Last night, the 4th Annual Schlafly Cod and Cask Festival was long on the Cod and short on the Cask... at 8 PM, the cask-conditioned ale was already gone (more will be available today).
Fish and chips were everywhere but I opted for something fun to say but hard to find, plokkfiskur, the Icelandic comfort food (allegedly created to make a meal out of fish scraps). Hakon Orvarsson, the Michelin-starred chef flown in for the event, shared the ingredients...a mix of 2/3 shredded cod and 1/3 coarsely mashed potatoes, some onion, garlic, a wee bit of curry, salt and pepper, all bound together with bechamel sauce, then topped with cheese and baked till the cheese is crusty.
It appeared I was the only person eating it, but apparently the word was out on plokkfiskur as well. Orvarsson informed me that he had already gone through 10 hotel pans of the stuff...and remember it was only 8 o'clock.
Having passed on the cod and missed out on the ale, I remembered they were the reason for going to Schlafly's in the first place...it's hard to beat fresh cod and fresh ale, especially when the fryer oil is clean and hot and pure.
So here's my advice for those with similar intentions: be there at 5 PM today, when the doors to the Club Room reopen (you'll be in line right behind me). And say hello to Chef Orvarsson...look for a guy in starched whites, with a proud look on his face...carrying a hotel pan of plokkfiskur. -- George Mahe
