIKARI, WAGYU BEEF, EGG, KIMCHEE, KOCHUJIANG
CHICKEN ADOBO, ROASTED GARLIC, KURI SQUASH, CALAMANSI
KOREAN SHELLFISH BROTH, RED MISO, GRILLED RICE CAKES
ISHIYAKI STEAK, stone grilled wagyu strip sirloin, ginger, garlic, tare supplement  $7
SASHIMI PLATTER, market fish (TBD)
THICK NOODLES, Dungeness crab, pork, vegetables, “fried sauce”

Dessert
PERSIMMON CAKE, SPICED HONEY ICE CREAM
WARM DONUT, KOREAN CHILI AND CHOCOLATE
SHAVED COCONUT ICE, adzuki beans, fruit jellies, rice cakes, toasted cashew

Peking Duck at Departure

For the entire month of December, Chef Gregory will be serving whole Pekin ducks prepared in the traditional Peking style in celebration of the holidays.  Peking Duck, one of China’s national foods, is prized for its thin, crisp skin and Chef is very particular about how to achieve this delicate perfection.

Chef Gregory begins with curing the duck in 7 spice, salt and sugar overnight.  The duck is then dipped in a blanching liquid of shoaxing wine, honey, salt and 7 spice.  He hangs the whole duck for 24 hours to dry the skin and concentrate the meat flavors. Finally, the duck is roasted for about an hour and flash fried to order. After Chef Gregory presents the whole duck to your table it is brought back to the kitchen to be carved.

The Peking Duck is served with mandarin pancakes made from flour, water and duck fat that arrive to your table warm from the steamer along with traditional garnishes: cucumbers, sliced scallions, and pickled kumquats as well as house made plum sauce made with ginger, chili,  and hoisin sauce to spread on the pancakes and make mini wraps. As the diners enjoy these, Gregory takes all the left over duck bits and makes duck fried rice to be served as a final course. Duck fried rice is made with duck fat and the sous vide cooked duck gizzards (kidneys and hearts) as well as the liver, garlic, ginger, scallions. The Peking Duck serves four and is $75 including accompaniments. We are excited for the return of this signature dish!   Invite your friends and family, order the duck and start your own customs.

On October 1, Departure paid homage to one of our founding inspirations, Japan, by celebrating International Sake Day. Sake Day represents the beginning of the brewing season each year. Brew Masters will go to the Shinto Shrine and ask for a safe and successful brewing season. To celebrate this occasion, local and revered Sake Sommelier Marcus Pakiser offered unique sake tasting to guests including “Mirror of Truth” Seikyo Takehara Junmai, ” The 55″ Watari Bune Junmai Ginjo 55, “Flower Daiginjo” Chokaisan Junmai Daiginjo, and Murai Nigori Genshu. His selections can also be found on Departure’s extensive sake list, which is one of the largest in the city.

Chef Gregory beamed at the collaboration, creating small plates to perfectly pair with his sake selections including ume shiso chicken skewers, sweet potato tempura with spicy miso, big eye tuna tataki with radish and ginger dressing and a stunning shrimp, scallop and crab congee finished with bacon and lime.