We would like to thank our Ox Restaurant staff, both past and present.
To our back-of-the-house team—the cooks, chefs, prep, and dishwashers who have put blood, sweat, and tears into making our food taste great every day: we cannot thank you enough for your commitment and hard work. You are all the reason people want to eat at Ox, and you continue to impress us every day. Without you, there is no Ox.
If it were not for our insanely talented and hardworking kitchen management team, we would never have been able to take on this project. Thanks to our sous chefs, “Sweet Baby” Kyle Burgess, Jeffrey Newman, and Travis Lowry, our guests hardly noticed when we were out of the kitchen and buried deep in recipe notes while making this book. That is the biggest compliment two chefs could hope for and a testament to your high standards.
To Cory Rom, our CDC, who has become a talented chef in his own right: your help with the production and logistics of executing this book are not lost on us. Cory, you have our loyalty and respect forever. We look forward to celebrating your successes in the future. Thank you!
We would also like to give special thanks to our two prep superwomen who have been with us since before Day One of Ox. Paula Bello and Carolina Barbosa, you are amazing and we are so lucky you are part of our team.
Thank you to our front-of-the-house team for their professionalism, knowledge, enthusiasm, and ability to project our vision to our guests. You are the true face of Ox.
And to all the managers of Ox Restaurant, present and past: Dani Weiner, Blythe Freeman, and Andrew Moore; RJ Hodde, Adam Smith, Marisa Mitchell, Justin Díaz, Patrick “Mecos” Martinez, Andrew Rivera-Myers, Ryan Whyte, Jamal Hassan, and Natalie Obeso. You are the reason Ox thrives today, and we could not have endeavored to take on this project without your hard work and dedication to making Ox a better place for our diners and our staff.
To the people who invested their trust in us, Sara Parker and Scott Thurman, Cindy Emmet, and Marc Visnick, your contributions will never be forgotten. Thank you!
To our partners: Jeff Jones and Donna Wax, Stephen and Tanya Doubleday, and Kurt Huffman. Thank you for believing in us. With your guidance and support, we continue to push ourselves to be better chefs, restaurant managers, and business owners every day.
To the Portland restaurant community: together we continue to grow and impress the world. We couldn’t be more proud to be a part of this city. Keep Portland real! To the local farms that supply our produce and meats: thank you for making us look good. To our local winemakers, brewers, and distillers: you make us grateful to live in (and thrilled to drink in) the Pacific Northwest.
We have worked for many chefs in our lives, and without them we would not be the people and chefs we are today. We would like to give a special thank you to Hiro Sone and Lissa Doumani of Terra for hiring us at the same time and inspiring us to this day. You took a chance on both of us and we hope we made you proud!
Words cannot convey our heartfelt gratitude to the friends we made in Argentina and Uruguay. You welcomed us into your homes and lives and were so generous with your time and lessons around the fire. Your hospitality will forever be a part of us. At La Araucana in Capitán Sarmiento: Felipe Menéndez, Angie, and el maestro Rafa. At Sucre Restaurant and all across Buenos Aires: Fernando Trocca. In Buenos Aires: Juliana Lopez May, Cesar Eugenio Sagario, and Armando Cadoppi. At Finca Cosima in Sierras de Garzón and Café Misterio in Montevideo: Juan Pablo Clérici and Silvina Tocchetti. In Montevideo: Santiago Garat. And in José Ignacio: Clo Dimet, Martín Pittaluga, Gustavo Barbero, and Guzmán Artagaveytia. Thank you!
Stacy Adimando, thank you for letting us through your door at Every Day with Rachael Ray magazine to pitch you on how awesome Portland is. Who knew that that meeting would be the beginning of this wild ride?! Thank you for your kindness, friendship, and incredible talent. We are so lucky to have such a great writer as our co-author. Cheers to you and to our partnership!
To our photographer, Evan Sung: we don’t pretend to understand how you project emotions into your photos the way you do. You gave our book life and vision. We cannot thank you enough for being our photographer and friend. Thank you, Jeanna, for letting us borrow him!
Kira Corbin, we did not think we needed a prop stylist. Then we saw our book photos and realized how wrong we were. Thank you for helping us tell our story! And a special thanks to Dan Kunnecke for lending us your beautifully made ceramicware.
