East Coast Celebrity Chef Explores Oregon Wine Country and Savor the Flavors of Portland Pizza

Erin French, the chef-owner of The Lost Kitchen in Freedom, is shown at a cookbook-signing event in Freeport, Maine. Portland Press Herald via Getty

Since opening her restaurant, The Lost Kitchen, in her hometown of Freedom, Maine, chef Erin French has become well-known for her cooking, her personal story of overcoming struggles to find success, and also for how difficult it is to snare a reservation at The Lost Kitchen, the mill-turned-restaurant that requires would-be diners to mail postcards requesting reservations, in the hopes that their postcard will be among those chosen at random.

The Lost Kitchen has gained national renown as high-profile figures such as Martha Stewart have visited, and French has authored books and hosted her own TV series, which airs on the Magnolia Network, the media joint venture between Chip and Joanna Gaines (of “Fixer Upper” fame) and Warner Bros. Discovery.

French’s media footprint has expanded even more with the arrival this summer of a new series, The show, which premiered on the Magnolia Network and the Max streaming platform on June 23, finds French and her husband, Michael Dutton, driving their Airstream trailer across the country to visit cities and states where French hopes to find fresh inspiration for meals served at The Lost Kitchen.

So far, French and Dutton have visited Louisiana, Texas, Arizona and California. In the episode that aired Sunday, July 21, the couple came to Oregon, on what they said was the first day of spring.

The couple set up camp on a site overlooking Illahe Vineyards, in the Dallas area. The winery is, French said, one of their favorites, “that we procure wines from for The Lost Kitchen.”

French said in the episode that Oregon is producing all the things that go together. “This is the week of hazelnuts and wine and pasta and open fire cooking, pizza — there’s scene here. We’ve got to check it out.”

Before all that, though, French went on a “truffle foraging adventure,” though her husband, who wasn’t feeling well, stayed behind in the trailer. French met up with Elan Hagens, owner and founder of Temptress Truffles, and Kevin McFarland, who breeds truffle-sniffing dogs and guides truffle hunting excursions.

Hagens told French that the Willamette Valley is one of the “most fruitful regions” for truffles, and the trio, accompanied by a truffle-hunting dog, walked through a wooded area, searching for black truffles and Oregon winter white truffles.

Then, French drove to Portland, where she stopped in at Pastificio d’Oro, for a lesson in preparing hand-made pasta.

“I’ve always wanted to learn how to make handmade pasta, but I’m intimidated,” French said.

French met Chase Dopson and Maggie Irwin, noting that Chase and Maggie are partners, in that he takes care and the pasta, and she takes care of everything else. Dopson demonstrated his technique, which involves using a mattarello, a handmade wooden rolling pin.

French confessed that she’s never made pasta, and has felt “mortified and embarrassed” about it. Following Dopson’s directions, French rolled out pasta dough, and said, “I can already feel my mistakes.”

Both agreed with Dopson’s observation about cooking — “your mood is in your food.”

After cooking granola, with chopped hazelnuts and Oregon honey among the ingredients for breakfast at camp, French was joined by two visiting Lost Kitchen employees, Alex Burnham and Lauren Crichton, as they went to Illahe to preview some wines they might want for The Lost Kitchen.

When they started the wine cellar at The Lost Kitchen, French said, they wanted to have wines that you couldn’t find all over the place. “We wanted it to be like it came from these small vineyards that were doing thoughtful things,” she said. “And Illahe has been on our list since then.”

Karen Richards, of Illahe, poured a number of wines for French, Burnham and Crichton, and talked about the Illahe commitment to sustainability and natural growing practices.

Sitting outside, under a cloudy Oregon sky and with lush greenery in the background, French tasted one wine, and said, “Oh, we know this. This got us through the pandemic.”

A post shared by Tournant (@tournantpdx)

French’s next stop was Tournant, where Jaret Foster and Mona Johnson told French how they went from working in “classic kitchens” to meeting at the Portland Farmers Market, to starting a “farm to fire” dining business, where food is often prepared over an open fire.

Then it was back to Portland, where French was now joined by Dutton, as they walked with the St. Johns Bridge in the background. They agreed they had to go try “some West Coast pizza.” They went to Gracie’s Apizza, where owner Craig Melillo was making pizzas with seasonal ingredients.

“Apparently, Portland, Oregon is like the pizza spot on the West Coast,” Dutton told French. He lived and worked in New York for years, Dutton said, and loves New York pizza. “Let’s see how good it is” in Portland, Dutton said, and added that he bet Melillo was from the East Coast.

Melillo served up a hazelnut pizza with balsamic vinegar; a daily pie with green garlic pesto with kale, pickled chiles and potatoes; and a tomato pie with green garlic and Pecorino cheese.

French and Dutton chowed down. “Nice thin crust,” Dutton said, approvingly. “The pizza is legit,” French said. “We got some real talent on the West Coast for pizza. Might be giving the East Coast a little run for the money.”

Dutton then shared his theory with Melillo, that Portland is gaining a reputation as a pizza place because people are bringing their skills and talents from the East Coast.

Melillo said he grew up in Connecticut, just outside of New Haven, but added that Dutton’s theory was wrong. “I don’t think that’s exactly why it’s really good here,” Melillo said. “The thing about here is the ingredients are so good. Particularly in my case. Every cheese you’re eating, except the Pecorino, is from the Pacific Northwest.”

French concluded that a theme of the week in Oregon was, it’s not about how many people can you feed, “it’s about how many people can you do something really special for.”

Back at their camp, French invited some of the locals she met to share a meal she prepared, including duck breast, onions, hazelnuts, pears, truffles and pinot noir.

“I feel like we don’t ever want to leave,” French said.

The “Oregon: Wine Country” episode of “Getting Lost With Erin French” is “The Lost Kitchen” is

— Kristi Turnquist covers features and entertainment. Reach her at 503-221-8227, kturnquist@oregonian.com or @Kristiturnquist

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About the Author: Chris Lehoux

Meet Chris Lehoux, an experienced wine connoisseur and dedicated blogger with a deep passion for all things wine-related. With years of expertise in the industry, Chris shares insightful wine reviews, valuable wine tasting tips, expert pairing advice, and captivating tales of vineyard visits. Join Chris on a journey through the world of wine, where every sip is an adventure waiting to be savored!