At Nora’s, we call the backest of back places “the Hole. It’s the little corner closet back behind the line, crammed with supplies and a refrigerator and assorted other stuff where we make salads and desserts. And in mid-March, we offered die-hard foodies a chance to spend some time there — for a price — getting a first-hand view of life inside the belly of the beast that feeds your belly. It’s all to tghe benefit of Hood River’s Waterfront Park.
People love to sit at the bar because it’s better than watching TV. No scripted “chop” antics. Nosir. This is real stuff. You’re sitting there, eating dinner, canoodling with your squeeze, when … Whoa! Lights! Camera! Action! Someone expostulates, and we don’t mean anything easily removed with a wipe rag. Hey, kitchen work ain’t necessarily dainty, but it is … interesting.
So, we thought, what if we rented out some time in … “the Hole”? Wouldn’t that be closer, more intimate, nearer to sharp objects like knives and kitchen wit? The idea is that you could get a closer-up look than you can from the bar, and not have to deal with other diners walking up and distracting you from the festivities by wanting to talk.
First taker? Former wetsuit manufacturer and longtime diver Robin Miller. He’s seen big, toothy fish up closer than this, live, and hungry, hungrier maybe even than his ownself, but this was … diff’runt. Check his take on the action, in this little video.
Nora's Table 