I'm a BLUE CRAB fool these days... First it was Myrtle Beach, and now I'm in Ocean City MD. Gotta love the local flavor!

Cooking Demo Memories

The best part BY FAR of my weekend as host/emcee of the Taste! Gourmet Food & Wine Expo was having the honor -- not to mention the best seat in the house -- of introducing three extraordinary chefs to the crowds on hand. It was first time witnessing up close what goes into a live cooking demonstration, and I was left with a true understanding of the teamwork and talent of the headliners as well as the good people behind the scenes who make the magic happen.

It should be noted right off the top, that these three gentlemen are all as different as could be, but they share one thing in common that sets them apart, and has placed them in the positions they hold: equal parts cooking chops and personality...

First up was Guy Fieri. Just a few minutes listening to this guy do his thing and you know exactly why he is the reigning rock star of TV chefs. He keeps it real; knows how to engage an audience, and stays true to his culinary sensibilities. The crowd was eating him up, much like the food he prepares. In this case, the food was a twist on a shrimp cocktail. He used avocado and cucumber to brighten and freshen up the presentation and flavor, and he replaced traditional cocktail sauce with his "grilled ketchup," who's base was fresh-grilled veggies, along with the more standard fare of cocktail sauce ingredients (Worcestershire, mustard, garlic, etc.)...

"Big Daddy" Aaron McCargo took the stage the next day, and the promise of his main dish had my mouth watering in advance: Filet Mignon Sloppy Joes. Big Daddy's all about big, bold flavors, so there was more than a fair shake of hot sauce, but with all due respect, his side dish of potatoes stole the show. Nothing too fancy, but sensational in its simplicity. Sliver-thin sliced fingerlings heavily seasoned with S&P and smoked paprika and flash fried. Some people in the crowd gasped when Aaron sprinkled a more than healthy does of salt over the chips, and I loves his reply: "The difference between a little and a lot is opinion." You could grab these crispy, glistening chips by the mouthful and not get bored until you crushed an entire baking sheet of 'em!

Fabio Viviani was the final celebrity chef to demo. This guy is the embodiment of Don Juan in Italian shoes. He maxes out every last bit of his image as a charmer... and makes no bones about his cooking being nothing but simple. As he told the adoring crowd, in his somewhat broken English, "You cannot reinvent tradition."

My only issue with Fabio's dish, Spinach and Ricotta Gnocchi, was that it was not really gnocchi at all. No potatoes; no pasta. He said it's name is due to the shape, and I guess that's up for discussion. Just call 'em dumplings and be done with it. It did please the crowd, though, and from being there to witness it, he coulda served this group shit in a shoe and they woulda asked for seconds...

The food was solid if not spectacular across the board. But what really stuck with me afterwards was just how talented these guys are as entertainers. I stand in awe of their multifaceted skills as both cooks and comics. And I take with me a better understanding of what it takes to make it to that level of notoriety...

A Taste of Taste!

Just completed my first weekend as host/emcee of a food and wine expo in Myrtle Beach. Been a long time coming... this has been in the works for over a year, so I'm glad to see it through. The experience was most definitely a memorable one, and it all started with an amazing 7-course extravaganza on the eve of the show...
In a quaint little town just outside of Myrtle Beach called Little River (does it get any more quaint than that?!), the organizers brought us all to The Brentwood Restaurant (http://www.thebrentwoodrestaurant.com/), a converted house that is resided over by chef Eric Masson, and his wife, Kim. The guests included Guy Fieri and Aaron McCargo, and it was quite a kick to get to hang with these two TV chef celebs. Guy really knows how to command a room -- within moments he was leading us downstairs and out onto the front porch to sabre a bottle of champagne!
After much chit-chat, we began our tasting journey. The Amuse-Bouche was an oversized thimble of Black Truffle Vichyssoise, with Creme Fraiche and Toasted Pecans. Amazing how much more common truffles are becoming. This was a textbook definition of amuse-bouche: truly a fun, little taste (albeit not a bite)... creamy, rich, and just enough to get your palate ready for what was to come...
The Appetizer: Seared Foie Gras, Crispy Sweetbread, Duck Confit, and Toasted Brioche. This trio was the most experimental of the courses: certainly foie and sweetbreads are not for everyone, but, as the printed menu stated, "It's not a meal, it's a journey." I happen to enjoy both, and everything on the long, slender plate was presented nicely, and prepared to a tee. Crispy in the right places; succulent in others. Served with a 2006 Sauternes Bordeaux...
The Seafood Course: Pan Seared Diver Scallop atop Maine Lobster Risotto, and Sweet Corn a L'Anglaise. Come to find they take the seafood pretty seriously around here (mostly blue crabs and shrimp), but you could tell a lot of care was given to the getting the scallop just right. It's one of the most basic, yet most difficult to master tasks -- getting just the right amount of sear on the scallop so it's browned on the outside and still the right balance of firm and tender inside. The rissoto was so tasty, too. Each component could've stood on its own, but made for a delicious bite when harmoniously on the fork all at once. Served with a 2006 Loire Sauvignon Blanc, which gave just the right bright, citrus note to counter the richness of the rissoto and corn...
After a wonderful Trou Normand (intermezzo) of Mango and Spicy Run Sorbet with an Almond Tuile (which I could've easily devoured as a dessert), the Main Course was served: Grilled Dry Aged Tournedos of Beef, Crispy Rosemary Scented Grits Cake, Sauteed Pleurotes and Sauce Bourguingnonne. The epitome of French cuisine meeting Southern sensibility. The grits were made into almost dumpling form and deep-fried for a unique twist on a down-home classic. Paired with a 2008 Bourgogne (the only red served at the meal, save for the Port to come)...
The surprise course was the addition of a Cheese Plate: Roquefort, a Toasted Baguette, Poached Pear, and Honey Candied Pecans. The pear was drowned in the port, and a welcome balance to the pungent blue cheese. A shot of port accompanied the plate, which led to ... dessert:
Fondant au Chocolat and Raspberry Coulis. A crispy, coated sugar "cage" surrounded it. The mousse-like texture and density of the chocolate was a decadent capper to this over-the-top dining adventure. We toasted on last time to the journey we just shared, raising our glasses with a Louis Perdier Brut... a meal I will not soon forget... and that is immediately nominated for Understatement of the Year for me!...

