Sound Food: A dining destination is reborn

The historic Sound Food building, a beloved structure south of town, once again beckons to curious diners. The caterers who work out of its storied kitchen have re-opened the establishment; each showcases her epicurean talents two days a week.

It’s a poignant time for the pair, who both worked at Sound Food years ago and are proud to breathe new life into the name and space of a Vashon legend.

“The town was calling out for it,” said Nadia D’Aoust, one of two caterers at the Sound Food building. “It’s an icon on Vashon; it’s in the middle of Vashon, and now it’s been restored to almost the way it was.”

Re-opening the restaurant under the new moniker of Sound Food Catering & Events was a natural progression for D’Aoust and fellow caterer Mardi Ljubich, she said. They held a grand opening party Friday, Dec. 5, and opened for lunch Monday, Dec. 8.

The pair used memories and historic photographs as their guides when refurbishing the building’s interior, trying as much as possible to keep Sound Food’s spirit alive while modernizing and improving on it when necessary.

The result is a cozy communal dining space, with wooden floors, tables and chairs that harken back to the restaurant’s roots. A book of Sound Food mementos sits by the simple bar — a soup bar in decades past but now a beer and wine bar. Sound Food’s newest menus are as varied and adventurous as were the eatery’s first offerings.

When it opened in 1974, Sound Food was one of the first to make its own salad dressing and offer vegan items such as tofu scrambles. On D’Aoust’s menu last week was a wild rice salad with almonds and dried cranberries and herb-rubbed beef tenderloin with mushroom demi-glace.

Last Friday, when the restaurant was closed, D’Aoust and chef Jennifer Huerta experimented with puff pastries.

“Who doesn’t love puff pastries?” D’Aoust said.

D’Aoust’s carmelized pear puff pastries are a longstanding favorite with her customers, but the pair were ready to concoct a new savory treat.

First out of the oven was Huerta’s six-cheese puff with sautéed ham and prosciutto — her newest creation. The dainty pastries were just right, the pair agreed.

“Those turned out perfect,” Huerta said.

Next up were bite-sized “millefeuilles,” puff pastry with mushrooms and creamy garlic sauce.

“I did those just because I love the garlic sauce,” D’Aoust admitted.

The homey wooden building’s latest incarnation is just the most recent of several drastic changes it has seen in the past few years.

Home to one of the Pacific Northwest’s first natural foods restaurants for decades, Sound Food closed its doors in 2007, leaving the building empty for several months.

The property switched hands in February, and in June, Sound Food’s adjoining structure — which once housed Minglement — was demolished, and a concrete slab poured in its place.

The property’s new owner plans to construct a building there that will house the business offices of Performance Reps Northwest, a company that sells restaurant equipment and appliances.

Ljubich and D’Aoust, former employees of the acclaimed restaurant, were sad to see Sound Food go, but gladly took the opportunity to make the space their own.

The pair began renting the building in March, cooking in its commercial kitchen for private events on-site and off, and held their first public event at Sound Food earlier this year.

Now, the landmark, refurbished and updated, is open as a restaurant 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. four days a week.

Ljubich and Robin Miller showcase their offerings Mondays and Tuesdays; D’Aoust and Huerta bring their culinary visions to life Wednesdays and Thursdays.

The menus of both change regularly and are a chance for Ljubich and D’Aoust to showcase the edibles of their catering companies: Three Olive and Shefidgets.

“People can try it and see what we’re all about,” D’Aoust said. “They may not be savvy to the catering business, or they’re intimidated by it. This gives them a chance to check us out.”

The two women plan to host live music at the venue at least once a month, D’Aoust said. Coming up is a New Year’s Eve party with Captain Dick and the Portholes, an eight-person local rock and blues ensemble.

They’re glad to revive one of Vashon’s historical favorite eateries with their own spin, they said.

“The old Sound Foodies love coming in,” D’Aoust said. “Everybody’s so curious what we’re doing, and they all like to come in and tell us their stories of Sound Food. ... It’s really exciting. We don’t know where this will take us.”

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