Joël Robuchon - Molecular Gastronomist and Revisionist Historian?

Of the chefs who are typically credited with the popularization of "molecular gastronomy," several may jump to mind: Heston Blumenthal, for sure, who was a participant in the first 1992 "International Workshop on Molecular and Physical Gastronomy" (Harold McGee, one of the other original participants, has written a great history of the event); Pierre Gagnaire, the only other chef participant in that original workshop, and a regular collaborator with scientist Hervé This since then; Ferran Adrià, who was doing his own pioneering work in experimental cooking at the same time and whose food is often given the "MG" label;^[1] here in the U.S., Grant Achatz, Wylie Dufresne, Homaru Cantu.

And Joël Robuchon? Yes, if he is to be believed. In a recent interview in the New York Post, Robuchon is quoted as saying:

Too many chefs are attracted to molecular gastronomy. ... It's not the kind of cuisine that should be important, with all the additives. I know I was really the first one to make it famous, but I have complete control of what I'm doing. The danger is that those who don't have the knowledge and that control start using additives that are not acceptable.

***

Right now, I am doing the reverse of molecular gastronomy. I'm working with scientists to find ingredients and produce that are proven to be good for you. Turmeric is very good for you. White tea is better than green tea. One of the dishes I'm experimenting with is carrot purée with turmeric. Also white-tea gelee and sea urchin.

Robuchon is undoubtedly a great chef, duly recognized as "Chef of the Century" by Gault-Millau in 1989.^[2] And yet there is no way around it: he has absolutely positively no clue what he's talking about here.

"I was really the first one to make it famous." WTF? Unless you consider the physics of incorporating a stick of butter into a pound of potatoes to be "molecular gastronomy" (and of course, it actually is, but I don't think that's what he means), then I don't think there's another soul in the food universe who would back up that claim. Indeed, a Google search of "Joel Robuchon molecular gastronomy" yields nothing at all until 2006 (nearly 15 years after the term was coined, and so late in the game that other chefs had made a point of disassociating themselves from the term "molecular gastronomy" as describing any particular style of cooking, much less their own), and even then, none of those references would remotely suggest he had anything to do with making it famous.^[3]

"Additives"? What is an "additive"? Agar agar (a seaweed derivative)? Gelatin (derived from animal collagen?) Cornstarch? Flour? And is there really a significant risk that restaurant chefs are serving untested ingredients to unsuspecting diners, and waiting in the kitchen to see if they blow up like Violet Beuaregard? I suspect there's more danger for diners lurking in all that butter in the potato purée.

But even more absurd: "Right now, I am doing the reverse of molecular gastronomy. I'm working with scientists to find ingredients and produce that are proven to be good for you." Chef, I don't know how to break this to you any more gently: using science to understand your ingredients better is, um, the definition of molecular gastronomy.

"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

^[1]Blumenthal and Adrià, among others, issued a statement years ago noting that "The fashionable term 'molecular gastronomy' was introduced relatively recently, in 1992, to name a particular academic workshop for scientists and chefs on the basic food chemistry of traditional dishes. That workshop did not influence our approach, and the term 'molecular gastronomy' does not describe our cooking, or indeed any style of cooking."
^[2]He apparently actually shared this honor with Paul Bocuse and Fredy Girardet.
^[3]Robuchon was, perhaps, an early adopter of sous vide cooking. But it turns out it was actually Marcel Vigneron who taught Robuchon everying he knew about "molecular gastronomy," as Vigneron claims in an interview mentioned here last week.

A Dining List for 2010

In case you were wondering where to eat tomorrow ... the James Beard Foundation restaurant and chef awards were announced tonight. First and foremost, a hearty congratulations to local product Michael Schwartz, who won Best Chef South for his work at Michael's Genuine Food & Drink. It is a well-deserved honor for one of Miami's real gems.

The rest of the winners:

• Marea (New York City) - Best New Restaurant
• Tom Colicchio (Craft, NY) - Outstanding Chef Award
• Nicole Plue (Redd, Yountville CA) - Outstanding Pastry Chef Award
• Daniel (New York) - Outstanding Restaurant Award
• Keith McNally (Balthazar, Lucky Strike, Minetta Tavern, Morandi, Pastis, Pravda, Shiller's Liquor Bar, New York City) - Outstanding Restaurateur Award
• Alinea (Chicago) - Outstanding Service Award
• John and Doug Shafer (Shafer Vineyards) - Outstanding Wine and Spirits Professional Award
• Jean Georges (New York) - Outstanding Wine Service
• Timothy Hollingsworth (French Laundry, Yountville CA) - Rising Star Chef of the Year
• Koren Grieveson (Avec, Chicago) - Best Chef Great Lakes
• Jeff Michaud (Osteria, Philadephia) - Best Chef Mid-Atlantic
• Alexander Roberts (Restaurant Alma, Minneapolis) - Best Chef Midwest
• Daniel Humm (Eleven Madison Park) - Best Chef New York City
• Clark Frasier and Mark Gaier (Arrows, Ogunquit, ME) - Best Chef Northeast
• Jason Wilson (Crush, Seattle) - Best Chef Northwest
• David Kinch (Manresa, Los Gatos CA) - Best Chef Pacific
• Michael Schwartz (Michael's Genuine Food & Drink, Miami) - Best Chef South
• Sean Brock (McCrady's, Charleston SC) - Best Chef Southeast
• Claude Le Tohic (Joël Robuchon, Las Vegas) - Best Chef Southwest

Not a bad "Where should I go for dinner?" list.

May Days

Much going on this month, here are several food-related events and specials coming up:

May 5 (Cinco de Mayo)

Mercadito in Midtown Miami (3252 NE 1st. Ave. Miami) will be mixing up a new drink in honor of Cinco de Mayo, the "Vato Loco," a tequila-based cocktail "so ridiculously hot and addictively delicious" that a signed waiver is required. They will also have a mariachi band and are unveiling a new outdoor bar for the occasion. Festivities start at 9pm.

