On the Menu: February 14 through February 20

by jbfauthor on February 12, 2010

Here’s what happening at the Beard House next week: Sunday, February 14, 7:00 P.M. Valentine’s Day Seduction Spice things up this Valentine’s Day at a romantic dinner of Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s dramatic, sexy Asian fare prepared by Anthony Ricco, executive chef at Spice Market. The restaurant’s much-acclaimed original pastry chef, Pichet Ong, will provide decadent, passion-inspiring desserts. Tuesday, February 16, 7:00 P.M. West Coast Basque Cuisine Basque native Gerald Hirigoyen has spent the last two decades in San Francisco, where he runs two wildly popular restaurants, Piperade and Bocadillos. His signature style, as showcased in his new cookbook, Pintxos, artfully blends the robust flavors of

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On the Menu: January 31 through February 6

by jbfauthor on January 29, 2010

Here’s what happening at the Beard House next week: Sunday, January 31, 12:00 P.M. Fabulous Mid-Winter Brunch Few people know how to brunch as well as New Yorkers do. And few restaurants know how to fill those eggs-Benedict-and-ricotta-pancake cravings as well as Almond, Jason Weiner’s unpretentious French bistros in NYC and the Hamptons. Join us as we chase off some winter blues with a menu of Weiner’s bold, expertly executed cuisine. Monday, February 1, 7:00 P.M. Organic Modern American Named by Travel + Leisure as one of the best new restaurants in 2009, Josh Adams’s June seamlessly blends a farm-to-table ethic with the tools of molecular gastronomy. Adams applies progressive techniques to pristine ingredients, many of which are

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Eat this Word: Romesco

by jbfauthor on January 25, 2010

WHAT? Catalan hodgepodge. This classic sauce is a specialty of the Tarragona province in the Catalonia region of northeastern Spain. About the only ingredient chefs can agree on is the special red pepper that gives the sauce its name. Some contend the formula should be nothing more than a simple mixture of olive oil, red pepper, and bread, while others liven it up with flavorful ingredients, such as garlic, wine, chili powder, paprika, almonds or hazelnuts, and vinegar to the blend. Regardless of the recipe, the final product is usually a smooth paste, typically served with grilled poultry or fish. Each spring, there is a competition among fishermen in the Serrallo district of the province to produce the best Romesco. Before thousands of spectators, the Romesco-masters—who only pass their secret recipes on to their sons—set to work with their mortars and pestles to compete for the championship title. WHERE?

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Eat this Word: Salsify

by jbfauthor on January 22, 2010

WHAT? The world is your oyster plant. For such a mild-mannered root vegetable, salsify has attracted an unusually high number of ardent defenders and passionate detractors. Unique, delicate, superb, mild, mysterious, its champions insist. Bland, mushy, faded, forgettable, its critics rejoin. Salsify is also known as oyster plant, because when cooked, it's alleged to taste like the mollusk. (More disagreement on this point.) There are, however, a few facts everyone concedes: Salsify is a carrot-shaped winter vegetable. Thomas Jefferson grew it, and a vegetable garden remains the best place to find it in contemporary America. It's much more common in Europe, where people use it in stews, soups, and fritters or simply sautèed in butter. White salsify and black salsify (technically called Scorzonera) are used interchangeably. WHERE? Michael Giletto and Alina Eisenhauer's Beard

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