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The Chef’s Table at The Marcus Whitman Hotel

November 10, 2012

Grab a front row seat in the kitchen for a show stopping meal at the Marcus Whitman Hotel in downtown Walla Walla

Studded with wineries and bistros, Walla Walla’s historic brick-lined downtown was recently named one of America’s Top 10 Great Neighborhoods. Among its crowning foodie glories is The Chef’s Table—a hip, fun, deliciously decadent dining experience staged in the kitchen at The Marcus Whitman Hotel’s The Marc Restaurant.

Small groups (four to twelve persons) can reserve the elegant chef’s table that is tucked into a spacious alcove off the main kitchen, built solely for this purpose. Here, diners enjoy a high degree of privacy while hobnobbing with The Marc’s chef and staff and witnessing the culinary activity from behind the scenes.

Thousands of meals have been served at The Chef’s Table since its inception a dozen years ago. With captivating dishes prepared using top quality, locally sourced and seasonally fresh ingredients, matched with great local wines, it’s an authentic experience that embodies the heart and soul of this agriculturally-rich community.

The idea was inspired during a meeting that entrepreneur Kyle Mussman attended nearly three decades ago. “One of our vendors took us to the Commanders Palace in New Orleans and we had dinner in the kitchen. I said at the time, if I ever owned a restaurant, I’d have a chef’s table in the kitchen,” he recalls.

Years later when Mussman purchased the Marcus Whitman Hotel property, he kept true to his word, completely renovating the facilities and expanding The Marc Restaurant’s kitchen area to include room for his chef’s table in the process.

A typical evening involves samplings from the menu, but epicurean surprises are known to happen. At a recent dinner, the head chef and his team wowed the table with a special hors d’oeuvre of pureed Jerusalem artichoke, followed by an amazing six-course presentation that included a dessert of Valrhona dark chocolate shell filled with chocolate mousse and garnished with blueberry conserve. Each course was paired with a different wine, among them Woodward Canyon Winery, TERO Estates, L’Ecole No 41 Winery, Leonetti Cellars, and Three Rivers Winery.

The special dinner treat was a ‘dress rehearsal’ for an upcoming James Beard House dinner at New York City’s iconic gastronomic institution this December (on 12/12/12).

But to our small group that night, it was an encore performance deserving of a standing ovation. Much of the ingredients were locally sourced, foraged, harvested and grown, such as the buffalo Carpaccio encrusted with Walla Walla Roastery espresso, accompanied by fingerling potato chips, Monteillet Causse Noir goat and sheep’s milk cheese, marinated sweet onions, with a black truffle garnish—paired with L’Ecole No 41 Walla Walla Valley Merlot.

When you’re looking for an unforgettable evening in Walla Walla’s wine country either entertaining or with a group of friends, you won’t go astray in the kitchen at The Marcus Whitman Hotel restaurant.

RESERVE THE CHEF’S TABLE
Private groups from 4 to 12 people.  To schedule your Chef’s Table experience, call 509-524-5110. For more information, visit www.marcuswhitmanhotel.com

Written by John Vitale

Editors’s Note: The photos below were taken at The Chef’s Table in October 2012. 

Cape Cod Diver Scallop with Sweet Corn Purée, Stone Fruit Mostarda, Spiced Pecans, Green Apples, and Sunflower Sprouts. WINE PAIRING: 2011 Three Rivers Chardonnay

 

Pleasant View Farm Foie Gras with Pumpkin Scone, Plums, Apricots, Seckel Pears, and Cinnamon. WINE PAIRING: 2011 Three Rivers Riesling

 

Walla Walla Roastery Espresso–Crusted Buffalo Carpaccio with Monteillet Causse Noir Cheese, Walla Walla Sweet Onions, Fingerling Potatoes, and Oregon Summer Black Truffles. WINE PAIRING: 2005 L’Ecole No 41 Seven Hills Vineyard Merlot
Upper Dry Creek Ranch Lamb with Sweet Potato Gnocchi, White Chocolate, Huckleberry Jam, 25-Year-Old Balsamic, and Mint. WINE PAIRING: 2009 Woodward Canyon Estate Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon

 

Dry-Aged Double R Ranch New York Strip with Preserved Meyer Lemon Spaetzle, BLIS “9” Maple Sherry Vinegar, Beets, Cambozola Cheese, and Wild Sage. WINE PAIRING: 2009 Leonettic Cellar Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon

 

Valrhona Dark Chocolate French Silk with Port–Fig Jam, Marcona Almond Brittle, Chantilly, and Vanilla. WINE PAIRING: 2009 Tero Estates Windrow Vineyard Cabernet Franc

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Tasting Room® magazine is the ultimate authority on the Washington wine scene and your personal tour guide to wineries, vineyards, destinations and travel tips, and artisan foods, chefs and artists. In short, Tasting Room is a metaphor for life’s simple pleasures that pair remarkably well with wine—touring, food, travel, culture, recreation and people.

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