Lazy Bear

Lazy Bear is the most awesome underground fine dining experience that i am aware of. Chef David was a lawyer who passionately taught himself to cook to maintain sanity through law school. he eventually decided that he was good enough to make it his full time gig and forget about all that schooling he suffered through. a Lazy Bear meal is officially about seven or eight courses but ends up actually being about twelve or thirteen courses. they lie to you when they mention "snacks" on their menu. they are share plates between your group but they are muuuuuch more than your typical idea of a snack. think soft shelled crab with ramp butter or an oyster in tomato jelly. they have a BYOB policy and provide you with the glasses, which is awesome because you can bring whatever you want and as much as you want. the location is hidden until you've confirmed your reservation and paid the deposit (equal to the cost of one meal, $110), but i think they've been serving in the same spot for a while. and just fyi, it's a quirky spot that is perfect for this sort of thing. also, at any point during dinner you can walk into the kitchen and see what they're preparing as well as talk to the chefs. this is definitely not typical. other fine dining establishments will allow you a short guided glance into their kitchen but it stops there. the combination of everything that Lazy Bear is about makes it such a unique experience. 

Lazy Bear began a few years ago but due to it's insane lottery system reservation process it's possible that you may never be opportunistic enough to get an invite. currently you submit your online application and mark the days within a two week span that work for you. after that it's out of your control. you patiently wait for a call or email but if you don't hear from them then your chances are shot. if you are lucky enough to get an invite, you better be available for whatever date they've got or you'll have to go through the process two weeks later. it's pretty much the same mind f*ck you experience when you've just started dating someone and are waiting for them to call you and make moves. the ball is completely in their court and you have no jurisdiction about where this is going. but maybe that'll change. it is in it's last couple of months operating as a pop-up and will soon have it's very own brick and mortar. maybe their reservation process will change to a more standard system. i've got my fingers crossed on that one. 

i hope you can one day experience Lazy Bear for it is truly an awesome experience!

smoked whipped egg, bacon with hot sauce

warm and savory. a great start to the meal.

my guy, Ted, who scored the reservation! thankssomuch!

Caroline. her boyfriend Ed was with us but i failed to get a picture of the two of them

doesn't sound like much but you just wait and see!

prep in the kitchen

oyster in tomato jelly

not a fan of oysters or jelly in general but i didn't mind this so much. it doesn't make sense but somehow the jelly made it less slimy

smoked salmon and dill mousse

there was a citrus note in this that rounded out the rich creaminess of the mousse. loved this.

soft shell crab with ramp butter

this was crazzzzzy good! the crab was fried in a seasoned batter so on it's own it had great flavor. the ramp butter enhanced it all and was awesomely delicious. you can't tell from the picture but it was a bright green color. an awesome dish.

cultured butter with butter curds

who knew you could make butter so delicious. i don't know what it was about this but it was so creamy and flavorful. i could've kept eating it all night long if i didn't know there was an actual seven course meal ahead of me.

mackerel escabeche. melon, peach, bay laurel

this tasted a lot like sardines. it was fairly fishy but masked slightly by the melon. the part with peach did the best job of masking the fishiness. this was my least favorite dish but still quite good overall.

rabbit confit. rainier cherry, pistachio, ramps and brioche

so much went into the production of this single plate! rabbit done a couple of ways, this was a sophisticated dish. salty, sweet, rich, bright. all good things. 

sea cucumber congee. cucumber, peas, celery.

i'm not a fan of sea cucumber because of it's sliminess but they did a good job ridding that texture from the dish. the peas were beautiful and just barely cooked.

squab. blueberries, porcinis, fir tips

squab and blueberries? AND granola? seriously? who would've ever thought this up?? this dish was so good and the squab was tender and flavorful. loved this!

fatty beef. padrons, pepper juice, basils, finger lime, rice.

ughhhh!!! so tender. and lovely. i wanted this 10x in size. absolutely perfectly cooked and ultra flavorful.

apricot brulee. humbolt fog, frangipane.

charred apricots, cheese and almonds. sounds great, tastes great.

berries. cookies, cream.

simple but somehow hit the spot. refreshing, creamy, packed with flavor and textures. this was awesome! 

treats

cutest little plate of bites!

strawberry jelly with balsamic vinegar, doughnut

i don't even like jellies but they made this really dense so it wasn't like a squishy jelly consistency. balsamic always pairs nicely with strawberries and that little basil bud was crazy fragrant and packed with flavor. this was my favorite of the "treats."

almond cake, smores, caramel bite??

100% worth it. i would've paid more without any hesitation.