F or the second year in a row now I’ve taken in the opportunity to enjoy one of Chef Scott Martino’s First Friday, prix fixe offerings at On Orange, located in Lancaster, PA. I must admit, I was a bit standoffish about the place in which we would be dining, since On Orange is not really renowned for it’s fine dining experience. They do a better job at serving breakfast and catering to casuals, and, it’s not without it’s charm. The place is very warm and inviting and quaintly decorated. I think, though, that sometimes things may be a little too close for comfort. This time, however, we were able to enjoy our dinner upstairs as opposed to downstairs, which, in my opinion, should be better left for the kitchen itself. An odd split between the dining areas and kitchen areas leaves one feeling bewildered as to who thought of such a layout. The nice thing though, is that our service was considerably better than the last time that we visited.
The first course we were presented with was a spinach, prosciutto and blue cheese salad with candied walnuts, champagne vinaigrette and a balsamic drizzle. I can honestly say I was a real fan of this salad introduction. We paired this with a Tamanend Moonstone white chardonnay as to keep it light and floral to balance with the salad. My first instinct was to let my olfactory glands have a go at the prosciutto to make sure it was fresh smelling and not slimy. Rest assured, it was of gorgeous color and texture and was exactly what I was hoping for. The spinach greens offered a nice bitterness, offsetting the sweetness of the prosciutto. The blue cheese wasn’t overdone, but allowed for a nice pungent and underlying, creamy texture. Of course, I’m a huge fan of blue cheese to begin with. I’m sure I could eat it by the palette. I think my only concern with this dish was that some sections of the candied walnuts were a little too big, so when I took bites, all I got was a bunch of sweet. And, in this instance, I felt the red onion could have been omitted entirely, giving the dish the same effect. They were a little lost. In all, this was a very good introductory salad, and I eagerly awaited more.
The second course we received was a Madeira short rib with a mascarpone polenta and horseradish gremolata. We paired this with a dry red known as American Beauty from Tamanend Winery. I have mixed feelings about this dish overall. The short rib was absolutely perfect. It was braised for an appropriate time and it was so extremely tender, that I was actually amazed that someone could cook a piece of beef this well for so long, and have it come out like that. However, the polenta I felt could have been brought up a notch. I was missing some of the creaminess of the mascarpone and was hoping for possibly a bit more cheesiness from it. I felt that it needed more to stand up to the corn flavor of the polenta base, so it fell just a touch short when standing up to the amazing flavor of the short rib. I also feel there could have been less of a portion. It was a very tasty dish, and the fact that we were served the short rib on a bone slate was divine and it really lent itself to the presentation and the overall feel of the dish. This is where Chef Scott Martino’s experience starts to show through, by placing the meat on the bone so the juices from the rib don’t leech with the polenta before serving, leading to a murky dish. That’s smart, very smart.
The third course we received was a very nice palate cleanser of pecorino foglie noce, warm chestnut honey on toast points. I’m a fan of this dishes presentation. It comes served on a beautiful piece of slate and is very direct in the approach, standing front and center awaiting digestion. It’s simple, but refined and beautifully minimalistic. The cheese was akin to romano, and had a decent texture to it with a touch of creaminess, but not so creamy that it got lost under the creaminess of the honey. The honey was good, but, unfortunately by the time the wait staff got it to us, it had lost any kind of advertised warmth as described on the menu. To be fair though, honey is a hard product to keep warm, and unless I was having warm honey poured table side, I wouldn’t have honestly expected anything else. It definitely balanced the savory of the previous course and prepped us for the sweet of the final course, offering fantastic balance. And, that’s what being a good chef is all about, telling a story with your food and taking your guests on a tasteful journey.
The last course we had enjoyed was a chocolate creme brulee with fresh strawberries. I’m going to tell you right now that this stuff was absolutely awesome. For some reason, Chef Scott Martino always delivers on his desert courses and finishes very strong, as if he’s hitting a home run and going for the win. The brulee was creamy, texturally perfect, deep, rich and not at all heavy. It definitely paired well with the rest of the courses and completed the culinary voyage. The strawberries tasted as if I had just plucked them from the patch in my mothers back yard and were of “in season” quality. My only issue with the dessert was that the sugar on top didn’t have enough caramelization to it which is mostly what the beautiful brulee package is all about; jamming your spoon down through the sugar to get at the beautiful filling. I heard reports this could be due to a technical difficulty in the kitchen, so I can’t be terribly critical of the situation. The fact is, is that things happen in the kitchen and it takes a great chef to respond accordingly. Chef Scott Martino always responds with clarity and class.
Overall, I’m glad I’ve gotten the opportunity to enjoy Chef Martino’s food again, and it’s always a pleasure doing so. I’m hoping to see him step outside his comfort zone soon and really start showing the Lancaster culinary scene who the next big player in town is. For I do believe he could usurp such a throne with his culinary acuity and attention to detail.
http://www.briancwelchphotography.com/on-orange-with-chef-scott-martino/