Rosa Mexicano (900 S. Miami Ave. Miami) is also getting into the spirit and will be open till midnight, with live music and masks and beads for their guests (wait - is it Cinco de Mayo or Mardi Gras?)

Salsa Fiesta (2929 Biscayne Boulevard Miami) will be having live music, 2-for-1 margaritas and cervezas, free chips and salsa with any drink order, and 2-for-1 burritos all day long from 11am-11pm.

Sushi Maki (locations in Coral Gables, Brickell, South Miami and Palmetto Bay) is dubbing May 5 "Sushi de Mayo" and offering a $5 "Fiesta Menu," including "signature" sushi rolls, "chef bites" and sake cocktails and beers from 5pm-9pm.

May 9 (Mother's Day)

Altamare (1233 Lincoln Road Miami Beach) is adding a couple items to the menu on Sunday for mom: a Raw Taster with scallop ceviche, tuna tartare, Kumamoto oyster and sheepshead carpaccio, with a Borek Farms heirloom tomato sorbet; and for dessert, a pistachio creme brulée with lemon sorbet and lemon shortbread. Open for dinner 5pm-11pm.

Area 31 (270 Biscayne Blvd. Way Miami) in the Epic Hotel is doing a brunch buffet featuring all of the standards as well as some its local seafood specialties, including a raw bar and ceviche bar, and grilled swordfish with a Homestead tomato salad. $55pp ($22 for ages 6-15), 12-3pm.

BLT Steak (1440 Ocean Drive Miami Beach) has picked out some blackboard dinner specials especially for mom, including a "surf n turf" with tuna crudo, foie gras terrine, candied grapefruit and citrus gastrique, or a pan roasted local grouper with spicy fava bean puree, preserved Meyer lemon, honshimeji mushrooms and oyster sabayon. Open for dinner 5pm-11pm and also for brunch 11am-3pm.

Gibraltar in Grove Isle (4 Grove Isle Drive Miami) is doing a full-blown brunch buffet in the dining room or on the outdoor patio for $75pp ($35 for ages 5-12) from 11am-3pm.

The Grill on the Alley (19501 Biscayne Blvd. Aventura) is offering an a la carte brunch with most items between $8 and $14, and cocktails for $6, 11:30am-3pm.

Or you can take mom to the Meat Market (915 Lincoln Road Miami Beach) (that doesn't sound right) which will be offering an a la carte menu with items like a wagyu meatloaf en croute or coffee and ancho crusted ribeye with eggs, skillet potatoes and peppers. Plus unlimited mimosas or bellinis for an extra $15. 11am-4pm.

Mercadito, apparently sufficiently recovered from the "ridiculously hot and addictively delicious" Vato Loco, will be doing a "Mamacita's Day Brunch" from 11:30am-5pm for $28pp, including a cocktail ($20 for ages 5-12, excluding cocktail but including a non-alcoholic drink).

Neomi's in the Trump International Beach Resort (18001 Collins Ave. Sunny Isles Beach) is offering a Mothers' Day Brunch that includes, in addition to your usual suspects, a paella valenciana, a children's buffet, a "kiddie fondue" with chocolate covered strawberries and bananas (and, most likely, children), plus a complimentary family portrait ($60pp, $20 for ages 6-12, 11am-3pm).

The Setai (2001 Collins Ave. Miami Beach) will be serving up a Mother's Day jazz brunch, featuring items both Eastern and Western, as well as a Russian Standard Bloody Mary bar and endless Taittinger champagne, for $85pp 11:30am-3pm.

Talavera (2299 Ponce de Leon Blvd. Coral Gables) will be doing a brunch service for Mother's Day with items such as Huevos Divorciados (poached eggs over a hand-made tortilla with red and green salsas), Chilaquiles Verdes, and a Breakfast Huarache (corn masa topped with black beans, salsa verde, goat cheese, and eggs scrambled with chorizo). Prices from $8-$12.

Talula (210 23rd St. Miami Beach) will be offering its Grand Buffet Brunch, along with some chef's specials created especially for Mother's Day, from 10am-3pm Sunday.

Wish (801 Collins Ave. Miami Beach) wishes mom a happy mother's day with a special $55 menu or a la carte selections at dinner from 6pm-10:30pm.

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Marcel Vigneron: Molecular Gastronomist and Time Traveler?

In an interview with LA Weekly, Marcel "Wolverine" Vigneron, contestant on Top Chef Season 2 and now, apparently, chef at an L.A. restaurant called Bar210, claims to have taught himself spherification sometime in or before 2001:

MV: ... I taught myself spherification in a garage in New York while I was getting my associates degree. I called elBulli before I'd even been there and got on the line and asked them for a sample packet of chemicals. And they mailed me the chemicals.

SI: You can do that? You can get those through the mail?

MV: Yeah, no problem. This was totally pre-9/11. They sent me little gram bags of each one, all labeled. So I was doing research online and found Ferran's recipe for apple caviar and bought a little digital gram scale and was trying to make it. I remember me and my friends we made coffee caviar, and we were like blown away. We were like, Oh this is the coolest thing.

Which is pretty remarkable, considering that spherification wasn't introduced as a technique at elBulli until 2003. In any event, forgive me if I'm not too impressed: if you ask me, any idiot with the right supplies and a recipe can pull off spherification.

"Cobaya in the Night Kitchen" at Sakaya Kitchen

"Did you ever hear of Micky, how he heard a racket in the night and shouted and fell through the dark..."

