Bedford Restaurant - the Return of Chef Gadsby to the Houston scene

Last Monday, the Houston Chowhounds celebrated a birthday dinner for one of its’ own, Fulmer, in full regalia at Houston’s newest restaurant.

Chef Robert Gadsby, has returned in full force, with his new venture, Bedford,  located in a beautiful brick building in the Houston Heights.

The swanky restaurant is aptly named for the chef’s hometown, north of London and after many years of experience with some of the best in the business, he is bringing a fresh look to fusion cuisine to the Space City.  He was previously at  the helm of Soma and Noe in the Omni in both Los Angeles and Houston, as well as the highly touted Gadsby’s (Los Angeles)  in the mid 90’s.  His art is expressed on the plates that he serves with influences from around the globe - Thailand to France, the Caribbean to Japan, Italian mixed with local flavours and as far as the imagination can stretch.

We started off in the beautiful setting of the bar area, where Jean, our bartender, helped us choose drinks cheerfully, making every cocktail to order.  I ordered the French Martini - a bit on the sweet side but very good.  My colleague ordered the Cucumber Martini - not sure if she liked the combination of the infusion of gin & cucumber - although perhaps it is his tip of the hat to a Pimm’s No. 1.

The dining room itself is wonderfully appointed with different styles of art that I found to be very aesthetic.  Some of my fellow Chowhounds did not agree with me on this, but I thought that the dining room itself was filled with clean lines and modern strokes of boldness on the wall, bringing pops of color to the dark room.

Chef Gadsby came out to greet us before he and his kitchen staff went to work at creating the dishes below.  The first question that he asked the 20+ crowd of  HUNGRY foodies was “Is there anything you won’t eat?”  and then secondly, which I found thoughtful, “Is anyone allergic to anything?”

Once in agreement that we love anything in pork fat, goose liver, or confited, we were guided in the gentle hands of Chef Gadsby over the next few hours of good food and fun times.

We were initially set for a 6 course tasting, but we ended up with 9 dishes total (2 soups alternating and 2 main courses alternating, to encourage sharing), this including one Amuse Bouche to begin the meal.    With our meal, we were given the option to pair each course with wines (which I have listed below each photograph) so for $100.00 (plus tip and gratuity), I think it was an excellent value!

So let’s begin…

Our Amuse Bouche was served to us in a tiny cast iron skillet.  This was a Thai Inspired Mushroom Risotto, sprinkled with Pomegrante seeds and micro greens.  The bottom of the skillet was fitted with a  miniature tortilla.  The risotto itself was perfectly executed, but extremely spicy.  Almost too spicy, if there is such a thing.  The toughness of the tortilla made the dish hard to eat, so I simply ate the risotto off of the top.   The pomegrante seeds added a very nice tart contrast to such a spicy little dish.  A Pine Ridge Chardonnay paired well with this also, it had very high citrus notes and helped to cool the spiciness of the dish. 

Pine Ridge Chardonnay - 2006 with the Thai inspired Mushroom Risotto
Amuse Bouche

Second Course - Tuna Tartare with an Avocado Fondue, topped with a hard boiled quail egg, black and white sesame seeds and Cauliflower “Air”.

Tuna Tartare is, seemingly, on every menu in town - but nothing quite this good.  The tuna was EXTREMELY fresh and I found myself, wanting MORE of the avocado fondue, which was a creamy mix of avocado and wasabi (or possibly chili oil).  The sesame seeds added a nuttiness that you come to expect in some sushi rolls and was a nice touch from a texture aspect.   Didn’t make too much of the Cauliflower “Air” - the foam was simply lost in the tastes already underneath.  This was probably one of my favorite dishes of the evening.  The Sardinian wine served with the tartare was a nice accoutrement to the dish.  I could’ve stuck with this all night long. 

Argiolas Costamolino - Vermantino - Sardinia - with a Tuna Tartare
topped with an avocado fondue, a quail egg, black & white sesame
seeds and cauliflower “air” (foam)

Shanghai Style Duck Ravioli - Interesting combination of sauteed vegetables (red pepper, shitake mushrooms, bean sprouts, green onions) and a wonderfully cooked duck ravioli.  The pasta was just right and very delicate next to the meat, which I found to be a little underseasoned and tough.  The saving grace for the duck meat itself, was a bechamel made from the duck fat itself.  Awesome.  Creamy.  To die for.

