By now, we’ve definitely established a group of chefs that have been coming in the COOK doors more than others. Within that group, there is even a “subgroup” that I like to call the “Bad Boys” of the Philly industry. By “Bad Boys” I mean chefs that like to break the “norm” of your ordinary, culinary world with unusual creations that take it to the edge. To me, Jon Cichon of Lacroix is the leader of that group.

What started as an introductory class to his restaurant Lacroix quickly turned to a series of classes that pushes the limits of our imagination. After his December class on how to carve and cook a whole pig, Jon wanted to handle something bigger and more unusual, so by public demand during the pig class, the next class was picked… and it really got our goat.

Personally, goat is one of my favorite meats to eat and it is very popular around the world due to the fact that goat is a very lean meat that tastes very similar to lamb. Plus goat is easy to raise as a farm animal, and unlike lamb, it is one of the cheapest meats you can find on the market. For some reason however, it is not easy to find here in the United States.

Jon more than gladly accepted the class’ goat challenge and brought it – literally – to the table. Jon came to COOK with a whole (skinned) goat! Not a sight for the fainthearted but that’s what you get when Cichon is in the house. Chef demonstrated how to carve and cook the whole goat from head to toe and didn’t spare any piece of it (except for the kidneys which Jon just doesn’t like). On top of that he made it look as easy as carving a chicken.

The menu included 6 courses which was made from a different part of our goat. And they even brought their own goat’s milk butter to serve with their homemade rolls.
The menu:

– Parker house rolls with goat butter
– Ceviche with blood Orange, eggplant, Ajowan toast
– Ravioli, cauliflower, huckleberry, Garrotxa Mornay
– Shank with coconut, Kaffir lime, Cucumber
– Chop with kielbasa, Brussels sprout, Black trumpet
– Curry Green papaya, Mango, Heart of palm
– Selles Sur Cher with kumquat, date ice cream ,Black truffle

My favorite dishes of the night were the goat ravioli and the goat curry that was served with fresh shavings of mango and cilantro in a delicious curry broth.

Next up for Jon at COOK? Lamb in March. I can’t wait to see what Jon decides to do with that but I’m definitely going to make sure I’ll be there for it!

So next time you feel like being a little adventurous – go goat! – I highly recommend it.