No cooking necessary

I was hesitant to review Rawr, because I’m neither vegan nor vegetarian. Then I realized I enjoy plenty of raw foods, and ended up being delighted, entertained and utterly fascinated by this tiny island of haute cuisine in the West Street Market.

To start off, we ordered a couple of bottles of Kronenbourg 1664 Blanc ($3 each), a spiced, French wheat brew. It paired quite well with the creative dishes we were served by one of Reno’s most talented chefs and his friendly assistant.

The menu is organized into Garden (vegan), Sea (fish), Land (mammals), and Flowers (dessert). From the Garden, we went with curried, pistachio-crusted “scallops” (actually scallop-shaped chunks of trumpet mushroom stalk), with sprouted lentils and a cardamom chia sauce ($10). The texture was very similar to a cooked sea scallop, but the flavor combination was earthy, tangy and delicious. The sprouted lentil concoction was so good, my wife wanted just a bowl of that—that is, until she tried the avocado-jicama-yuzu tartare, served towering atop rapini leaves, held together with spicy chayote crisps, caramelized onions (dehydrated), and a cilantro-apple chutney on the side ($10). This dish was impressive both for its flavors as well as sheer engineering prowess in the construction. I’m still not sure what was holding the whole thing together, but it didn’t take us long to demolish it. Of everything we tried, my wife loved this dish the best.

There are many items from the Sea on this menu, but I knew I had to try a pair of Connecticut Blue Point oysters, topped with shiso (an Asian herb of the mint family), yuzu (a small citrus fruit with a flavor somewhat like lemon-lime), and pink peppercorn mignonette sauce ($3 per oyster). Although I enjoyed the oysters, I guess I’m a bit of a purist. I love fresh, raw oysters, and I think the complex mix of flavors detracted more than added to this bivalve. It wasn’t bad at all, but the oyster’s melody was a bit lost among the other notes.

Having said that, the Nantucket scallop ceviche (combined with cilantro sorbet and jicama) was mind-blowingly good ($13). The acid of the marinade gave the scallops a texture somewhere between raw and lightly cooked, with all the flavors combining extremely well. When I return, that dish will be first on the list.

By the time we got to Land, I knew I had to try the antelope carpaccio with indigo tomato chips, pickled mushroom, and calabrese pepper, served with dehydrated fennel crisps ($13). My wife, who enjoys a short list of raw sushi items, was not exactly excited about trying this. Yet, she was pleasantly surprised by how much she liked it. As for me, I was stunned by the buttery texture of the meat and the perfect composition of flavors. I didn’t mind a bit that my wife ate only one slice.

To finish we tried both of the available desserts. First, a plate featuring small wedges of Barinaga Ranch txiki (a semi-hard cheese made from raw sheep’s milk), served with small clusters of red grapes and dehydrated onion and fennel crisps ($9). Next, two dainty balls of vanilla bean ice cream were served on a bed of thinly-sliced apple, topped with walnut pralines and a sprig of fresh mint ($7). Very refreshing.

The portions aren’t very big, and I may have paid more for less food than I would normally be comfortable with. Yet, I feel like I came out way ahead in this equation. The experience and food were worth every penny, and the atmosphere was sophisticated yet casual. Want to impress a date? Take her to Rawr and she’ll never forget you, although she might fall in love with the chef. It’s a risk worth taking.