Graham Dodds Introduces New Menu at Central 214

Posted on January 18th, 2012 12:06pm by Nancy Nichols
Filed under GO TEXAN, Local/Slow Food, menus, Restaurant News

Former Bolsa chef Graham Dodds is now cooking at Central 214. This morning he released the highlights of his new menu which begins tonight. Check it out below.  Go. Eat. Report.

Central 214 Dinner Menu

Among the highlights of Dodds’ new dinner menu:

Blood Sausage Ravioli with Baby Carrots and Buerre Fondue

Lamb Breast with Smoked Paprika-Honey Glaze and Crushed Cannellini Beans

Oxtail Ragout with Crispy Gnocchi and Basil Pesto

Louisiana Redfish with Savoy Spinach and Sauce Grenobloise

Beef Short Ribs with Horseradish Bread Crumbs and Parsnip Puree

Striped Bass with Black Lentils, Watercress and Goat Yogurt

Cauliflower “Risotto” with Kinda Wild Mushrooms and Red Wine Gastrique

Butternut Squash Parmesan with Burrata, Tom’s Arugula and Pomodoro

New York Strip with Rainbow Chard, Sunchoke Chips and Bone Marrow Butter
A sampling of the new Central 214 appetizers includes:

“Popcorn” Sweetbreads with Lime Zest and Butter

Bosque Blue Cheese Terrine with Red Pear and Local Honeycomb

Salt Cod Fritters with Piquillo Pepper Rouille

Louisiana Blue Crab Roll with Bacon Aioli and Espellette Pepper
Dodds also offers a variety of unique salad options, such as:

Roast Beets with Chevre, Pecan Balsamic and Arugula Olive Oil

Brussels Sprout Leaves with Amaranth and Pork Belly

Central 214 Dessert Menu
Dodds’ new desserts are also inspired by local ingredients as well as the chef’s Scottish family heritage. The featured PBJ with Vanilla Panna Cotta and Mum’s Preserves dessert, is made with fresh preserves using his mother’s own recipe. Other delectable dessert features include:

Chocolate-Cranberry Pavlova with Pistachio-White Chocolate Cream

Lemon-Honey Cake with Sweet Mascarpone

Housemade Churros with Cajeta Ice Cream and Fuji Apple

Central 214 Bar Menu
Central 214’s chic bar is also receiving the Dodds touch. The 15 new menu offerings range from light bites to more substantial dishes perfect for happy hour or late night dining. Highlights include:

Scotch Egg with Fleur de Sel

Triple Cooked Fries with Malt Vinegar

Crispy Pig Ears with Radish and Buttermilk Dressing

JLT with Pork Jowl, Lettuce and Tomato

Cast Iron Seared Burger with Bacon and Greens Creek Gruyere

Duck Confit Quesadilla with Avocado-Tomatillo Salsa

Coq Au Vin with Mascarpone Polenta and Sauce Vierge

Texas Quail with Leek Spaetzle and Roast Garlic Jus

Hanger Steak Frites with Green Peppercorn Gremolata

Working with a variety of partnerships that Chef Dodds has established over the past two decades, the new Central 214 menus will highlight ingredients from local and regional farms including: Caprino Royale; Texas Olive Ranch; Texas Honeybee Guild; Eden Creek Farm; Tom Spicer; Tassione Farms; Windy Hill Organics; Homestead Heritage; Windy Meadows Farm; Eagle Mountain Cheese; Veldhuizen Family Farm; Brazos Valley Cheese; and Marbleous Beef.

9 comments

  1. Grahambknowsbhis stuff. Let’s get him to do a Burns Night Supper on Jan 24th!

    @ 1:50 pm on January 18, 2012

  2. Damn you iPad!

    @ 1:50 pm on January 18, 2012

  3. The menu looks great i hope i get to try it.
    best luck with everything

    @ 3:17 pm on January 18, 2012

  4. Someone like Graham working in a place like 214 ought to be an excellent boon to local food producers. Kimpton’s cash flow is astounding and with what they can afford, and charge, he should be able to buy quite a bit from nearby. Also, no landlord is going to lock the doors anytime soon. I can’t think of a comparable restaurant in town. All things considered of course. Not just chef status and quality of food, but money in the back, marketing power, staying power, and what seems like a chef that is far more dedicated to local quality than the rest. He’s not buying from Freshpoint and calling it local. He’s probably also not the kind of guy that’s going to highlight “cage-free” eggs on the menu, but rather only point out the eggs if they’re pasture and from Texas. I’m looking at you Texas Spice.

    @ 4:34 pm on January 18, 2012

  5. I don’t mean to say that it’s awful to buy from Freshpoint and call it local. That’s still going down the right path, no doubt about it. However, IMO it’s preferable to say “hey, Brandon and Susan from the Guild are dropping off some honey today” rather than “yeah there’s going to be some honey on the truck this Thursday”. Even if the honey on the truck does come from TX. I like to get to know the person producing the product, and feel we ought to keep going further down that path rather than settling on a distributor’s impersonal local value-add side.

    @ 4:42 pm on January 18, 2012

  6. @Mark tough access and no parking, though.

    @ 5:25 pm on January 18, 2012

  7. That’s not quite true Snack. The valet is fast and free, if I remember correctly there are parking spots round the corner near the storage place. But no not outside the front door. God we get so spoiled! As for access. Jeez, gonna let a little detour put you off?

    @ 5:34 pm on January 18, 2012

  8. @Snack @Kessler Valet is free for the hotel, hopefully the restaurant as well. Then again, valet is never truly free unless you’re a real jerk. It’s true the parking situation is not ideal. However, as porker pointed out there are spots in the self storage place next door, but even closer are some spots on the south side of the building. There is a large gravel area that’s great unless you’ve got an extremely low sports car. If you did have one of those you’d probably be valeting anyway. Even the slightest detour ought to be considered when gauging all aspects of potential success. They really ought to pave that lot just to the south.

    @ 1:44 pm on January 19, 2012

  9. Wish I’d had the timetable when I went 2 weeks ago looking for the new menu. Should have called first. :(

    @ 8:16 pm on January 19, 2012