"Buttermilk Graffiti" Dinner at The Fourth Estate Restaurant

James Beard Award-winning Chef Edward Lee will regale diners with his tales of America's melting pot cuisines at a five-course book and bourbon dinner at the Fourth Estate restaurant on Dec. 17.

Lee won recognition from James Beard Foundation for his book, Buttermilk Graffiti: A Chef’s Journey to Discover America’s New Melting Pot Cuisine. The book tells of his two-year, cross country journey to discover the culinary culture clashes that lead to exciting new American dishes. Interspersed with the narrative are 40 recipes that recreate the new dishes for the home cook.

The Dec. 17 dinner courses, based on the recipes, will be paired with appropriate drinks, including 'Chef's Collaboration Blend,' a small-batch bourbon created by Lee with Jefferson's Reserve founder Trey Zoeller.

The evening begins at 6:30pm with passed appetizers; Dinner begins at 7:00pm.

Non-member tickets cost $95 per person and include a copy of Buttermilk Graffiti. Discounted couples tickets come cost $180 and come with one copy of the book to share. Club members receive a 15% discount — single tickets are $80.75, and couples tickets are $153 — when you sign in to the website. Buy Tickets!

Lee is the chef/owner of 610 Magnolia, MilkWood and Whiskey Dry in Louisville, Ky., and the culinary director for Succotash in Penn Quarter and at National Harbor. He is a six-time finalist for the James Beard Foundation Award for best chef: Southeast. In 2018, Food & Wine Magazine name 610 Magnolia one of the country’s most important restaurants of the past 40 years. The Michelin Guide DC awarded Succotash a Bib Gourmand in 2019.

Lee appears frequently on television and has been nominated for a daytime Emmy for his role as host of "Mind of a Chef" on PBS. He is also the author of Smoke & Pickles: Recipes and Stories from a New Southern Kitchen.

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Passed Appetizers

• Duck laab in lettuce leaves
• Mango fries with jalapeno-mint aioli
• Pickled salmon on brioche toast

Accompanied by sparkling wine or bourbon cocktail

First Course
Banh xeo with nuoc cham, Vietnamese crepes with lettuce, shrimp, pork and herbs
Accompanied by crisp white wine

Fish
Amok Trey, Creamy fish curry in banana leaf
Accompanied by rich white wine

Intermezzo
Locally-made sorbet

Entrée
Seared beef rib-eye with prunes, almonds and bourbon-washed butter
Salt-roasted sweet potatoes with kalbi butter and gochujang sauce
Accompanied by red wine

Dessert
Hoedduck (Korean doughnuts)
Accompanied by green tea