Portland Monthly's 2018 Chef of the Year Will Make You Dinner in Your Own Kitchen

Image: Stuart Mullenberg
Last year, farmer-chef Karl Holl plopped a super-local farm-to-table menu in an unlikely place: a tiny wine bar stashed inside downtown’s Park Avenue Fine Wines (626 SW Park Ave). His plates—pastas with foraged mushrooms to bold salads with veggies yanked from the ground that morning—were so good, we crowned him Chef of the Year 2018.
But, calling all introverted party animals: you don’t have to share him with strangers. Holl also runs the in-demand, two-man catering company Spatzle & Speck with his brother/farmer Alex. The pair is known for doling out behind-the-scenes stories about their homegrown produce and meats alongside impeccable plates, and they’ll cook private meals just about anywhere. Gather around the live-edge table in Park Avenue’s underground Brass Room for a custom tasting menu for up to 12 eaters culled from the farm’s haul ($45 and up per person, plus $100 room fee).
Want something even more intimate? The Holls will post up in your home kitchen for an epic dinner party. At this point, some of their regulars trust them to cook whatever inspires them on a given night: “We just go in, cook, clean up, and leave,” says Karl. One-of-a-kind dinners for six to 20 people start at $2,000, plus gratuity. It ain’t cheap, but you (and your privacy) are worth it right?