I recently returned from California’s Central Coast, where I had one of my best meals of 2011 at Root 246 in Solvang, a kitschy Danish village.

The chef is Bradley Ogden, one of this country’s greatest home grown products. Ogden, a small town boy from Traverse City, Michigan has one of our best restaurants, named, unsurprisingly, Bradley Ogden.

Rumors of his eponymous restaurant’s impending closure at Caesars Palace are just that, rumors. The restaurant remains open, although the menu now places more of an emphasis on steak than ever before.

I’ve followed Ogden’s career for three decades.  “I never ate in a gourmet restaurant before I became a chef,” says Ogden, “but somehow, because of hunting, fishing and foraging for my not-so-rich family, I developed a palate.”

Ironically, he never dreamed about becoming a chef until his dad, a rock and roll impresario, told him “if he could cook, he’d always had a job”. After high school, he enrolled in the C.I.A., America’s most prestigious cooking school, graduating with honors. Later, he landed at American Restaurant in Kansas City, where he was mentored by the legendary Joe Baum.

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Since then, he’s been a leading mentor of talent himself. Chefs that have graduated from his kitchens include Charlie Trotter, Michael Mina, his son, Bryan, Gerald Chin, Adam Sobel and many others, a veritable Who’s Who of leading American chefs.

Ogden greeted my party himself in the restaurant’s kitchen, where he had arranged a table for four. The dining room here is pretty plush, but having a vantage point like ours makes for an unforgettable experience, and so it was.

The chef is noted for special relationships with boutique producers, though he doesn’t go overboard with menu descriptions. And so it was fitting that we had Morro Bay oysters from just up the 101 to start, followed by flatbread topped with chanterelles foraged locally. His country pork terrine with red onion jam and Picholine olives was truly amazing, and he couldn’t resist sending out one of his signature dishes, a mouth watering Maytag blue cheese soufflé.

This turned out to be nothing more than the overture to a symphonic meal. I’d describe every dish we sampled, but you’d be too envious by the time I finish.

So let’s just say that his spicy “bouillabaisse” pasta with house made linguini, blackened shrimp and lamb sausage, redolent of fennel, is a must, as is Duroc pork chop grilled over hardwood coals with chestnut spaetzle, pork sausage and kale, and leave it there.

Ogden is committed to seasonal products; the menu here changes almost every day. We did save room for his sensational butterscotch pudding for the finish. The restaurant also has a fine list of California and imported wines, at fair prices. Service was also wonderful, much of it provided by Ogden himself.

As in his Vegas restaurant, Root 246 has the best bar menu for 300 miles. This makes it more accessible for locals, many of whom are wont to pay his entrée prices, (though they average about $10 less than his Vegas menu.)

Even after practically having to be wheeled out of the restaurant, I lusted after the grilled Hobbs foot long hot dog with all the trimmings sitting under the heat lamp, and the accompanying order of hand cut Kennebec fries.

The consensus about Ogden serving the best burger in Vegas isn’t a fantasy. The burger here is even more indulgent, a double “juicy” cheeseburger with avocado relish and Hobbs bacon, plus bufala mozzarella and sweet potato garlic chips.

If you choose to spend the night, do so at the adjacent Hotel Corque, easily the best hotel in Solvang. In the morning, you can get a coffee and Danish kringle at Olsen’s Scandinavian Bakery on, where else, Route 246, the main drag here.

420 Alisal Rd., Solvang CA. (805) 688-9903. Dinner for two, $89-$145.

 

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