A restaurant meal is incomplete without its after-dinner mint, which cleanses the palate before patrons gnaw a subterranean tunnel home. Chew the scenery with today’s Groupon: for $49, you get a three-course chef’s tasting menu for two at Hudson’s on the Bend (a $99 value). This deal must be redeemed after January 2, 2012. Each diner selects an item from the following three courses:
- First course
- Salad with tomatillos, candied almonds, and poblano-lime dressing
- Chipotle lobster bisque with parmesan puff pastry<p>
- Entree
- Crunchy trout with mango-jalapeño aioli and ancho paint
- Espresso-rubbed smoked elk with lime-chipotle beer blanc<p>
- Dessert
- Caramel-pecan pie dipped in belgian chocolate
- Pumpkin-white-chocolate bread pudding with vanilla ice cream<p>
At Hudson’s on the Bend, chef Jeff Blank and executive chef Kelly Casey dress wild-game entrees in innovative sauces, winning them recognition for the Best Wild Game Dish from readers of the Austin Chronicle. Crunchy trout rests in mango-jalapeño aioli, painted with ancho into a perfect replica of Monet’s Aquaman. An espresso rub leads palates into smoldering territory as they approach the elk back strap, and its flavors are further illuminated by an evanescent lime-chipotle beer blanc sauce.
When weather permits, a patio and garden gazebo enchant the eye amid trees wrapped in petite nodes of light. The rustic yet upscale décor, characterized by soft candlelight, red tablecloths, and vibrant paintings along exposed-stone walls, found favorable mention in the New York Times’ travel guide.
Hudson's on the Bend
Jeff Blank and his kitchen crew like to joke that other cooks must suffer from a "fear of cooking." That's because, for the award-winning chef, cooking is a kind of alchemy—an ambitious experiment that is sometimes fated to fail. But when it works, Jeff and his Executive Chef Kelly Casey transform fresh ingredients, often plucked from local farms and ranches, into piquant dishes adorned with housemade sauces, such as tomatillo white chocolate, mango jalapeño, and bourbon vanilla praline. Behind the kitchen, a stone smokehouse infuses ostrich, rattlesnake, and venison meats with dusky notes, creating entrees that have won them recognition for the Best Wild Game Dish from readers of the Austin Chronicle.
Diners take in the gustatory array on a patio and in a garden gazebo, surrounded by vegetable plants, flowers, and trees wrapped in petite nodes of light. Even the rustic, upscale decor—characterized by soft candlelight, red tablecloths, and vibrant paintings along exposed-stone walls—has earned acclaim, finding favorable mention in the New York Times' travel guide.