Since opening her restaurant, Dish-Creative Cuisine in Cathedral City, Chef Joane Garcia-Colson has made a persuasive argument for good taste here in the Valley.
But this time she’s not standing in a courtroom in front of a jury. A former trial lawyer, Garcia-Colson left the legal profession and five months ago opened the restaurant at 68525 Ramon Road, Suite 101.
With a distinctive modern American menu, most meals at Dish begin with a taste of a specialty donut such as a lemon basil bite. Daily “conversation starters” include a selection of “mini main plates” where a particular food flavor is highlighted. To give guests the opportunity to savor each taste, an array of different tasting palette cleansers is offered between plates. And to close a meal, Chef Garcia-Colson often serves her signature “push pops”.
“I don’t want to serve the same type of food,” Garcia-Colson said. “I want to be unique so that when you go out to enjoy a wonderful evening, you’ll experience something different, take time to relax and enjoy the food.”
Her success in achieving that goal caught the eye of promoters for the fourth annual Food & Wine Festival Palm Desert. The March 22-24 weekend becomes a culinary destination with cooking demonstrations, tastings, wine seminars, as well as celebrated chefs from across the country.
Dish is one of five chef-owned restaurants chosen to serve up their unique offerings, and also includes Cello’s, Rockwood Grill, Wolfgang Puck Pizza Bar and Catalan Restaurant.
Garcia-Colson will showcase her skills at the 1 p.m. March 24 wine flight seminar, pairing her food with Iron Horse Vineyard. During the same day, Dish will also have a tasting booth where guests can sample a fan favorite, “Chilled White Gazpacho”.
“I’m very excited to be a part of this event and give people an experience,” Garcia-Colson said. “If someone is happy tasting my flavors, then meeting people and sharing my food makes me happy.”
After 20 years in the legal profession, Garcia-Colson left the legal frying pan. No longer thrilled with what she deemed as a “system that is about fighting”, she said, “I grew tired of the conflict and I wanted to do something good for the world.”
She has found a new home in cooking – living for the moment to release her passion for an innovative and involved dining experience.
“Meals should be a kind of celebration to feed a sense of community, share with family and friends – to nourish our bodies, mind and spirit,” she said.
