If you follow the Portland food scene, then you likely have heard about Chef Gregory Gourdet’s pop-up restaurant, Kann Winter Village. Chef was planning to open a Haitian-inspired restaurant before COVID-19 changed the world. He held off on his plans until approached by American Express and RESY about doing a winter village pop-up restaurant. For three months only, the Kann Winter Village allows people to get a taste of the Chef’s concept for his restaurant, Kann, while also allowing diners to safely enjoy a meal from the comfort of their own heated yurt.
In planning his six-course menu, Gregory Gourdet developed three menus: omnivores, pescatarians, and vegan. He also developed three drink menus for Zero Proof pairings, wine pairing, and beer pairings. Upon booking your reservation, each guest chooses both their food and drink menus for the evening.
For the Zero Proof menu, Chef approach Smith Teamaker about our collaboration Kombucha using their Meadow Blend No. 67, which is a caffeine-free blend of chamomile flowers, rooibos, rose petals, and linden flowers. If a guest chooses the Zero Proof pairing, they’ll receive our Meadow Kombucha as their welcome drink.
When we went to enjoy the Kann experience in January, we enjoyed the Meadow Kombucha paired with the first course: a ripe plantain and squash salad with charred onions, pickled apple, pomegranate, and cashew dressing. It was an amazing experience to see how the delicate, floral flavors of the Meadow Kombucha paired so beautifully with the nutty and delicate flavors of the first course. What took this experience to the next level was being able to safely enjoy it from our own heated yurt complete with string lights, music, and blankets. It truly was a magical dinner!
All of the courses were so flavorful and gave such a strong point of view for what Chef has in store for his future restaurant, Kann. It has us longing and looking forward to many more Haitian-inspired meals one day. To book a reservation at Kann Winter Village before it closes at the end of this month, click here.
And if you enjoyed your meal at Kann as much as we did or love supporting Chef Gregory Gouret, you may also want to pre-order his first cookbook, “Everyone’s Table.” It will be filled with 200 recipes inspired by his Haitian upbringing and healthy lifestyle, and you can pre-order a signed copy exclusively from Powell’s Bookstore.