Sauce Nouvelle is preparing to open a second location in Poulsbo, featuring a more expansive menu and a distinct experience compared with its Bainbridge Island outpost.
Australian native and molecular gastronomy chef Nicolas Ganea is eager to introduce the community to his inventive flavors. Using scientific techniques, he transforms ingredients into surprising textures, bold flavors and creative presentations engaging and delighting diners.
The menu will highlight bold spices and blend Mediterranean and French flavors. Ganea told What Now Seattle he has been experimenting with distillation and fermentation.
“We had this one spice, it was driving me crazy. I was pairing it with every protein and it would not go. I’d throw it in the oven and it would disappear. Some ingredients, they just disappear,” Ganea said. “I had to figure out a way to make it happen and I finally pulled it off with a New York strip steak.”
Sauce Nouvelle will also feature salmon served with a golden tomato and lemon myrtle ferment sauce. Lemon myrtle, a fragrant Australian herb, adds a unique citrusy note.
“I was so happy how it came through. I didn’t know if the lemon myrtle was going to come through because it’s very sensitive, but it worked out. It bonded,” he said. “Just come on in with a full appetite and be open-minded to what we’re doing because we’re pretty out there with flavor.”
The team is developing a curated cocktail program featuring unique compounds and infusions. This will be Ganea’s first restaurant offering wine and spirits, and he’s excited to introduce it.
“I was playing with a Tasmanian pepper and I was infusing it with gin. Then I was infusing it with Vermouth to see which one I liked best,” Ganea said.
The restaurant will maintain a rustic look with barn wood while embracing a distinctive, one-of-a-kind vibe.
“It’s going to have a different flair,” he said. “When you walk in there is so much orange. There’s orange chairs, orange candles, orange paint. It’s going to be wild. It just felt with the mood.”
While an exact opening date hasn’t been set, Ganea said they are awaiting final inspections and can’t wait to welcome Sauce Nouvelle to the Poulsbo community.