Forty guinea pigs were making a racket in the night at Sakaya Kitchen this past Saturday for our latest Cobaya dinner. There were a few reasons we decided to do a midnight dinner. First, we just wanted to do something different. Second, Sakaya's chef, Richard Hales, is working pretty much non-stop during regular hours, with Sakaya being open 11am - 10pm 7 days a week. Third, Sakaya may eventually be rolling out a late night service, so this was something of a dry run. Those who notice the posting schedule here know I'm usually up then anway, but I'm apparently not the only night owl: I was thrilled - and once again, grateful and humbled - that when a post went up on the Cobaya board which basically said nothing more than: "Midnight. Saturday April 24. $55," 60+ people said "Yes!"

We weren't able to accomodate all who wanted to come, but we did have our largest dinner yet. After a little game of musical chairs - we had to split one long communal table in two to squeeze everyone in - we sat down to seven courses at CobSakaya Kitchen.

I've seen all sorts of different menu formats, but this was the first one that had both footnotes^[a] and relationship advice ("Dessert!?...Go home and have sex like the old days instead of blogging about food..."). I won't share with you how that dessert suggestion worked out, but I'll happily tell you about the rest of the meal. If you can't read that scratchy picture above, here is the menu:

"Cobaya in the Night Kitchen @Sak^[1]aya Kitchen"

 April 24, 2010 Midnight

What you may already know...

Papa's Shrimp & Pork Filipino Egg Rolls, Fuji Vinegar

Pork Butt, House Cured & Roasted Boston Butt, House Pickle, Ssamjang Sweet Chili

Some new stuff for Cobaya...

Garlic'd Laughing Bird Shrimp, Chive Flower Soba Noodles

Bucket of Korean Fried Sweetbreads & Spicy Frog Legs, Local Baby Cucumber Blossom

"Chim Quay" Quail, Pig Skin "Tsitsaron," Chinese Broccoli

"Nuoc Mau" Pork Belly, Roasted Local Baby Carrots, Crispy Bone Marrow, Coconut Rice

Dessert!?...Go home and have sex like the old days instead of blogging about food...

Blue Point Oyster^[2]
Pajeon

Menardies^[3]

Wife Hales' Chocolate Chocolate Cookie Bag

^[1]Cobaya Kitchen
^[2]An aphrodisiac is a substance that increases sexual desire
^[3]Postcoital

(continued ...)

D. Rodriguez - South Beach

It was with some dismay that I realized recently that it was more than twenty years ago that I first experienced Chef Douglas Rodriguez's cooking, when he was at a little place called Wet Paint Café that was one of the first signs of life on Lincoln Road in the late 1980's.^[1]

Since then, Chef Rodriguez has gone through a number of other projects. First was Yuca,^[2] where he was one of the pioneers of bringing contemporary, upscale flare to classic Latin American flavors, along with other kitchen luminaries such as Norman Van Aken and Cindy Hutson. After about five years, he packed his bags and headed for the bright lights of New York City, where he opened Patria, followed by a couple other restaurants, and further expansion to Philadelphia (Alma de Cuba).

But Chef Rodriguez eventually made his way back home to Miami. Around 2003 he opened Ola in a refurbished standalone 2-story building on Biscayne Boulevard in what is now called the "Upper East Side."^[3] I loved that space, but Ola was not long for the Boulevard,and within a couple years had made its way back across Biscayne Bay to South Beach, first at the Savoy Hotel and then to its current spot in the Sanctuary hotel. It seems the expansion bug has bitten again, as Chef Rodriguez recently opened a new restaurant, D. Rodriguez, in the Astor Hotel on South Beach, and an Ola Cuban is in the works for Gulfstream Village in Hallandale.

Where Ola's menu looks all over Latin America and the Caribbean for inspiration, D. Rodriguez stays more closely to a Cuban theme. For me, this is something of a mixed bag. Candidly, I don't find Cuban cuisine to be the most exciting of those that our southerly neighbors have to offer. It's good, it's satisfying, but rarely is it transcendent. Could Chef Rodriguez make it so?

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Sam Sifton Reviews the "Double Down"

With all the fuss made over New York Times critic Sam Sifton sampling the latest fast food monstrosity, KFC's "Double Down" (he previewed his intentions last Friday, leading Eater to set up spies at every Manhattan KFC to catch him in the act), I was sorely disappointed that the result was a mere Diner's Journal entry, rather than a full-fledged review in true Sifton-speak. So I wrote my own.

The men in the navy blazers, with their silk rep ties and their Jansport knapsacks, don't come here often. In fact, they never come here at all, and have to look up the address on their Blackberries. The food-obsessed will debate the finer points of the various other fried chicken offerings of Gotham, from Blue Ribbon or Locanda Verde, the two different styles of oil-bathed hen at Momofuku Noodle Bar, or the Korean fried chicken at Bon Chon that I think Jonathan Gold would really like if he came here. Not KFC.

But know this: a new dish is being served at KFC, and it's the "Double Down." KFC once was known as Kentucky Fried Chicken, just like KRS-One once used to be known as Lawrence Parker. You can still get your bucket of Original Recipe or your Extra Crispy here, or even the newer-fangled Colonel's Strips. But if you want to simultaneously provide free publicity for some appalling new fast food product, while still lording your own superiority, it is the "Double Down" you should order.

The sandwich contains no bread save for the breading on the chicken, which is fried and comes in two bread-like slabs. Between these a KFC worker places a slice of white American-style cheese, a piece of crisp-fired bacon, and a splat of "Colonel's sauce," a kind of mayonnaise. The sandwich, KFC says in its advertising materials, "is so meaty, there's no room for a bun." It's Festivus for fat kids.

You may have your Double Down in the restaurant, with its open kitchen, white subway tiled walls, and festive balloons, but this time of year it is better to do like the men in the baseball hats do, and bring your sandwich outside to eat among the tulips, on a seat on Broadway just north of Greeley Square. Keep it in the bag, so as to discourage the hordes of cannibalistic pigeons who may otherwise descend, to say nothing of the geek paparazzi lurking in the bushes.