Sincere thanks to our editor, Emily Timberlake, designer Ashley Lima, and the team at Ten Speed Press, for giving us the opportunity to share our passions on these pages.
We really wanted to make sure the recipes in this book could work in home kitchens and backyards. Thank you to all of the people who helped us test our cookbook recipes: Shirley Mattingly and Bruce Ward, RJ Hodde, Dani Weiner, Cory Rom, “Sweet Baby” Kyle Burgess, Travis Lowry, Camilo Schaser-Hughes, Cooper Wathey and Jordana Beh, Michael Davis, Britney Marr, John Figgatt, Winnie Ng, James Mendez, Uriel Miguel, Paula Bello, Alex and Sonya Mielnik, Joe Wilson and Jaimee Bremner, Rachael Steifbold, Kyle “Butch” O’Brian, and Kat Powers. A very special thank-you goes to Erin Keller (and her friends and housemates), who took on a mountain of responsibility when it came to testing our recipes. You went above and beyond, and we cannot express enough gratitude for your squeezing this all into your very busy life. We are so happy to have you in our lives. Thank you, Keller!
One more special thank-you goes to our bar man, Andrew Moore, who not only tested several of these recipes but also singlehandedly spearheaded the entire cocktail section. We would have been lost without your help.
Finally, thank you to the customers of Ox. We could not be in this position without your walking through our doors, waiting for our tables, and paying us with your hard-earned money. All of us here at Ox realize your importance to our successes in the past and in the future. We will continue to strive to give you the best we have every day.
Thank you!
—GREG AND GABI
Shirley Mattingly, you have been the best mother, friend, and editor that a girl could have, and your undying belief in me and my dreams has not only comforted me but has also pushed me to be where I am today. I couldn’t be more grateful. Thank you for showing me that the ultimate reward for hard work is happiness.
Thanks to my stepdad, Bruce Ward, for sharing your grill and your love of good food, wine, and travel with us. Many of our Sunday suppers around your grill have inspired the dishes in this book and how we live our lives.
To my father, Jose Ignacio Quiñónez: you shared your passion for a good dining adventure from the moment I was old enough to strap into the passenger seat, and you showed me that no trek was ever too long or far for a good plate of fritada, hornado, or asado. Thank you.
To my grandmother, Rosario Albuja, who worked so hard for most of her life just to put food on the table and then spent the rest of her life making sure our family was always well cared for: thank you for keeping traditions alive with treats from your kitchen, patience, and love. Your memory lives on in the kindness of the sons and daughters you raised.
And to my partner in everything, Greg Denton, thank you for saying yes to this project even though you knew it would be much more difficult than I was willing to admit. Working by your side every day and night makes even the toughest jobs not only manageable but really, really fun. Thank you for keeping a smile on my face and laughter in my heart. I love and cherish you always.
—GABI
By the age of four, I knew I wanted to be a chef, so acknowledging everyone who has influenced me would need to be a book of its own. If I forget to call out someone I have met on this amazing journey, I would like to apologize, but please understand that I have been influenced in one way or another by every person with whom I have worked and spent time. Thank you!
I first would like to thank my wife, partner, co-chef, and best friend, Gabi. Without you, my life would be an O without an X.
I would like to thank my brothers, Travis, Chad, and Channing, for their support—sarcastic at times, but I still feel the love.
Thanks to my mom, who continues to impress me with her courage to change in the pursuit of happiness.
Thanks to Terry, my second dad and my father’s husband, whose wisdom, kindness, loyalty, and laugh will always be kept near and dear to my heart.
To my Grandma Agnes, who taught me how to love food made from the heart and to always make sure everyone is taken care of before myself: I love and miss you!
And to my father, Gregory A. Denton, thank you for teaching me how to be a man, a manager, and a person who treats people fairly. Luv ya!
I would also like to thank Bruce Ward and Shirley Mattingly for raising such an amazing woman, my wife, Gabi. You both have helped me open my eyes to a world of food, love, and kindness. I am blessed to be a part of your wonderful lives! Thank you for everything!
Finally, I would like to thank the restaurants and chefs who let me look behind the curtain, let me intrude on their spaces as a stage, let me apprentice with them, and taught me as a student or allowed me to become an employee. The days, weeks, and years have infused in me more than you would ever know.
—GREG