'A Perfect Expression of What We're Doing'

Photo by Matthew Liteplo
Asked to produce a dish that represents her on a plate, Erin Clatney (top left and bottom right with Mike Beck), owner of Parlour on Wellington Street in Ottawa, came up with tuna lightly seared on the edges and plated as crudo with blood orange slices, thinly sliced jalapeno, green apple, yellow zucchini, cucumber, basil, some artful squirts of homemade nori mayo, yuzu vinaigrette and basil-infused olive oil.
“This tuna crudo is a perfect expression of what we’re doing,” Clatney says, adding that it can change according to the seasons. “The yuzu is good umami with the fish.” She also prepared a signature dish — a chicken liver parfait, topped with roasted grapes, a recipe inspired by a Jacques Pepin classic to which Clatney added more butter and more cognac, she admits with a laugh.