Which Way the Wind Blows
by Brooks MacDonald

"Wow, wonderful, bliss, absolutely heavenly!" No, I'm not quoting D.B. Eberhart in his review of Hurricane in the Maine Sunday Telegram (12/19/93), but those were his words. I'm thinking about our spring weather and the relief - finally - from what was one of our worst winters on record.

Now it's time for spring flowers and baseball and all those things we seem to wait for so long. Spring also means there is a lot of things to be done to get ready fo our fourth summer here in Perkins Cive. Allow me to share some of those plans with you and see what you think.

June 24th will mark our third year here at Hurricane. When we took over we had a plan in the back of our minds that we would upgrade the restaurant to the standards we felt would be first-class in every detail. We knew we would need some time to make these changes, and we set up a five year plan as our goal. Well, thanks to our valued customers, we will be able to meet this goal by our third anniversary - two years ahead of schedule!

Since that warm spring day in June 1991, virtually everything in our restaurant has been replaced or upgraded (author excluded). It's been a lot of fun doing all this, and we are all very proud of our labor of love.

In this, our fourth newsletter, we want to fill you in on some of our plans for the upcoming season. Lou and Karen have already planted the herbs that will grow at our front door. The kitchen crew will be trimming them nightly. That's pretty fresh, don't you think? Bobby Mac is chomping at the bit to bring us one of his tuna fish. Phil at River Lilly Farm will have baby lettuces for us any day now. This is a great time of year if you love food or baseball!

In this issue, you will find a schedule of summer events here in Ogunquit and news about the latest fashions in our gift department. (What does Tracy have planned for us this year?) You'll also get the scoop on our new recipe post card series and a whole lot more stuff that you just have to know before anybody else.

Well, it's time to get down to work. There is plenty to do before we head off to Chicago for the National Restaurant Show. As a friend once said, "You can never not know too much."

Okay, Harry Carey, are you ready? "Take me out to the ball game..."

Wine, Wine, Everywhere Wine

In Eastern Europe they have a philosophy, "Eat when you drink and drink when you eat." We can't think of a better way to enjoy life, and the over-50 wine selections we are currently listing - over 20 poured by the glass! The Hurricane poured over 9,000 bottles in 1993, and we have submitted our wine list for consideration in the Wine Spectator's "Award of Excellence" program. Local wine distributors are beating down our door to get their wines on our list. And all this variety requires more and more staff training, which is planned for late spring and early summer. Our 3 liter collection is growing. As we encounter great wines available in this large size, we add them to our list. They are wonderful to serve to large parties, making the experience that much more festive.

We are fortunate to live in an age of such sophisticated winemaking around the world, some of the best of which is in America. Wine is such an elegant compliment to our cuisine's presentation, we hope you'll take advantage of our wine list soon.

Wow! Wonderful, Bliss, Absolutely Heavenly

These are just some of the superlatives we have received in restaurant reviews in the last year. D.B. Eberhart, in the Maine Sunday Telegram "Taste & Tell" review, writes, "This is a restaurant that must be visited many times before truly testing the edges of its skill...Hurricane Restaurant is worth any journey." D.B. gave us five stars. We say wow and thanks! We have also received complimentary notices from the Lowell Sun, Seacoast Times, Coast of Maine Book, The Yankee Traveler, and the Get Away for Gourmets. Look for reprints in a restroom near you.

Caeser Salad (Serves 4)

• 4 egg yols
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 2 cups olive oil
• 2 anchovies, mashed
• 1/3 cup lemon juice
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3/4 cup Parmesan, freshly grated
• 1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• red wine vinegar to thin out

Mix egg yolks and Dijon together. Slowly drizzle in olive oil until thick. Add anchovy paste, lemon juice, salt, pepper, Parmesan, Tabasco and Worcestershire. If mixture is too thick, thin with red wine vinegar until slightly thinned. Cover tightly and keep refrigerated.

Portion:

• 4 cups Romaine
• 1 oz. Parmesan, freshly grated
• 4 oz. dressing
• 2 anchovies
• 1 tablespoon hard boiled egg yolk and white
• 8 to 10 croutons

Toss Romaine with Parmesan and dressing. Top with chopped egg, croutons and anchovies. Serve on chilled plates.