Just writing about this has put me in food-coma-like state... I will return again with thoughts and commentary on the cooking demos I was lucky enough to witness and partake in shortly....

Some random pics of the first night dinner in Myrtle Beach, the run-up to the opening of the Taste! Food & Wine Expo. Guy Fieri, Aaron McCargo Jr. (Big Daddy), among others!
My own pics will be posted at the end of the weekend....

Just discovered a new site that seems muy interesante. Check it out and tell me what you think!
www.yummly.com
Kinda like Pandora for recipes!

Headed to Myrtle Beach. Guy Fieri, Fabio Viviani, Aaron McCargo all await @ the TASTE! Gourmet Food and Wine show...

Nectar of the Gods

My Main Line excursions continue to expand...


On the recommendation of a colleague, whose food and dining opinions I greatly respect, I made a short trek eastward along Route 30 to the tony enclave of Berwyn, home to one of the increasing number of upscale, progressive restos in the area, Nectar (http://www.tastenectar.com/).


The food is decidedly Pan-Asian/Fusion, with the decor to match. Very impressive, from the outside-in. Contemporary furnishings, soaring ceilings, and ample seating at the bar, sushi bar, booths, tables, upstairs, and back deck. Almost ultra-mod, but the lighting and ambiance still gave it a welcoming vibe.


I arrived at 6:30 and the joint was jumpin already -- always a good sign.


Couldn't resist a sushi roll for starters, and I went with one of my faves: eel and avo. It arrived exactly the way I like it: warm from the toasty eel inside, with a healthy drizzle of eel sauce on top. Sweet, a tad salty, a bit sticky, a touch starchy... this is what I would take a picture of to describe that elusive Asian taste sense UMAMI (Editor's Note: Umami has been pretty widely popularized as "Savory," juxtaposed with the traditional other 4 tastes: Sweet, Salty, Sour, Bitter)...

I ordered a fish dish for my main course, always cognizant of the fact that I still don't prepare as much fish at home as I should. My choice was the favorite of my waitress, who offered that endorsement only after I placed my order (she seemed genuine about it -- another good sign!).
Pan-seared wild striped bass, surrounded my a melange of oyster and shiitake mushrooms and asparagus, all delicately but generously coated in a French black truffle sauce. The fish was served skin-side up, and it was crisp and crunchy, a stark and welcome contrast to the moist, flaky flesh. My only issue was how to dive in. I would normally forsake the knife altogether with a fish dish, but the thickness of the skin made it a necessity, and when I did cut in, it reminded me of the classic slapstick routine of a rake to the face after stepping on its tines, a la Joe Pesci in "Home Alone." Picture it: I press down with my fork; the back end of the fish stands up at attention! Small price to sacrifice for the payoff: the presentation was beautiful, and was bested by the taste. So many flavor profiles at work here, what with the fish, the skin, the veggies, and the sauce. It was all put together in a very refined manner, yet the result was borderline decadent... atypical praise for a fish entree...

Another quality dining experience in this neck of the woods. Nectar is most definitely sophisticated, in style and in substance...

