We have enjoyed chef Clayton Chapman's creations since the beginning of his tenure at Spencer's for Steaks and Chops. We were delighted that we enjoyed the same prix-fixe dinner that you reported on in the review. It was one of the most outstanding prix fixe dinners ever. We always enjoy the steaks, chops and seafood offerings from the regular menu prior to various events downtown if a prix-fixe menu is not offered. You are correct that the steaks are perfectly seasoned and cooked as ordered. The 1,600-degree temps and Clayton's special seasoning processes are unmatched in Omaha. The service is also consistently outstanding!
As regular attendees of the Winemaker Series and Chef's Night Out Series since their inception, I believe that they are the most enjoyable dinners because you have a surprise menu each time and get to see how chef Clayton pairs each course of the meal with the selected wines. Each event seems to be better than the previous one even though you can't begin to imagine how that is possible.
For the Chef's Night Out, the general manager Brad Marr selects the wines from various regions including California, Oregon, Washington, Chile, Argentina, France and Italy, to name a few. Chef Clayton then prepares each course for the selected wines. The combinations are exquisite!
However, the Winemaker Series is our favorite. Each table in the private dining room is set with one empty seat for these dinners so that the guest winemaker is able to spend one course with each group of diners. We have chatted with Kate MacMurray, daughter of the actor Fred MacMurray, and enjoyed her stories about how her father made the split rail fences around the property of the ranch where the grapes are grown, how her mother visited the Omaha Zoo yearly until her death, which fruit trees on the property now provide some of the flavors detected in the wines, how John Wayne would visit the ranch to fly fish with her father, and about the bull that passed out upon arrival at the ranch after sailing by boat from Scotland to San Francisco to start her father's herd of black Angus cattle. Not only did we enjoy the stories and pictures that Kate painted with her glorious descriptions of these events, but we were also treated to rare menu items in Omaha such as sea urchin which was amazingly delicate and delicious with Clayton's preparations. On another occasion, we dined with Michael Martini, the grandson of Louis Martini, who shared equally wonderful stories about his grandfather and the winery he started. Other wine makers hailed from St. Supery and Delectus Wineries, just to name a few.
The new schedule for the 2010 Winemaker Dinners is posted on the restaurant's Web site. I recommend that people interested in learning more about events join the Premier Diner Club VIP e-mail list. They won't be disappointed.
-- Jane and Edward Hawks, Underwood, Iowa, via e-mail, March 15, 2010
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