Rogue Sessions Presents Chef Spike Gjerde!

Chef Spike Gjerde helmed Rogue 24's kitchen for the third week of 'Rogue Sessions'.

Be sure to check out all 28 of our photographs from this event HERE!

BLAGDEN ALLEY -- Baltimore-based Chef Spike Gjerde unleashed a veritable charm offensive of his own over Washington last week, as the third guest chef of Rogue 24’s exclusive 8-week culinary series dubbed ‘Rogue Sessions’.

Yellow perch/roe/sunchoke/spelt toast.
A pioneering influence on Charm City’s restaurant community for more than two decades, Gjerde’s commitment to locally-sourced ingredients that originate from a healthy, sustainable infrastructure has earned him countless accolades over the years, including at his current Baltimore restaurant, the storied Woodberry Kitchen.

And a small taste of that infrastructure found its way to D.C. during the last few days, with Gjerde leveraging his connections to close to 100 Chesapeake Bay producers to deliver a truly unique (and mouthwatering) menu to diners.

Cheftender Bryan Tetorakis’ Orris Julius (gin/orange/cream/orris root/”brandied apple”).
“We just took what we do at Woodbury and, because we can’t really separate the preparation from the ingredients in our case, we brought a lot of that with us,” said Gjerde. “We wanted to connect our guests here in Washington, not only with our approach, but with [our] ingredients.”

He continued: “As different as the two approaches are [between Rogue 24 and Woodberry Kitchen], there’s this shared kind of commitment to really deciding what’s important … and then committing to that and doing it. And I think that’s a neat thing. And what you see under all of it is the tremendous amount of energy and effort that it takes to do both of those. And that’s what I’ve seen here…since the second I’ve walked through the door…is an incredible team…a lot of people working really hard to create something really special.”

Hog jowl on the bone with pickled mustard seeds.
The self-described culinary journey, as prepared by Gjerde, was as follows:

• Course 1: House fried rice/duck/vegetables/soy/sesame
  
• Course 2: Kimchi “pork” rinds/smoked trout remoulade
  
• Course 3: Pizza paper/ricotta/basil/tomato
  
  Snow hill oyster/fish pepper/pickled ramps.
  
• Course 4: Yogurt/eggplant/benne/sumac
  
• Course 5: Ossetra/cauliflower/apple/cider bubbles
  
• Course 6: Urchin/lava/coral/seaweed/brackish water
  
  Whitmore pig hock/smoke/broth/aromatics.
  
• Course 7: Snow hill oyster/fish pepper/pickled ramps
  
• Course 8: Yellow perch/roe/sunchoke/spelt toast
  
• Course 9: Hog jowl on the bone/pickled mustard seeds
  
  
• Course 10: Brussels sprouts/malt vinegar/blue cheese/pretzels
  
• Course 11: Oyster root/worcestershire/cabbage shoots
  
• Course 12: Swordfish/mortared scale/cara cara orange/samphire
  
  Oyster root/worcestershire/cabbage shoots.
  
• Course 13: Whitmore pig hock/smoke/broth/aromatics
  
• Course 14: Whitmore pig trotter/pie/winter root vegetables
  
• Course 15: Whitmore pig stuffed ham/sweet potato/red eye
  
  
• Course 16: Marvesta pepperpot/gold rice/rockfish belly/okra/shrimp gravy
  
• Course 17: Pork chop/crowder peas/ranch/pickles
  
• Course 18: Snails/ham/potato/trumpets
  
  
• Course 19: Shabu shabu/short rib/caramelized onion/shroom
  
• Course 20: Ox tongue/sourdough/mostarda/bitter herbs
  
• Course 21: Coconut/green mango/serrano/peanut butter
  
  CMP Shot/chocolate/marshmallow/peanut.
  
• Course 22: CMP Shot/chocolate/marshmallow/peanut
  
• Course 23: Benne cake/apricot/blackberry/rice pudding/basil
  
• Course 24: Happy endings/little things/small bites
  

The fourth week of Rogue Sessions begins tonight with Washington’s own Chef Jose Andres, who is widely credited with helping bring the ‘small plate’ concept to America. Alas, all tables have long since sold-out, but Week 5 is only a few short days away!

Be sure to check out all 28 of our photographs from this event HERE!