In This Issue

American Seasons - Creative Dining, Neighborhood Feel

It may at first seem contradictory that one of the finest chefs on Nantucket sets as his goal a restaurant with a comfortable ambiance and “funky comfort food.”  But it only takes one visit to American Seasons to realize it’s the ideal blend.  Chef Michael LaScola aims to make the restaurant  “comfortable, not pretentious, and a place where you can have a good time…we want American Seasons to be fun…to offer a relaxed, neighborhood feel, but still serve creative food.”

His success is palatable! 

Not only does he serve updated classics, but you’ll also find offerings on the menu that you’ll taste nowhere else.  Dishes with unfamiliar ingredients, innovative preparations, and unusual pairings are typical and unfailingly delicious. 

Chef LaScola, along with life and business partner Orla Murphy-LaScola, pour their considerable talents and energies into constantly improving and expanding their offerings at American Seasons. Even their winter travels relate to the restaurant, as they search for and discover new wineries and new products to introduce to their Nantucket patrons.  One of the challenges this year is the skyrocketing price of food—the LaScolas remain committed to serving the same high-quality food while keeping their prices level.  “We’re open nine months a year…we want people to come back.”  And they will!

Fifty new selections have been added to the wine list for this season, many from small production vineyards, bringing the total to an impressive 525.  Orla is enthusiastic about the new additions:  “We’ve picked up a lot of syrahs, more small production pinot noirs, and we’re pleased that we’ve been able to add American winemakers who are working abroad…it’s a natural progression for us.”  They’ve also added more absinthes to their drink menu and are infusing their own vodkas and tequilas.  Their meyer lemon vodka and blood orange tequila are well worth a taste.

Guests enter American Seasons through an enclosed patio.  During the high season, tables here are at a premium; but this time of year and during the fall, the porch (heated on cool evenings) is a comfortable and casual sitting area for cocktails and conversation.

Every one of the American Season bartenders creates a relaxed feeling of camaraderie, reinforcing the ambiance of a neighborhood eatery.  This is a favorite after-work stop for locals, and with only a half-dozen or so seats around the bar, we’d advise you to come early to score a seat.

The Bar Menu features their wildly popular “little portions” in two, three, or four plates. A few of these mirror appetizers on the regular menu; others are unique to the bar menu.  It’s an appealing way to sample several of Chef LaScola’s exceptional preparations at a single sitting. A selection of four with a glass of wine or a Blood Orange Margarita makes for a fun and filling light meal.

The American Seasons dining room is warm and engaging, with just enough whimsical accents to keep it interesting and fun. Seating is a mix of tables and booths, with several intimate spots complete with cushions. Each decoratively painted table is appointed with a tall candle and house-infused olive oil. 

The waitstaff here is professional, well-versed in the menu and specials, and unflappable.  At a previous dinner, one in our party told the server “just bring me one appetizer and one entrée...I’ll eat anything.”  The waiter smiled, nodded, and proceeded to bring our friend a meal full of delicious surprises.  Because everything that comes out of Chef LaScola’s kitchen is so consistently good, you truly can put yourself in the hands of the chef.  There is no children’s menu, so unless your youngsters have sophisticated palates, you might want to keep American Seasons as a treat for the grown-ups.

	Regulars at American Seasons know each year to expect a new and creative treatment of foie gras.  This year, there are several.  Two appear in an appetizer: Duck Confit & Foie Gras Terrine with Potted Foie Gras.  The sliced terrine is a superb blend of rich flavors, and the duck confit lends to it a meatier texture than is usually enjoyed with foie. The potted foie, poached in pear brandy and presented in its own little mason jar, takes center stage on the plate.  Wonderfully rich yet light, smooth and spreadable, it is sensational on the buttery crostini with a touch of housemade apricot marmalade.
	A perfect spring starter, and one we’ve never before tasted, is the House Made Tete de Porc.  Chilled and thinly sliced, the delicate meat is plated with marinated artichokes, shaved radish, caperberries, endive, crumbles of hard-boiled egg, tiny croutons, and a mustard sherry vinaigrette, creating a savory platter that will tickle your palate and transport you the French countryside.
	Pairing meats with seafood to create divine duets is a style that Chef LaScola does to perfection.  His Maine Day Boat Scallops with Beef Cheek Hash is a stellar example.  The large, delicate and succulent scallops, deliciously caramelized top and bottom, are served atop spoonfuls of deeply flavorful, hearty, and tender beef cheeks.  Sections of blood orange perched on top of each scallop lightens the dish with a whoosh of fresh citrus.
	We recommend that you order the nightly special, whatever it happens to be.  We tasted an appetizer simply called Pan Stew that quickly became the table favorite.  The smoky combination of crayfish, videlia onion, bacon, and potatoes in an ethereal seafood-based sauce, was topped with two enormous,  juicy fried oysters with deliciously crunchy cornmeal-coating.  A garnish of lemon confit added bright notes to the hearty stew. The pleasure of this dish was heightened by the knowledge that, as an evening special, we may never again get the chance to savor it.
	The other nightly special was Grilled Loin of Elk.  Tender and not at all gamey, the meat was actually slightly sweeter than beef.  A surround of diced red beets and spring garlic puree heightened that sweetness.  The elk was served on a fluffy hazlenut quinoa with a pleasant, nutty flavor, which perfectly suited the meat.
	We always look forward to Chef LaScola’s duck preparation, and the Spice Rubbed Long Island Duck Breast on his spring menu does not disappoint! We heartily agree with Orla, who called this dish her favorite.  It is impossible not to speak of this in superlatives!  Served rare, the duck meat is moist and the crispy skin is disarmingly good.  The Nantucket-grown shiitake mushrooms taste like no other.  You’ll want to tip up the bowl and drink every drop of the au jus broth flavored with orange and miso.  And the foie gras dumpling served alongside nearly steals the show. Every element in this dish adds to the flavor.
	Seafood lovers will adore the Chili Glazed Organic Salmon. An encore selection, LaScola’s pairing of smoky chili and fresh fish is inspired.  The salmon is served on two fruity slices of green tomato, cornmeal dusted and fried.  A slightly smoky butter sauce with  diced tomato, crayfish, and kernels of smoked corn surrounds the salmon.  We’d like to see this dish be a permant menu selection.
	The Pan-Seared Atlantic Halibut is another winning choice.  The dish is a gorgeous mix of flavors: the ocean-fresh fish, juicy mussels, crushed fresh peas, and spicy-hot bits of chorizo sausage, all in a chorizo vinaigrette. This entree is best when each element is taken together.
	American Seasons in one of the few remaining restaurants where desserts do not come out of a box.  Pastry Chef Natasha Misanko is equally as skilled with a classic Creme Bruleé served with strawberry and cinnamon sorbet and shortbread, as she is with...
	... an over-the-top Nutella & More, which is a luscious chocolate and hazelnut cake on a shortbread crust topped with caramelized bananas and a scoop of hazelnut ice cream flecked with nutella.
	The men at our table pronounced the Mocha Porter & Peanut Butter Float to be “the perfect guy dessert.”  We found this unlikely combination to be surprisingly good, especially after the ice cream melted a bit into the porter.  The garnish of nut brittle are tasty stirred in the float.
	If you prefer a savory end to your meal, there is a cheese offering every night.  We tried St. Pat, a soft and mellow organic cow’s milk cheese from the award-winning Cowgirl Creamery.  This springtime cheese is aged in stinging nettle leaves that give it a slightly smoky taste (no sting, we promise).  The cheese is served with buttery crostini and a smear of rhubarb mustard.