The Sample Room now serving pig's head

jm3 / Flickr

Go ahead--pig out

The Sample Room kitchen has enjoyed a reputation for being risk-takers, rule breakers, and pork belly pioneers. Making the most of their connections to local farms, it's the cozy little neighborhood restaurant that other neighborhoods can only dream about.  

Still, one has to give them extra credit for their latest menu, which includes half a pig's head. You read that right. Here's the link--go ahead, click on it. Under "Meat Dishes," look for the Half Pig's Head Smorgasboard (note they somehow resisted the temptation to call it a snort-gasboard) with red onion, pickled egg, pickles and Dijon mustard for $18.  

It's a daunting order.  Even for foodies that slurp down raw oysters and rejoice in eel sushi, we still largely shy away from any food capable of looking up at us with a vacant stare.  But if we're going to put our fork where our environmentalist sensibilities are leaning, it's probably high time we learned to eat more of the animal and stop letting our pets have all the fun.

Apparently, there's about one and a half pounds of meat in half of a pig's head, and you can eat pretty much all of it if you don't mind the mess. After the skin has been rubbed in beer, salt, and oil, and baked for about 12 hours, it's pretty good. Most of it tastes--rather predictably--just like pork, except for the brain. And if you're into foie gras, you'll have no problem making the adjustment. After all, it still has to beat the best hot dog you've ever had.  

Of course, if you're feeling less adventurous, the Sample Room has plenty of other, less unsettling options on the menu, including a lamb crostata with green olives and fontina cheese, and fresh fettuccine with wild mushrooms and kale.