The sandwich? The chicken is watery within its soft casing of "crust," the cheese familiar to anyone who has eaten food prepared by the United States government, the bacon chemical in its smokiness, the mayonnaise sauce tangy, salty, and sweet, all at once. It offers exactly the same sensation as a menage a trois with a couple of toothless carnies - a bolt of greasiness and disgust combined. To drink? You will want the Pepsi, which was, as Pepsi is, more sweet than Coke, more syrupy.

Restaurants are culture as sure as monster truck rallies or reality TV shows. This one says: "You are going to be sick shortly after eating this - even worse than after you ate the entire pig's foot at the Breslin." The "Double Down," as the New York expression goes, is "blech."

The Forge - Miami Beach

Our last steakhouse experience was a disappointment, though I sort of anticipated that going in. I had higher hopes for our visit to the newly reopened The Forge. For decades, The Forge had been one of the bastions of a particularly Miami style of high dining: luxurious, decadent, and over the top, where the food could be quite good, but was not necessarily the prime focus. Indeed, in its later days, The Forge was probably equally popular for its Wednesday night "disco dinners" as for the steaks. Nonetheless, I'd always had good meals there, and the restaurant, with its rococo decorations and encyclopedia-sized wine list, had its unique charms.

The place has quite a history: supposedly, it was originally an actual blacksmiths' shop, and in the 1930's was turned into a restaurant and casino. It was purchased in the late 1960's by the Malnick family, who were responsible for an opulent renovation that made the place a landmark for the next several decades. The restaurant survived a fire in 1991 and extensive damage from Hurricane Andrew in 1992; but after a 40-year run, The Forge closed its doors in July of last year, supposedly to do a major renovation. Frankly, most who heard that were dubious. "Closed for renovations" actually means "closed for good" about 90% of the time, and those odds seemed even more stacked against The Forge, whose extravagant, big-ticket style seemed particularly out of step with the declining local and national economy.

But The Forge proved all the skeptics wrong when it reopened its doors this month, showing off a thorough redecoration of the space, and also bringing in a new chef (Dewey LoSasso, formerly the chef-owner of now-closed locals' favorite North One Ten) to run the kitchen. Both the renovation and the chef have breathed new life into an old classic.

The entranceway, previously gated, has been opened up, making for a dramatic catwalk into the restaurant, with sconces which could have been lifted from a Tim Burton set along the walls. The main dining room has been brightened up considerably with new blond-stained wood paneling on the walls and new tables and chairs throughout (some in gigantic Alice in Wonderland proportions). A wall of glass beads separates a second dining room, and around the corner is a glassed-in private dining room as well as the "Library," an intimate little room with a gas-lit fireplace and stained glass all around. It's perhaps just a tad less ostentatious than the original pre-renovation Forge, but it will certainly never be described as minimalist.^[*]

Chef LoSasso's menu is similarly ornate. Fans of North One Ten will recognize some of Dewey's signature dishes, like his smoked salmon croquettes with "damn hot guava sauce," but it seems the surroundings - and, obviously some encouragement from the owners - have inspired the chef to explore any number of flights of fancy. Indeed, while the Forge still serves several steaks, it would be misleading to call it a steakhouse now. The menu is too far-reaching to fit into that narrow pigeonhole.

(continued ...)

III Forks - Hallandale

Many people think that food bloggers are nothing more than frustrated, wannabe restaurant reviewers - that we all secretly (or perhaps not so secretly) pine to be the big-shot newspaper critic doling out stars every week. Speaking for myself, anyway, nothing could be further from the truth. First and foremost, I don't think I could support Family Frod in the manner to which they've become accustomed on a professional journalist's pay grade. But more importantly, this is recreation for me, an outlet. I eat where I want, I write what I want, and I do all of it when I want (and don't do it if I don't want to). The prospect of being obligated to go to particular restaurants and writing about them, on deadline, seems absolutely dreadful.

As a result, you don't see a ton of negative reviews here. I tend to have a pretty good sense of when I'm not going to like a restaurant, and can usually avoid those where I'm likely to be disappointed. Likewise, if a place is merely mediocre, there's often not much of interest to be said about it.

But sometimes my sense of foreboding is not enough to save me from a bad meal. Sometimes, even if you're not a professional critic, you can't choose where you eat. I recently had one of those times, when friends made a reservation at the newly opened III Forks in the Village at Gulfstream Park complex.

If you haven't been down that way lately, you will be astounded at what's gone up on the massive plot of land that houses the Gulfstream horse track. In addition to the newly renovated track and adjoining casino, there is a Vegas-scale shopping complex with several restaurants. Aside from III Forks, there is a new Douglas Rodriguez restaurant opening soon (Ola Cuban), a Texas de Brazil, and maybe ten other big restaurants in the development (most still not yet open). The magnitude of it is pretty staggering. And the track itself is really just beautiful. We recently brought the kids to watch a couple races, and it was a great way to spend a sunny afternoon.

Anyway, as I almost always do, I checked out the online menu for III Forks before our visit. I immediately started whining to Mrs. F that it was the most soul-crushingly boring menu I'd seen in years, and desparately tried to find ways to alter our plans. But sometimes there's no polite way to do so. So, into the abyss ...

(continued ...)

Ferran Adria to Open Burger Joint in South Beach

Chef Ferran Adria shook the foundations of the culinary world when he announced in January that his acclaimed restaurant, El Bulli, would be closing for two years after the 2012 season, followed shortly thereafter by the announcement that it would be closing permanently. El Bulli is widely regarded as among the top restaurants in the world, and is legendary for its cutting edge experimentation, regularly pushing the boundaries of the food universe.

The announcements regarding El Bulli were followed by much confusion and speculation as to Adria's future. Chef Adria subsequently explained that El Bulli was not so much closing permanently as it was reinventing itself as something more akin to a culinary foundation, though the nature and mission of that new incarnation remained unclear.

