Saddle Peak Lodge: LA Game Treasure (12/09)

 

Saddle Peak Lodge is an L.A. treasure that never fails to delight and impress even the most jaded world traveler — I know because my two toughest visiting critics, each physician husbands of close friends who arrive from opposite ends of the continent with valises filled with guidebooks, love it.

 

It is also one of the three mainstays that is a must-do even without out of town guests because it always feels like a holiday treat away from home.  

 

Saddle Peak Lodge appears to grow right out of the Monte Nido Valley forest, high above the hills of Calabasas.  This treasure fits well under towering Saddle Peak—a majestic rock formation created, the story goes, “when God’s first horseman sat upon the Santa Monica mountains.”

 

The century- old magnificent rustic log hunting lodge is made all the more dramatic by the heart stopping scenery on the canyon drive up, especially if you head up Kanan Dune and take Mulholland over to Malibu Canyon only minutes from the valley and several minutes more from the city.

 

Though originating out of a country store and rest stop for miners on the way to gold fields up north, Saddle Peak grew to become the ultimate Hollywood hideaway, so appealing that some guests “never left.” The legend goes that Richard Burton and the Hollywood Rat Pack still feed the coyotes with buffalo bones thrown out back.

Weathered and magnificent, the rip-roaring three-story lodge is created from massive timbers and native rock.   Inside, it has been spiffed up with  a crackling fireplace, a heady collection of stuffed game that looks down on diners on the first floor; upstairs the rooms are smaller, down to an intimate library, though it is all filled with antiques, many of them from friends of the restaurant.   Outside, the rock terrace is addictive, with a gurgling brook that actually runs off into the ocean, with timeless weathered chairs and tables and a double wooden swing that you could rock in forever.     

 

But the key word is fun, from neighbors riding their horses to a Sunday brunch (dress code still required!) to the gamut of limo-driven guests arriving for special occasions in formal dress. 

 

In the kitchen, young Executive Chef Adam Horton has big shoes to fill (following the likes of Josie La Balch and Warren Schwartz), and he fills them with style, especially when it comes to his renowned Saddle Peak hearty wild game dishes.   

 

Lower in calories, cholesterol and fat than most cuts of beef, pork, or lamb, game and venison have recently become popular, especially since it has become farm raised. What was once considered meat for unsophisticated rural dwellers has become an exotic, preferred dish for health-conscious, adventurous urbanites.

 

Venison in the form of elk, and buffalo (after mastodons) was arguably the first red meats eaten by man in the form of deer, hares, wild boar, goats, elk,  antelope, moose, reindeer/caribou and pronghorn. Less appealing organ meats, including that of deer called humble, were edible not prized, hence the phrase, "humble pie."

With a flavor reminiscent of beef but richer, under Chef Horton’s hand, game is subtle and alluring.  The chef has mastered working with the finer texture of game, leaner than comparable cuts of beef, requiring careful preparation to avoid toughness.  

Roasted New Zealand (New Zealand owning the reputation as best and healthiest) elk tenderloin is rightfully the house specialty, so tender you can cut it with a fork, beautifully complemented with wintry celery root, sweet potato, crispy bacon, arugula, currants and sauce chasseur.

For those who like to compare, Chef Horton’s Duo of Nebraska buffalo, short ribs “barbeque style” and a grilled New York are artfully served with sweet potato, cippolini onion, carrot, mustard greens and whole grain mustard béarnaise.

There is a trio of game for the adventurous and for the less adventurous, mesquite grilled filet mignon is superb, juicy and tender, served with brown butter pommes puree, wild mushrooms “bordelaise”, Bloomsdale spinach, and glazed heirloom carrots.

Chef Horton’s inventive seasonal “starters” honor local produce, especially the Tartare of prime beef tenderloin with medjool dates, sun dried tomatoes, arugula, quince mustard, toast and quail egg, and Farmers market butternut squash soup with peekytoe crab “hash” and ginger crème.

The well thought-out, award-winning (Wine Spectator) 50-page wine list is filled with rich reds that fare well with game, and attentive servers are happy to help with the pairing.  In true neighborly fashion, Saddle Peak Lodge offers free corkage to guests bringing wines from local Semler, Cornel and Rosenthal wineries, as well as a number of stores, including Woodland Hills Wind Company.

Dessert is definitely for memorable sharing, especially the triple-threat chocolate Irish whiskey cake with Guinness ice cream and Bailey’s whipped cream, a delectable ending  before the ride home and back to reality.  (www.saddlepeaklodge.com)