Chef's Foraging Basket

With winter’s chill finally making way for spring’s glorious sunshine, there seems to be only one thing on Chef Taylor Thornhill’s mind: foraging. In addition to our beef program, a culture of foraging and preserving thrives in the kitchen of Bateau. These days, Chef Thornhill and his crew start their mornings extra early in search of the best of Seattle’s springtime bounty. It’s not unusual to see the culinary team hauling in baskets and baskets of nettles, sorrel, fennel, chickweed, various blossoms, and other varieties of herbs and greens that are native to Seattle and the surrounding area.

Hand-foraged herbs can be found atop many of our menu items, giving a fresh edge to dishes that are elevated further with the addition of hyper-local, seasonally-available ingredients. The kitchen also has plans to preserve many of the fruits and blossoms they’ve gathered, allowing them to use what they’ve foraged throughout the entire year.

Chef Thornhill’s “sidewalk salad” (named as a playful nod to where its ingredients are gathered from) has been a welcome return to our specials board. This abundant salad is nearly 100 percent foraged; miner’s lettuce, purple dead nettles, dandelion, bittercress, and sorrel are among the many ever-changing herbs and greens featured, and the only non-foraged items are the mojama and cured egg yolk that top this beautiful dish.

Come in soon and ask about what foraged ingredients the kitchen is being inspired by that week!