Inside sources have now clarified what to expect next: Chef Adria will be opening the first elBulliBurger in South Beach in the Spring of 2014. It would not be Chef Adria's first foray into fast food: his fascination with the hamburger has been well-known for years, and he's already opened a series of fast-food restaurants in Spain called "Fast Good."

According to Craig "Cootereli" MacShane, a line cook at a local restaurant who did a 1-week stage at El Bulli three years ago, "He's bored with the endless experimentation at El Bulli. I mean, how many different ways can you spherify an olive? Ferran actually told me a  couple years ago that he wanted to open a steakhouse in South Beach, but El Bulli was taking up too much of his time. Then last year he wanted to open a pizza place." Adria's fascination with pizza has also been the subject of much media speculation.

Says MacShane, "Now he's decided that what South Beach really needs is a burger place." After El Bulli closes in 2012, Adria will be applying his vast knowledge of molecular gastronomy to create the perfect hamburger. There's a good chance that his burger creation will be previewed at the 2013 South Beach Wine & Food Festival Burger Bash before the South Beach elBulliBurger officially opens for business.

Grossest Restaurants in South Florida

Not really the grossest restaurants, rather the highest grossing in terms of revenue. The annual report by Restaurants & Institutions of the top 100 revenue-producing independent restaurants in the United States in 2009 is out, and there are a few South Florida names on the list. You can see the full list here.

Joe's Stone Crab is in the same #3 spot as it was in last year, and it would seem the recession really hasn't touched it: 2009 sales of $26,272,000 compare pretty favorably to last year's $28,827,328, and the number of meals served (roughly 320,000) and average check size ($65-68) have both held steady.

Also holding firm is Myles Chefetz's cash cow, Prime 112. P112 is on the list at #14 for 2009, with $18,889,430 in revenue and average ticket of $115, again almost exactly even with last year's figures.

Meanwhile, DeVito South Beach is still on the list, but barely. DeVito, which made its first appearance on the list last year at #19, with $17,800,000 in revenue, dropped to #98 this year with $10,000,000. Of course, many of these figures appear to be based on estimates by R&I rather than information reported by the restaurants, so who knows what they really mean.

In the aggregate, the top 100 restaurants on the list saw a roughly 10% drop in revenue, and even the restaurant in the top spot on the list the past couple years - Tao in Las Vegas - was off by about 13%. There are some other interesting insights at R&I, including some anecdotal takes on the "new normal" and the prospects of restaurant business picking up this year, and on the success stories of 2009.

What does it all mean for South Florida restaurants? I'm not so sure, but possibly not all that much. In large part, I think the mega-restaurants on this list operate in something of a parallel universe to the rest of the restaurant world (though it's interesting that P112 is one of the smallest restaurants on the list with only 120 seats), though I am somewhat surprised that places like Joe's and P112 didn't show at least some impact from the recessionary climate. I suspect smaller operations are much more susceptible to the ebbs and flows of the economy and the heft of the wallets of their customers, and it was easy to see that last year, pretty much all restaurants locally were feeling the slowdown.

It seems, though, that things are picking up. It's purely anecdotal based on my own observations, but restaurants feel busier, reservations (particularly on weekends) have been somewhat harder to come by, startups like Sugarcane have found traction quickly, and stalwarts like Talula seem to be bouncing back. I've been out lately on some Mondays and Tuesdays (typically slow restaurant nights) and was surprised to see places bustling.

So perhaps the time is ripe for the pretty lengthy list of restaurants that are just opening or getting ready soon: Mercadito, The Forge, Zuma, DB Bistro Moderne, Norman's 180, plus many others I'm sure I'm overlooking.

Reading Material (Pt II) - James Beard Foundation 2010 Journalism Award Finalists

In my last post, I listed the books that have been selected as finalists for the 2010 James Beard Foundation awards, with links to them on Amazon. Here I've listed the finalists for the journalism awards. I find these lists make for some great reading material, and there's certainly no reason to limit your review to only those that are ultimately selected for the award. I'm not sure why it's so hard to find a convenient source with links to all the nominated articles, so I've given all the links I've been able to find:

Category: Craig Claiborne Distinguished Restaurant Reviews

Jonathan Gold (LA Weekly)
"Sauced", "Hot Birria, Cold Cerveza", "Hare Today"

Patric Kuh (Los Angeles)
"Border Crossing", "Peru Calling" (this can't possibly be the entire review worthy of a nomination), "The Classic"

Jason Sheehan (Westord)
"White on White" (this is a guess, I see nothing with this title), "Wonderland", "Mourning"

Category: Food Blog

Grub Street New York
Serious Eats
Hunter Angler Gardener Cook

Category: Food-related Columns

Colman Andrews (Gourmet)
Column: Good Living Restaurants
"Veni Vidi Vetri", "It's Up to You, New York, New York", "Smoke and Miracles"

Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl (Minnesota Monthly)
"The Doughnut Gatherer", "Capital Grills", "Pizza Perfect"

Rachel Wharton (Edible Brooklyn)
Column: Back of the House
"Egg", "Roberta's", "Franny's and Bklyn Larder"

Category: Magazine Feature Writing About Restaurants and/or Chefs

Alan Richman (GQ) "American Pie"
Anya von Bremzen (Saveur) "Soul of a City"
Francis Lam (Gourmet) "The Last Chinese BBQ" (republished in Salon)

Category: Magazine Feature Writing With Recipes

Dana Bowen (Saveur) "The Wonders of Ham"
Francine Maroukian, Jon Reiner, Staff of Esquire (Esquire) "How Men Eat"
Matt Goulding (Men's Health) "The Beauty of the Beast"

Category: Magazine Feature Writing Without Recipes

Alan Richman (GQ) "Hillbilly Truffle"
Barry Estabrook (Gourmet) "The Price of Tomatoes"
Raffi Khatchadourian (New Yorker) "The Taste Makers"

Category: M.F.K. Fisher Distinguished Writing Award

John T. Edge (The Oxford American) "In Through the Back Door"
Alan Richman (GQ) "Le Petit Gourmet"
Francine Prose (Saveur) "Faith and Bacon"

(continued...)

