On the Menu: Week of April 21
Here's what's coming up at the Beard House next week:
Monday, April 22, 7:00 P.M.
“Though just about every restaurant serves some form of raw fish these days, very few approach Crudo’s mastery,” raves critic Howard Seftel of Arizona Central. Crudo is the specialty at Cullen Campbell’s charming modern paean to Italian fare, but the chef/owner’s thoughtful, innovative menu is impeccably executed from start to finish.
Tuesday, April 23, 7:00 P.M.
Welcome spring with an elegant New England–inspired menu prepared by chef Jake Rojas of the lovely Tallulah on Thames. An alum of Joël Robuchon at the Mansion in Las Vegas, Rojas will treat guests to a meal of his “nuanced... Read more >
Q & A with Mike Lata of the JBF Award–Nominated The Ordinary
No discussion about Charleston’s on-fire food scene is complete without a nod
to Mike Lata. His first solo project, FIG, was a pioneer of the city’s latest generation of eateries. The Ordinary, Lata’s follow-up concept and a 2013 Best New Restaurant nominee, is a reconsideration of the classic seafood restaurant. In the interview below, Lata discusses how he applies nose-to-tail philosophy to seafood, the Carolinas’ unique “merroir”, and his favorites dishes at the Ordinary.
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JBF: Your menu celebrates the “merroir” of the coastal Carolinas and the East Coast. How would you describe the merroir of the Carolinas? What's unique about it?
ML: What's unique to the Carolinas is pluff mud and the high salinity content of our wate... Read more >
Daily Digest: April 18, 2013
Your date's not a lush: it could be his whiskey-scented cologne. [HuffPo]
What top toques eat on the down low. [WSJ]
Euphoria-inducing hot sauces use the world's hottest chile. [F&W]
JBF on the Air: Food Safety and Sustainability
Buying natural, sustainable, and healthy food has become increasingly confusing in our hyper-marketed world. On yesterday's powerful episode of Taste Matters, JBF's Mitchell Davis got some straight facts from Urvashi Rangan, executive director of the Food Safety and Sustainability Center operated by Consumer Reports. Learn all about the truth behind "natural" labels, the dangers of food marketing, and the growing problem of "green noise" below:
Q & A with JBF Award Nominee David Wondrich
After Prohibition virtually extinguished America’s rich cocktail culture, mixology entered a bleak age of sour mix, cranberry juice, and abuse of the “-tini” suffix. But thanks, in part, to cocktail historian David Wondrich, many of the recipes from bartending’s Golden Age are alive and well once more. Below, Wondrich, who is a nominee for our Outstanding Wine, Beer, or Spirits Professional award, tells us about his latest project, favorite new bars, and first non-liquid food memory.
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JBF: You've been tapped to write The Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails. How is that going? Is there an ETA?
DW: It's a huge job, that's for sure, but I'm already learning a great deal. We're trying to bring all kinds of Asian and African spirits into the discussion, from arrack to akpeteshie, baijiu to bukha. I've really just begun working on it—I've got a list of headwords and we're figuring out who wil... Read more >
Daily Digest: April 17, 2013
Is the cupcake market finally crashing? [WSJ]
Under financial duress, Italians turn to the pleasures of home baking. [NPR]
Why some leftovers just taste better than others. [Chicago Tribune]
Meet the master behind sriracha, David Tran of Huy Fong Foods. [LAist]
Should gluten really be avoided? [Boston Globe]... Read more >
Q & A with Alex Stupak of the JBF Award–Nominated Empellón Cocina
Whether you initially thought that Alex Stupak’s decision to hang up his pastry chef hat and open his own taqueria was a brilliant move or a madcap experiment, everyone can now agree that the detour has paid off. His two young ventures, Empellón Taqueria and Empellón Cocina, have earned raves from local and national media, and the latter is one of our 2013 Best New Restaurant nominees. Below, the freshly minted Food & Wine Best New Chef tells us about the future of his restaurants, a regional Mexican cuisine that deserves more attention, and his favorite unwieldy Mexican dish in New York City.
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JBF: Empellon Cocina is about a year old now. What are you and your team focusing on over the course of the next year?
AS: Right no... Read more >
Q & A with JBF Award Nominee Dominique Ansel
Hopes were high when Daniel alum Dominique Ansel launched his eponymous bakery in New York’s Soho neighborhood in November of 2011. On its opening day, the store sold out by 3:00 P.M., and enthusiasm has only barely waned ever since. Now a nominee for our 2013 Outstanding Pastry Chef award, Ansel chatted with us about the unexpected success of his most popular item, other pastry chefs he admires, and a perfect glass of milk.
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JBF: What is your favorite item from the current menu at Dominique Ansel? Which creation are you most proud of?
DA: Well, the DKA, a.k.a. Dominique’s Kouign Amann, changed my life. The kouign amann is a pastry from Brittany that’s been described as a “caramelized croissant”. I remember first making it back at Fauchon, and later I baked some for the manager’s meetings at Daniel. Never once did I think that this unprono... Read more >
Daily Digest: April 16, 2013
Red alert: study shows beet juice can lower blood pressure. [HuffPo]
Maple syrup theft reaches a record high in Maine. [Economist]
Six top chefs name their favorite knives. [Details]
How one family helped change the way we eat ham. [Smithsonian]
... Read more >
Daily Digest: April 15, 2013
Unsurprisingly, the taste of beer sets off pleasurable chemicals in your brain. [Yahoo!]
In the perilous world of food contamination, even your dog's food isn't safe. [NPR]
Alain Ducasse receives Lifetime Achievement award from World's 50 Best. [Eater]
Cereal-flavored milk, coming to a supermarket near you. [Oh Gizmo!]
... Read more >
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@beardfoundation
The folks at Martin Yan's @MYChinaSF are holding a Friends of James Beard Benefit on 6/9! Menu and other info here: http://t.co/LAFpnmRoec
This week on "Taste Matters", JBF's Mitchell Davis sits down with Bonnie Stern, aka "Canada's Julia Child" http://t.co/qjcnzFPznm
Next month at the #jamesbeardhouse: 2012 #jbfa winner Chris Hastings of Birmingham's Hot and Hot Fish Club http://t.co/n0qagSR1Y4
QR code–bearing sushi. An ambassador for cheese in China. Pet bird–flavored ice cream in Japan. Today's food reads: http://t.co/Hg05mRFWXy
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