With a Front Row Seat to the Freak Show, Halloween Night Haute Cuisine on Lincoln Road

Hot dog and mustard?  Psychotic chef?  A cluster of grapes? Food freaks were out in full force Saturday night as hundreds of thousands converged on Lincoln Road for one of the largest – if not most colorful – Halloween costume pedestrian parade in the country.

Patrons piled into sidewalk seating at the outdoor mall’s eating establishments for an up- close personal view of the freak show and ate more than just Reese’s peanut butter cups..

Meat Market celebrated its first anniversary with special seatings at 8:00 and 10:00 p.m. and a $75 prix fixe three-course menu for outdoor tables.  We spoke to chef/owner Sean Brasel as he and his team prepared to do a big night of about 400 covers.

SO: Is this Meat Market’s first Halloween?

SB: Yes because we had just opened last year on Halloween and we had no patio, so we decided to keep the Halloween influence and chaos to a minimum

SO: Tell us a little bit about the idea and how it came about?

SB:  Lincoln Road is the center of attention on Halloween, and we decided it would be fun to redesign our patio for maximum viewing pleasure to our customers.

SO:  How are you bringing the holiday to life in the drinks and food?

SB:  We are doing several specials like wood grilled veal chop with pumpkin flan and cranberry demi glace, a frozen pumpkin-Vanilla ice cream root beer float with a splash of nitrogen, and a Pumpkin bisque soup with goat cheese and pumpkin raviolis.

SO:  What if you get a bunch of zombies and they demand human flesh? Or vampires and blood?

SB:  Vampires are welcome (I am one of them also) but the zombies eating human flesh need to remain on Lincoln Road.

SO:  Will your staff be dressed up?

SB:  No only the bartenders that way the customers can recognize their servers.  [After finishing service,] I’ll be the Cat in the Hat. 

SO:  If the restaurant itself could dress up for Halloween, what would it be?

SB:  A spaceship with the fiber optic lights on the outside as well

SO:  Is there competition among tenants to out-do each other with decorations,
candy, ect. for party goers’ enjoyment?

Here’s the full menu for your viewing enjoyment:

Appetizers
(Choice of)

PUMPKIN BISQUE
SWEET ROASTED PUMPKIN ∞ PUMPKIN RAVIOLIS ∞ TRUFFLE

CEDAR-SCENTED HAMACHI
YUZU ∞ WHITE TRUFFLE ∞ LIME ∞ JALAPENO

CRAB AND LOBSTER CAKE
RED ONION ∞ PAPAYA SALAD ∞ TOMATO BUTTER ∞ AVOCADO

CRISPY CRAB TAIL
AJI PANCHA ∞ BABY BOK CHOY ∞ SHIITAKE ∞ PASSIONFRUIT BUTTER ∞ MICRO SHISO

KOBE BEEF SLIDER DUO
BACON ∞ WHITE CHEDDAR & FOIE GRAS ∞ MANGO MUSTARD CARAMELIZED ONION
HEIRLOOM TOMATO ∞ GRILLED ONION ∞ BASIL OIL ∞ 12-YEAR BALSAMIC ∞ SPANISH OLIVE OIL

Entrees
(Choice of)

KILCOYNE FARMS ROSE VEAL CHOP
PUMPKIN FLAN ∞ WILD CRANBERRY ∞ ROASTED WILD MUSHROOMS ∞ GARLIC

TROPICAL BRAISED ‘PRIME’ BRISKET
COCONUT ∞ MANGO ∞ CUBAN SWEET POTATOES ∞ WILD MUSHROOMS

KOBE SKIRT STEAK
LEMONGRASS ∞ GINGER ∞ ROASTED LOCAL CHILE ∞ POLENTA FRIES

WOOD GRILLED WILD AFRICAN PHEASANT
TAMARI ∞ BRAISED CHICORY ∞ HONEY SAUCE

SEABASS
SOY BEAN MASH ∞ WILD MUSHROOMS ∞ SWEET CORN TOMATO ∞ CONCASSÉ ∞ TRUFFLE NAGE

Dessert
(Choice of)

HALLOWEEN ROOT BEER FLOAT
NITROGEN PUMPKIN VANILLA ICE CREAM ∞ ROOT BEER ∞ VANILLA WHIP CREAM

PISTACHIO CRÈME BRULEE
PISTACHIO CREAM ∞ CANDIED PISTACHIOS ∞ CARAMELIZED PISTACHIO TUILLE 

CHOCOLATE TEMPTATION
WARM CHOCOLATE CAKE ∞ MACAROONS ∞ CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM