The buzz about Lovitt
A Country Meal Done Right Tucked into the far corner of northeast Washington is a restaurant worth the drive “... where the pace is easy, the people are friendly, and, as were about to discover, the produce is bountiful...Chef Norman smokes the ham for his hand-pinched raviolis himself and roasts peaches from local farms alongside garlic-and oregano rubbed chicken (pastured by a supplier down the road)”.
Linda Hagen-Miller, Sunset Magazine, August 2007
“Restaurant owners Norman and Kristen Six don’t think their approach to cooking is groundbreaking. They simply prepare food the way their grandparents did, using local ingredients and starting from scratch...Down to the crackers and dinner rolls everything at Lovitt is made from scratch”
Inland Northwest Homes & Lifestyles, August/September 2007
“A dinner at Lovitt is like having dinner at a friend’s house-- if your friend is a really accomplished cook who uses only the freshest local ingredients and puts them into simple , hearty dishes...It’s that kind of place-- once you try it, you’ve got to love it”
Ann M. Colford, The Pacific Northwest Inlander, May 3, 2007
“Four of us were sitting around the table in this 1908 Colville farmhouse, engaged in passionate debate about which entree was superior, when the conversation turned to: Does Lovitt Restaurant have any flaws?
Lovitt Restaurant sits on a hill overlooking the Colville valley
just south of town. Co-owner Kristen Six delivers food to customers
on the front porch of the restaurant, which is also home for her
and her husband, chef Norman Six. After a long silence, we came
up with only one: It's 70 miles away from home.
However, if you happen to live closer to Colville – even, say,
only 65 miles away – then you might not detect any downside
to this absolute treasure of a restaurant.
As for upside, where do I start? The farmhouse is charming. The
view of the Colville valley is stunning. Chef Norman Six uses fresh,
local ingredients – sometimes right out of his garden. He prepares
his dishes with talent and care but zero pretension. The prices
remain, mostly, in the teens.
All of which makes Lovitt just about, well, perfect.
Six's dedication to local ingredients is not mere lip service. The
beer I ordered (Lost Falls Draft) came from just down the road;
the cheese (Quillisascut goat cheese) came from just up the road;
and the herbs and greens came from the yard. Kristen Six estimates
that 80 percent of their ingredients come from within Stevens County.
Beef and chicken come from local producers, and the seafood comes
from the Sixes' regular jaunts to Seattle.
Every week you should be able to expect one steak entree, which
in our case was a perfectly aged beef tenderloin with sautéed
mushrooms ($23). The menu usually includes one vegetarian dish and
one pasta dish as well.
The service, provided by Kristen Six, was the definition of knowledgeable and professional. She not only knows every ingredient, chances are she picked some of them. As for the atmosphere, we spent a beautiful evening staring at the green Colville valley, the towering Kettle Range and the sprays of flowers around the farmhouse.”
Jim Kershner, Spokesman Review, October 6, 2006
Spokesman Review’s Best of the Best, December, 2006
The buzz about Lovitt (Chicago)...
“Best One-Man Band: Solo Chef Norman Six at Lovitt”
Chicago Magazine, May 2003
“[Norman Six] cooks alone in his tiny Wicker park restaurant, and likes to focus on earthy foods with ‘occasional exotic flourishes’.”
James Beard Foundation, May 2003 Dateline
“In his cozy kitchen, he pirouettes from six-burner stove to flattop griddle to tiny grill while turning out salads of tomatillo, tomato and queso fresco, plates of maple glazed salmon with squash and zucchini cakes, and stacks of crisp golden scallop and salmon cakes.”
Andrea Strong, New York Times, January 1, 2003
Featured on Food Network’s “Best of...” in 2004
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