Always Sunny in Philadelphia

I've been coming up to QVC for almost a year now, and this weekend marks the first time I've ventured off the Main Line for a meal... met an old friend for dinner in Manayuk, a Philly suburb on the banks of the Schuykill River. Great locale; really vibrant with lots of foot traffic. Outside of the nightmare that is finding a parking spot, this a really cool neighborhood...

Our destination was Derek's on Main Street (http://www.dereksrestaurant.com/), smack dab in the midst of the hustle and flow of a springtime Friday night. My childhood friend, Nancy, arrived in advance, as did the crispy, fried calamari she ordered while waiting for me to ditch my rental car. Bonus for me! The calamari was nicely seasoned, with the just the right amount of lemon, to give it a nice spicy/citrusy zing. The remoulade sauce for dipping was creamy and rich, and a good balance of flavor...

I started with a special that night, not on the menu: Sweet Potato Soup. I was impressed when the waiter served it out of a small procelain urn. Already in the bowl anticipating the pour was a toasted wedge of French bread with a generous dollop of soft, creamy goat cheese. The soup was pureed and rich; The toast, just slightly submerged in a semi-thick sea of deep orange lushness. Not sure if the intent was to be served at room temperature as it was, but I wasn't offended, given my alfresco seating and the time of year.

For my meal, I went with an entree that was highlighted on the menu as an award-winner: Pork shoulder with a Pinot Noir sauce. It arrived pulled, much like the way you'd be served at a BBQ joint, and it was pleasantly crunchy on top, but really tender and moist. Not sure if that was the result of the pork being finished off under the broiler, or just the crust it obtained from searing it before shredding it. Either way, it was a surprise and a delight. The pork shoulder was the star of the plate, but a Best Supporting nod goes to the the bed of mushroom and corn polenta that was underneath. A nice compromise of fluffy and dense textures; not too creamy or mushy. It held up to each forkful of meat, complimenting it, not overwhelming it.

For the record, Nancy ordered the baby spinach, goat cheese, and bacon pizza. It was excellent, as well. I loved this derivation of the Holy Trinity of pizza toppings: cheese, meat, and veggie. The spinach was sauteed; the bacon, substaintial; the goat cheese, slightly tart. Just the right parsing of all three. Derek makes his pizzas in a wood burning oven, and the crust was crisp with just the right amount of chewiness. It had a light, tomato sauce base, with mozzarella, and hint of roasted garlic. One bite and you can tell all of the ingredients were fresh and bright...

All in all, a terrific meal with an equally satisfying setting and company...

New York Taste of Mind

Spent last weekend in NYC (good timing -- stayed 9 blocks from the Car Bomb scare!)... 2 very nice meals (and one amazing snack) to speak of...

Red Eye Grill was the choice Friday night.

Great location -- across from Carnegie Hall in midtown. Pretty funky, garish decor on the inside, what with it's gi-normous, rotating shrimp sculptures, but there's certainly a lot to look at. The roasted halibut was prepared perfectly with a nice crust on the outside, yet still moist and flaky inside. And couldn't resist the siren call of their Banana Cream Pie for dessert. Lots of chunks of banana in the filling and a generous heaping of cream on top set it apart from a more traditional pie of it's ilk, and the graham cracker crust was a nice touch, too. In line with it's slightly eccentric vibe, the waiters come around to deliver a big, pink swirl of cotton candy as a surprise! Also spotted waiters delivering fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies right on the baking sheet for the choosing...

Next night was Abbocatto, an Italian eatery from the Livanos family, whose specialty and success has been more in the seafood realm (see: Oceana Restaurant).

This was not an overwhelmingly sensational meal, but the Veal Scallopini was a winner for me. Crispy breading, thin-sliced prosciutto, piomentese cheese melted inside, along with marsala sauce, wild mushrooms, and arugula gave it a different twist than the mere traditional version, and it didn't go unnoticed. Unfortunately, the rest of my dining partners' choices were about average...

Now, this may sound a bit lame for those NYC denizens who have been completely berated by the (almost Shark-jumping) cupcake frenzy, but the food highlight of my weekend was my unexpected jaunt to Crumbs in the Theater District. Their motto is "Delivering Happiness," and man, did they make me happy! I went for the Elvis, which had banana filling inside the cupcake, and a whipped swirl of peanut butter and banana frosting on top. Outrageous! Perfect texture and flavor combinations: dense, fluffy, sweet, creamy... YUM!

The "former New Yorker" in me got a kick out of the fact that there were cupcakes named after Baba Booey and Artie Lange, and they had such a mouth-watering selection of creative confections. Bought the Caramel Apple for my niece -- excellent choice, too. I must go back to try (in no specific order): the Red Velvet, Coffee Toffee, Fluffernutter, Half Baked, and Vanilla Coconut)...

It's these experiences that really makes me miss New York. But I know I will be back for another visit soon....