Reading Material - James Beard 2010 Finalists

For your edification and cooking inspiration, here are links to all the finalists for the 2010 James Beard Foundation awards in the book and journalism categories. The entire list of finalists can be found here.

Category: American Cooking



Category: Baking and Dessert



Category: Beverage



Category: Cooking from a Professional Point of View



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stirring dull roots with spring rain - updated

Maybe April isn't the cruelest month after all. Here are several things going on next month that you may want to put on your calendar.

April 4: Michy's will be doing an Easter brunch from 11am - 3pm, with a buffet of tapas and salads followed by your choice from among a dozen entrees. $48 ($24 for kids 12 and under), which includes a Mimosa or Bellini. 6927 Biscayne Blvd. Miami, 305.759.2001

Area 31 will also be celebrating Easter with a brunch running from 12-3pm and offering unlimited food, Mimosas, Bellinis, Bloody Marys, Prosecco and juices. Buffet service includes classics like eggs benedict, waffles, pancakes, steak frites, plus some more typical Area 31 stuff like grilled corvina with salsa verde. $65 ($22 for kids 6-12, free for kids under 6). 270 Biscayne Boulevard Way (Epic Hotel), Miami, 16th Floor, 305.424.5234

[updated with a few more Easter eggs!]

The Cape Cod Room in the Bath Club on Miami Beach is doing what they call their monthy "hybrid" brunch buffet on Easter Sunday, offering a buffet selection of appetizers plus a choice of entrée, including cream-cheese-stuffed French Toast, Crab Cake, or their "JFK Style" Lobster Stew, as well as a brunch cocktail. (11am - 3pm, $33 per person, $16 for kids 12 and under). 5937 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach, 305.864.1262

Gibraltar restaurant in Grove Isle is also offering an Easter brunch from 11am - 3pm, with a full-blown buffet for $75 ($35 for children 5-12). Reservations are required. Four Grove Isle Drive, Miami (Grove Isle Hotel & Spa), 305.857.5007

Neomi's Grill at the Trump Resort in Sunny Isles is also getting into the Easter spirit with a brunch selection ranging from Eggs Benedict to Greek leg of lamb to pineapple-cola glazed Virginia ham. 11am - 3pm, $60 per person ($20 for kids 6-12, free for 5 and under). 18001 Collins Avenue (Trump International Beach Resort), Sunny Isles Beach, 305.692.5770

Talula on South Beach, where the regular Sunday brunch is always a good choice, is doing a $35 Easter brunch, plus $16 for unlimited mimosas, champagne and vodka cocktails; half off for children under 13, kids under 5 eat free. 10:30am - 3pm. 210 23rd St., Miami Beach, 305.672.0778

[one more to add]:

Eos, Chef Michael Psilakis' restaurant in the Viceroy Hotel, is doing an Easter brunch from 11am-3pm featuring a selection of breakfast items, roasted whole lamb and carved baby pig, Mediterranean specialties and more; $55 for adults, $30 for children under 13. 485 Brickell Avenue, Miami, 305.503.0373

April 7: Dedication ceremony for the new Roots in the City Farmers Market which started up in Overtown this week. The market, spearheaded by the Wholesame Wave Foundation (founded by Chef Michel Nischan of the Dressing Room in Westport, Connecticut), with a big assist locally from Chef Michael Schwartz of Michael's Genuine Food & Drink, will be both the only growers-only farmers' market I'm aware of in Miami, and also the first to bring healthful local foods to underserved communities by taking advantage of the double-value program available to users of the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP). There's more info on the Market, which will be open at the corner of NW 2nd Ave. and 10th St. on Wednesdays from 12-4pm through April and then resume in the fall, at The Genuine Kitchen, and some impressions on opening day earlier this week at Redland Rambles and Mango & Lime. NW 2nd Ave. & 10th St., Miami

April 15: BLT Steak is having "Tax Day at BLT," during which "BLT restaurants across the nation take the stress out of Tax Day with half off all alcoholic beverages." 1440 Ocean Drive (Betsy Hotel), Miami Beach, 305.673.0044

April 24-25: Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden will be having its second annual Food and Garden Festival from 9:30am - 4:30pm Saturday and Sunday, featuring culinary demonstrations, a farmers market, programs on community gardens, edible schoolyards, edible gardens, composting and the like, and vendors selling plants adapted to South Florida's unusual growing conditions. 10901 Old Cutler Road, Coral Gables, 305.667.1651

Shantih shantih shantih

Cobaya Experiment #4 - Altamare with Chef Simon Stojanovic

The latest of our "underground dining" experiments brought us to the newly opened Altamare restaurant in South Beach. Well, sort of new, anyway. Actually, its predecessor, Altamar, quietly tucked away on the west end of Lincoln Road, was a long-standing locals' favorite for fresh seafood with an Italian bent. Altamar owner Claudio Giordano decided to move a few doors down to a bigger space, buy a vowel, and bring in Chef Simon Stojanovic (a Michael's Genuine Food & Drink alumnus) to take over the kitchen and update the menu. We gave Chef Simon free rein to craft a menu, and Claudio gave the 20 of us a cozy little semi-private corner in the back of the room behind the bar, plus a run of wine pairings to go with the dishes.

Unfortunately, I missed nearly half the meal, for reasons that are somewhat embarassing (it was Little Miss F's birthday - the date of which I had overlooked when planning the dinner - and so I joined in late, after B-Day dinner with the family). As a result, I didn't get to sample a sheepshead carpaccio, served with cara cara oranges and fresh hearts of palm (for those thinking we've gone overboard, please note: sheepshead here is a fish, not - well - a sheep's head), nor a triggerfish tempura.

