The chances of successfully introducing an unfamiliar culinary concept in the heart of northern California's Wine Country were unsure for Chef Manuel Azevedo when he opened his LaSalette Restaurant in 1998. However, LaSalette Restaurant has thrived and is celebrating its twelvth year, now in a new location down a quiet via just off Old Sonoma's Plaza. Bay Area restaurant "goers and gurus" continue to discover the unique gastronomic delights of Azevedo's Cozinha Nova Portuguesa, Contemporary Portuguese Cuisine.

Everything about Chef Azevedo ~ his quiet demeanor, persevering confidence and intense focus on his craft ~ bespeaks the humility and hard working nature intrinsic to the people of his Azorean homeland. Unlike many chefs and restaurateurs steeled in the food arts with culinary education and big city cooking experiences, Chef Manuel is strictly home grown and self made. Azevedo embarked on his career with the distinct vision of owning his own restaurant. At the unemployable age of fourteen, he finagled his way into a dishwasher's position. By sixteen, he was head cook for a rib joint. Over the next several years, Manuel worked every position a restaurant offered him, from the front to back of the house.

In 1993, Azevedo took a sous chef position under an "old school" Swiss chef. For five years, Azevedo learned the trade, treating the restaurant as if it were his own. His self-styled culinary education continued with his study of the basics such as food physics, history and restaurant management. His home was his test kitchen.

When the opportunity came to open his own restaurant, instead of choosing the safe way and creating another California wine country restaurant, Chef Azevedo followed his passion for Portuguese cuisine. Naming the restaurant after his mother, LaSalette, and choosing a decor reminiscent of the old docks of Lisbon, Azevedo created his first of many modern Portuguese dishes.

Today, Chef Manuel Azevedo's Cozinha Nova Portuguesa represents an evolution in Portuguese cuisine. His Bacalhau ~ a baked layering of thinly sliced potatoes and olive oil poached salt cod, caramelized leeks and black olive coulis finished with olive oil and sliced quail egg ~ will raise a pleasured brow in both a "steeped in tradition" Portuguese customer as well as the sophisticated, four-star restaurant enthusiast. Since LaSalette's debut, its menu and service has garnered significant press attention and review from regional as well as national food editors and critics. Chef Azevedo's inspiration to put a little known and often misunderstood cuisine on the map has proven fruitful, born of his passion for cooking and confidence as a restaurateur.

A Modern Signature for an Ancient Cuisine

Portuguese cuisine is one of the oldest yet least known culinary achievements in modern society. Often confused with its Mediterranean neighbors, Portuguese cooking has been confused with Spanish cuisine. However, with a legacy dating back three centuries and a country encapsulated from early mainland Europe, the Portuguese took to the seas, becoming pioneers in world exploration and building a trade empire that touched every corner of the globe. A distinctive fusion of spices and food preparations distilled in the kettles of the peasantry and emerged to create the basis of contemporary Portuguese cuisine.

To understand Portuguese cooking, it is important to know the history of Portugal and her former colonies. During the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal was the world's dominant sea faring and colonizing power. Portuguese fleets traveled the world, establishing trade routes and colonies from the Atlantic islands to Africa and the Far East. Each new discovery added to and changed the character of Portuguese food. Today, the cuisine of Portugal evokes a voyage around the world, with such elements as rice from the East, hot peppers from Africa, rich spices from India, potatoes and tomatoes from the New World, and cod from Newfoundland. From the savory stews of Brazil to the fresh and diverse seafood of the Atlantic coast, Portuguese food is a truly global experience.

Driven by his passion for cooking and his Portuguese heritage, Chef Manuel Azevedo has transformed and refined authentic recipes of his homeland into a signature style he calls "Cozinha Nova Portuguesa." His dishes, in keeping with the Portuguese aesthetic, juxtapose ingredients in ways uncommon to the American palette ~ such as ham with trout, shellfish with pork, fruits with eggs, and so on. Each flavorful bite bespeaks exquisite balance and freshly picked, just off the docks freshness.

Any night of the week, one will find Chef Azevedo cooking up a storm at the restaurant's open, wood-burning oven, a meticulous eye given to each and every presentation. The aroma of house-baked bread intermingled with sizzling sardines and Portuguese spices wafts through the casual, contemporary restaurant decor and out to the terrace beyond. Patrons feel as if they are dining in the Chef's own home ~ a welcoming atmosphere made warm and cozy amid hanging brass cookware, wooden tables fashioned from old wine boxes, burlap draperies, and Portuguese hand painted pottery. By day, diners enjoy a casual lunch on the terrace of wood oven baked sardines, or linger over an evening meal served al fresco under the stars while listening to Fado, the traditional music of Portugal.

LaSalette's menu varies with the seasons and the available fresh market. However, favorites such as Azevedo's Bacalhau are ever-present. Another soul-comforting favorite is Feijoada Completa, a traditional Brazilian black bean stew of oxtail, pork shoulder, pork belly and linguica.

LaSalette Restaurant's wine list consists mainly of Portuguese and Sonoma favorites, carefully selected to complement and enhance the menu. The offerings include a large selection of Ports, Madeiras, and Muscatels.

Today, we live in a globalized world of communication and cultural exchange where it has become more difficult to find original experiences to lift our spirits with a sense of discovery. Few Portuguese restaurants exist in America; authentic Portuguese cuisine remains a fresh, tantalizing treasure in the culinary milieu. Chef Manuel Azevedo's LaSalette Restaurant is leading the way in the northern California fine dining scene, as well as defining Portuguese cuisine with his "Cozinha Nova Portuguesa" signature at a national level. Awards, reviews and accolades for LaSalette continue to blossom as food writers, restaurant reviewers and discriminating diners seeking exemplary gastronomic experiences discover the rewards of exploring this relatively unknown cuisine.