Thanksgiving '09 Menu:

(original artwork by River Winkler)

We had to put on our thinking caps to make this one work. You see, it's not just us who are normally closed on Thanksgiving, but many, if not all, of our vendors are, too. That means none of our regular deliveries will be showing up here tomorrow: no fresh bread, baked goods, produce, etc. That means we had to come up with a menu that worked with what we had on hand and what we could pick up and prepare today. Not only that, but we gave our employees the day off tomorrow so it's going to be me, Evan, and Momma all day, and thankfully Colin and Dekin have agreed to come in for 1/2 shifts. So please be patient with us, we'll be doing our best with what we got. And most importantly, please remember that this is all for a very good cause.

Here's what we came up with for feeding ya'll pre-Thanksgiving dinner:

Fall Harvest
maple-flax granola, baked apples, fresh ricotta and cardamom honey

Huevos Rancheros
2 eggs, black beans, salsa picante, queso fresco and avocado mousse on 2 corn tortillas, served with lime and mango chili slices

Django's Waffle Sandwich
bacon, brie, roasted butternut squash, fried egg, and basil sandwiched in-between 2 black-pepper buttermilk waffles, served with apple-maple syrup

Jalapeno and Avocado Cream Soup
spicy, creamy, and totally addictive

Havarti & Cheddar Grilled Cheese w/ Cranberry Chutney
creamy havarti, aged white cheddar, and cranberry chutney grilled on rye

Pumpkin-Hazelnut French Toast
thick slices of pumpkin infused challah french toast, served with butter, real maple syrup and crushed candied hazelnuts

Eggsgiving Sandwich
2 fried eggs, 2 housemade turkey sausage patties, apple-sage stuffing, and cranberry cream cheese on ciabatta

Holy Ham and Jalapeno Grilled Cheese
ham, roasted jalapenos, jack cheese, farmer's cheese, bacon and avocado, grilled on Como bread

Get your day started early with one of our elixirs:
From the Bar:
Boozy Espresso
Boozy Eggnog
Gorge Mimosa
LRBC Bloody Mary
Old Rasputin Imperial Stout Floats


Can't stay for breakfast? Grab something to go:
In the pastry case:
Banana Bread
Maple-Pecan Scones
Cheddar-Chive Scones
Pumpkin-Buttermilk Muffins
Baby Gingerbread Muffins w/ Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
Cinnamon-Nutmeg Coffeecake
Pumpkin-Pecan Bars
and the *Perfect* $10 Host/ess Gift
(prepare to be automatically tagged "best guest")

And please don't forget: we are collecting donations tomorrow for our "Under the Burnside Bridge" Thanksgiving project. Please bring coats, hats, scarves, jackets, gloves, and other cool-weather items to the cafe tomorrow. All items will be passed out (along with a hot meal) to Portland's homeless, beneath the Burnside bridge tomorrow night, courtesy of our friends Venus and River. In addition to the clothing drive, we will be donating our proceeds from tomorrow's shift towards Venus' cause. Please come help support this very important and selfless act on behalf of our friends.