July 09, 2005

Get inspired to use new and different seasonal produce in your kitchen! Join Chef Cathal Armstrong of Restaurant Eve at the market, this Saturday July 9 at 10 a.m. for a guided chef’s eye tour of the market. Chef Armstrong will highlight the culinary uses of products available at the market during the summer season. To join the tour, gather at the intersection of Courthouse Road and 14th Street, at the market entrance near Ragtime a few minutes prior to 10 a.m.

The tour will last about 45 minutes so be sure to bring a cooler for your products purchased in advance, or postpone your shopping until the tour is complete.

Cathal (silent t), a native Dubliner, grew up in a family unlike any other in Dublin at the time; they had a fruit and vegetable garden, ate plenty of garlic and had their own travel business. From the mountains of Spain to the piazzas of Italy, Cathal experienced the tastes and aromas of fresh paella and pasta, developing an appreciation of gastronomy. However, it was in France, at the tender age of seven, that Cathal began his annual student exchange and his food curriculum for life. Each summer, he lived with the same family, the Boudains’, returning to the truffle farms, peasant food and local farmers gently tending their vineyards. Those influences taught Cathal the importance of fresh produce, the value of animals and respect for the land.

At the age of 20, he and two partners opened The Baytree, a fine dining restaurant in the Dublin suburbs. Two years’ tenure and a desire to learn more of his craft led him to America. Cooking school may have been in his future, but a quick stopover in the Nation’s Capitol headed the agenda. Once in Washington, he was befriended by great chefs and decided he would stay ‘for just a while.’

For three years he worked in the kitchen of New Heights, a restaurant known for producing talent. Then he moved to Cities where the cuisine changed yearly. In 1994, the Spanish owned Barcel hotel recruited him as sous chef of Gabriel Restaurant. 1995 found him employed as Sous Chef of the nationally acclaimed Vidalia restaurant under the tutelage of chef/owner Jeffrey Buben. In 1998, Jeffrey Buben opened Bistro Bis in the Hotel George, where Cathal took the reins of the new kitchen as chef. During the four years the kitchen was under Cathal’s direction, the restaurant received local and national accolades.

At Restaurant Eve, Armstrong presents his version of simple, straightforward cuisine, sourcing the highest quality ingredients. Almost all of their ingredients come from local producers who grow organic products and Cathal and his team scour the local farmers market every day. “Growing up on our farm, almost everything we ate, came straight from the garden”, explains Armstrong. “Our food went right from the earth to the plate, maintaining their original flavors.”

Restaurant Eve, 110 S. Pitt Street, Alexandria, Virginia, 703.706.0450, www.restauranteve.com

A tour is being offered July 20 - 21, to educate agriculture producers on how to market their products by visiting farm operations, including South Mountain Creamery, that are successfully utilizing a variety of strategies. Also visited will be The Chili Man, Catoctin Mountain Orchard, Gourmat Central, and Flying W Farm.

The $20 per person fee must be paid by July 13th. More information is available from Berran Rogers 804-524-5960, or reply to this message to request a brochure, as a PDF file.