Domaine Brintet - Bourgogne - Burgundy 2005 - with the Shanghai Style
Duck Ravioli topped with frisee and the Mimosa Dressing; sauteed red
peppers, carrots, bean sprouts, mushrooms and a bechamel made with
the duck fat

Next came out a whimsical play on a good ol’ breakfast favorite.  A breakfast of champions, here folks.  A perfectly executed piece of foie gras, with just the right amount of caramelization sat atop a small slice of brioche and house cured bacon and paired with a gently scrambled egg topped with truffle oil.   I think I had died and gone to heaven.  The flavor combination started a party in my mouth - the only drawback to this course was that it was cold, cold, cold and I think I may have preferred the richness of runny yokes instead of the eggs being scrambled.  Also, my bacon was very undercooked - could have been a bit crispier to add texture to the overall package.  The wine choice as described to us as a Super Tuscan Red, was an EXCELLENT pairing.

Prina Voce - Toscana - 2004 (85% Merlot/15% Cab - kind of a “Super
Tuscan Red”) with the Foie Gras, Bacon & Eggs on toast with truffle
oil and microparsley

We were served with two different soups, alternately to encourage sharing and allowing the Chef to showcase more  for us to enjoy.

The Butternut Squash Cappucino was overpoweringly sweet.  I think that any more than a cup and the richness would fill an unsuspecting diner up, not to bother with anything past the soup course.   The flavours were there - butternut and ginger and it was very warm and inviting on such a cold evening, it was just overkill in the sweet department.    To add to the sugariness of the soup itself, it was topped with a crunchy sweet granola too boot.   If you are a sweets person - this is the soup for you.  

The Hot Pot Style Soup with Seafood & Gnocchi was the exact polar opposite.  Tangy, spicy broth served in small pots fitted with a sake style cup to drink the soup from, was filled with Striped Sea Bass, Scallops, Mushrooms, Hazelnuts and a few fluffy pillows of Gnocchi.  I found the soup presentation to be awkward, as I couldn’t get to all of the little morsels of goodness in the pot.  The soup was amazing and extremely soul satisfying. 

2 different soups - Butternut Squash Cappucino with ginger and nuts &
the Hot Pot Soup - hazelnut, grape tomato, striped sea bass, scallop,
lime in a very tangy broth

On to the main courses, again, alterating between guests to share.  I received the Sausage Rigatoni.  This was phenomenal.  Rich, juicy sausage that is made in house with the PERFECT blend of spices, served in its own juices, tomatoes and al dente rigatoni (perfect for capturing all that pork fat inside the noodles) and topped with a wondefully aged goat cheese.  This is something that you would crave after eating once. 

The Swordfish with Bok Choy was good - I’m not sure if it was not as tender as I would have hoped because of the number of dishes going out or the size of the piece…but I have to say the sauce, which was comprised of the Bok Choy and it’s own juices along with Yuzu was light and very complimentary to the dish.  The fish is something I would give another chance as I know that fish dishes sometimes do not get justice where it is due in a group setting.  Beautiful presentation.

Waterbrook Melange - Columbia Valley - 2005 served with Swordfish and
Bokchoy and the Sausage Rigatoni

Dessert was probably my least favorite.  The “sticky loaf” with pear and chocolate was a great concept of  flavours, they were just not bold enough.  The Bailey’s sauce didn’t really shine through either - I would have liked to have a little more depth to this part of the plate.   The chocolate pistachio cookies were hard, but palatable.  The best item on the plate was the Chocolate Orange Truffle. Perfect with the Port that was served.  Great flavors.

Port - Taylor Fladgate 2000 served with Caramelized pear & chocolate
Sticky Loaf with Baileys Sauce, Chocolate Pistachio Nut Cookie and
and Orange Truffle & Non Vintage Scharffenberger Sparkling

Chef Gadsby and his excellent staff, preparing our Tuna Tartare with keen precision.

If you get a chance - stop by and say hello to Chef Gadsby and his crew.  This would be an excellent date destination or somewhere to celebrate.  His current menu has a wide variety and something for everyone.   Full bar and wine list.   I am very excited to see what the Chef has in store for us as the seasons change.