Photos: WaterCourse's harvest dinner was a decadent vegan/vegetarian delight

Chef Rachel Kesley, the kitchen magician at WaterCourse Foods, doesn't get to deviate from the menu all that often -- so when she does get the chance, you know it's going to be a meal to remember. This past Friday's harvest dinner was inspired by pinots from the Pacific Northwest and was themed around food from the region -- amazing, inspired food.

See also:
- TAG|RAW BAR's vegan omakase dinner is awesome
- The vegan pizza at the Marquis Theater is a show-stopper
- Last night's WaterCourse Foods beer dinner in photos

Pictured above is one of the entrees -- but there were several courses to get through first.

First up was the amuse, a "crab" cake bite made from lobster mushrooms, topped with fried caperberry and dill aioli. It was paired with a Chehalem Pinot Gris 2011.

The soup course was a smoked-leek chowder served with a lobster-mushroom jus, homemade oyster crackers with caraway seed and pear butter. Paired with an Airlie Gewurztraminer '07, a sip of the wine, followed by a sip of the jus, a swallow of the soup and an oyster mushroom dipped in pear butter was a perfectly balanced combination.

Next up was the salad, which was truly amazing: crispy Brussels sprouts tossed with smokey mushrooms and blue cheese (for vegetarians) or WaterCourse's house-made vegan gouda (for vegans), served atop grilled Asian pears. It was paired with a Linen '09 chardonnay.