Pictures: Jackie Sayet

I did get there in time for an octopus dish, the fat tentacles "confited" low and slow and then grilled, served with farro that had been spiked with local green tomato, grilled lemon and chorizo, along with a generous dollop of aioli. It's a great prep method for the octopus, rendering it tender with a nice crusty char on the exterior from the grilling (it's the same method used on the octopus dish that is a menu stalwart at MGF&D).

Picture: Jackie Sayet

Plus I always support the pairing of seafood and pork products, and the chorizo was just right here, balancing well with the rich chewy texture of the farro and the bright tartnesss of the green tomato and lemon. That combination also is one which has made appearances on the MGF&D menu, as a commenter here previously noted. Claudio took an interesting approach on matching a wine to this dish, going with a Cannonau, a red wine (grenache) from Sardinia which I thought worked well with the heartier flavors of the farro and chorizo in particular.

(continued ...)

Red Light Revisited - Miami Upper East Side

I tend not to retread old ground when writing about restaurants here. When there are so many new places opening up, old places I still haven't gotten around to mentioning, holes in the wall I haven't even discovered yet, it seems a bit goofy to talk about someplace that's already been written up - particularly a place like Red Light, where my initial comments here were already based upon a pretty extensive body of data.

But a restaurant is in many ways a sort of organic thing: it can change, it can grow, it can mature, it can get old. Sometimes it's for the better; other times for the worse. I'm immensely gratified that with Red Light, which is approaching its second anniversary, it seems that the changes are all to the good.

I didn't realize until I started writing this that my first visit to Red Light was almost exactly two years ago; and that my initial write-up here was almost exactly one year ago. Since then, Red Light has not lacked for attention, especially of late: a couple months ago, Frank Bruni sang the restaurant's praises in the New York Times,^[1] and more recently, Chef Kris Wessel was selected as a semifinalist for a James Beard Award.^[2]

What I so admire about Chef Wessel is that instead of just basking in the glory and resting on his laurels, he's clearly used the attention, and the traffic it's generated, as an opportunity to up his game.^[3] The location on the Little River still has the same ramshackle, bohemian funk to it; but the cooking - which I've always enjoyed - seems to have become stronger and steadier. When we were in this past weekend, the ingredients were better quality, the preparations more refined and precise - even some of the plates were new.

(continued ...)

CSA Carrots - Check!

I know I swore off posting pictures of my CSA share, but - check out this carrot!

There were about a dozen more of these knobby little guys in the share this week; too bad I don't have a wood-fired oven like at Michael's Genuine to roast them in.

Sakaya Kitchen Dim Ssam Brunch - Midtown Miami

I wrote about my initial visit to Sakaya Kitchen about a month ago. Chef Richard Hales' focus on Korean flavors, organic ingredients, and reasonable prices all showed real promise. That promise is fulfilled, and then some, with Sakaya's "Dim Ssam" brunch, which was unveiled this weekend.

While the restaurant is set up for counter service, Chef Hales has switched over to table service for the brunch, and has crafted a longer menu of smaller-portioned dishes that play on his contemporary Korean theme (thus, "Dim Ssam"). I was just about the first person knocking on the door a little after 11am this past Sunday to give it a try.

Choosing was not easy. Fortunately, the prices are so reasonable that you can try a sampling of several items without breaking the bank. Everything I tried was excellent.

"Banchan" are a customary feature of Korean dining, a selection of little side dishes to accompany a meal. Different types of kimchi are typical, but usually there are a variety of other items as well. At Sakaya, ordering the banchan (for $5.99) brought seven dishes, including dried shredded cuttlefish ("ojinguh bokkeum"), bean sprouts dressed in sesame oil ("kongnamul"), tiny dried anchovies ("myulchi bokkeum"), pickled cucumbers, green bean kimchi, balloon flower root kimchi (a/k/a bellflower, or "doraji"), and marinated tofu.

Here are some closeups (note, by the way, that everything is served in disposable, recyclable dishes. I saw some kvatches when Sakaya first opened that the take-out boxes they were using for in-restaurant service were somewhat awkward; the dishes used for the "Dim Ssam" brunch were all perfectly serviceable):

dried cuttlefish

tofu

dried anchovies

balloon flower root kimchi

These ranged from extremely pungent (the anchovies) to very spicy (the balloon flower root kimchi) to sweet-sour (the cucumber pickles) to sweet-spicy (the dried cuttlefish) to mild (the bean sprouts and tofu), and each with a different texture as well. It's a great way to wake up the palate and reinvigorate it between bites of heartier stuff. Just keep a beer close by.

With prices for just about everything at around $3 or under, I tried several of the menu items, starting with the Korean Pancake with Pork, Radish Kimchi and Ssamjang.

(continued ...)

CSA Collard Greens - Gomen Kitfo

I can no longer keep track of which week is which from my CSA shares. Since collard greens make a frequent appearance, this is a recipe that can hopefully come in handy. Gomen Kitfo (or Yegomen Kitfo) is an Ethiopian dish which, frankly, one of our good friends makes much better than I do, but that didn't stop me from trying it anyway. What I find so intriguing about Ethiopian food is that it is generally highly spiced, but without being "spicy" (i.e. hot), using a palette of spices that we don't encounter often in Western cuisines, at least not in savory dishes. This dish is a good example: it features cooked collard greens mixed with cottage cheese flavored with cardamom, ginger, cinnamon, clove, garlic and onion.

As usual, I looked at a few different recipes and then sort of mushed them together. Here's a rough ingredient list:

• 12 oz. cottage cheese
• 2 lbs. collard greens ( I suspect my pile was shy of 2 lbs)
• 4 tbsp. butter
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp chopped onion
• 1 tbsp chopped chile pepper (I used jalapeño)
• 1 cardamom pod
• 2 cloves
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• ground clove, ground cinnamon (to taste)

First, make some ghee. Ghee is just clarified butter, which is something that always used to sort of intimidate me, until I figured out it's not exactly culinary rocket science. Here's how I make clarified butter: put some butter in a pan. Turn on low heat. The butter will melt. Some solids will drop to the bottom, some stuff may float to the top, everything else will be transparent and golden. That's what you want. Skim the stuff off the top, leave the stuff on the bottom. Some recipes I saw called for a flavored ghee ("niter kebbeh"), which sounded like a good idea, so I threw a bit of garlic, onion and ginger in there (just some generous pinches of each) along with a lightly crushed cardamom pod and a couple cloves. Rather than straining through cheesecloth or anything fancy like that, I just skimmed what I needed for the dish straight out of the pan.

Ready to Do a 180?

Well, Chef Norman Van Aken is almost there. His new Miami venture, Norman's 180 in Coral Gables (in the Colonnade Hotel) has been under construction for some time. Though there's clearly been some slippage from the original goal to open before year-end (2009), it looks like he's getting closer. Hiring for an April opening would seem to be a good sign:

For more previews of what to expect when it opens, check here and here.

El Rincon Asturiano - Miami

"Vale." It's a word we heard throughout our travels in Spain, with no precise definition we could discern, potentially meaning "OK," or "So...," or "See?", or "Voila," depending on the context. Apparently more European (and possibly Castilian, more specifically) than Latin American, it's a word I almost never hear in Miami, despite the abundant Spanish-speaking populations. We heard it almost immediately, and regularly, upon sitting down at El Rincon Asturiano this past weekend. I took that to be a good sign, and I was right.

Rincon Asturiano is a small restaurant in Little Havana near the corner of Flagler Street and SW 17th Avenue, not particularly noticeable from the street. There are several outdoor tables under a covered patio, as well as a small tapas bar and several more tables packed inside, including a narrow bar-height two-top that we squeezed into on a Saturday night (the place was filled). Asturias is an autonomous community of Spain on the northern coast by the Bay of Biscay, a couple hundred miles west of the Basque Country. The region is known for its seafood, its ciders, and most of all for the bean and sausage stew known as fabada. Rincon Asturiano's menu offers some of these specialties (the daily specials in particular seem to focus on Asturian dishes) as well as a broader selection of typical Spanish tapas, together with some heartier main courses and a variety of paellas.

Our server, in between "Vales," spoke only in rapid-fire Spanish and I struggled to keep up as she recited the day's specials. But with my dog-like ability to understand those words essential to my universe, I got the gist of most of it. For instance, I understood enough to know that she disapproved of my choice of wine, and recommended the Muga Rioja Reserva 2005 (at roughly the same price as my original choice) instead. I'm glad I listened, as it was a wonderful wine and a great value (at $36, less than 2x average retail).

As for food, we stuck with the tapas, and ultimately had to do something of a plate-juggling act to make room on our tiny table. We started with Chorizo a la Sidra, with chunks of pleasantly soft chorizo sausage cooked in cider stained bright red from the paprika in the sausage. Like New Orleans style BBQ shrimp, this is a dish that's as good for just dipping bread into the sauce as for the star ingredient itself (and the bread here is nice crusty Spanish style bread). The next item to hit the table was one of the only disappointments of the evening, Pulpo a la Gallega, the traditional dish of boiled octopus with potatoes, drizzled with olive oil, sprinkled with paprika and served on a wooden platter. But this was solely a matter of personal preference - boiling rather than grilling leaves the exterior layer of the octopus with a very slippery texture, and I prefer it grilled. But the preparation was absolutley authentic.

A slippery texture I do like is that of tripe, and so I couldn't pass up the Callos a la Asturiana. Callos is a Spanish stew featuring tripe and usually other miscellaneous parts. Though for years I only knew from Callos a la Madrileña, I've more recently learned of different regional variations, including a Sevillan version and this Asturian version. While Madrid's version, as I've seen it, often involves garbanzo beans in addition to chorizo and morcilla sausages and various other pig and/or cow parts, in a thick rust-colored stew, this Asturiano version omitted the beans, and had an intriguing spice note to it on top of the paprika - maybe nutmeg or even cinnamon? It was chock full of mysterious unctuous bits and pieces in a densely flavored gelatinous broth. Apparently the Asturians may be even more hardcore about their callos than the Madrileños: it seems that every year in the town of Noreña, they have a callos festival where more than 30 restaurants cook more than 7,000 pounds of tripe for about 10,000 visitors.

But it's not all about the nasty bits. The Patatas Bravas here were the finest I've had outside of Spain, the cubed potatoes cooked perfectly to have a bit of crispness on the exterior, while still being pillow-soft and hot in the middle (presumably the result of a double-frying technique similar to those used for good French fries), and were served with both a pungently garlickly and thick aioli, and a spicy tomato "bravas" sauce. The latter initially came on too sweet and ketchup-y, but that initial impression was quickly corrected by a pleasingly spicy follow-through.

Good Food Good Cause

What are you doing this Thursday? Why not this?

Organized by chefs Alex Feher of the Intercontinental Miami and Jan Jorgenson of Two Chefs, and benefitting International Firefighters Assistance in Haiti, this event features fifteen chefs (including folks like Andrea-Curto Randazzo of Talula, Cindy Hutson of Ortanique, Clay Conley of Azul, Johnny Vinczencz of Johnny V, Jonathan Eismann of Pacific Time, Jonathan Wright of the Setai, and Tim Andriola of Timo), for fifty bucks; and it's all for charity.

Eat well and do good at the same time. If you're interested, RSVP to helpforhaiti@taraink.com or 305.864.3434 x311.