Hawk Krall has arranged a hot dog experiment. He’s put water on the stove and Russian dogs out to thaw on the counter. There’s a pink Molochnie Frank, an orange Vienna Sausage, and a rust-colored Parowki Cieleco-Wieprzowe.
Krall is a graphic artist and a recovering chef. He’s all looseness and liberation: a surfer personality who looks like a young Santa. The stove and counter in question are inside of his row house on Rosewood Street, eighteen blocks east of the Schuykill River.
He takes a step back from the franks, stretches his arms wide, and adjusts his spectacles. These Russians could possibly be the well-made, time-honored, natural casing dogs he’s been looking for.
Krall is the hot dog guy at Serious Eats, a food blog with one hundred contributors nationwide. Every week, he finds a new wiener to celebrate through writing and illustration. His cartoons have been featured locally – at Pizza Brain, the nation’s first pizza museum and tube steak haven Hot Diggity – as well as nationally – in Every Day with Rachael Ray. Last August, he hosted a hot dog demonstration at Audrey Claire’s Cook. Label-shedding aside (he’s quick to say the real hot dog authority is living incognito in Jersey) Hawk is a true frankfurter connoisseur.
In Memphis, he found a split dog cooking in one hundred year old grease. In Portland, he found a quarter pound frank being stuffed on site. And in the summer of 2010, Krall drove across South Carolina in pursuit of the best southern dog, only to stumble upon it at a strip mall.
Of course, the hot dog man can’t afford to hit every stand in the nation. But he’s got informants in meaty places who are excited to tell him about their finds. They alert him to rare breeds, like dogs sold in baseball stadiums. A few years ago, Krall heard about a stadium frank slathered in peanut butter and sprinkled with chocolate chips. He couldn’t get close enough to taste it, but his review of it blew up online. “It’s all like gross food, yeah!” he says. “Those are the ones people go crazy about. The editors are like, ‘Do another one of those.’”
The fridge beside the cold dogs is bursting. There are three kinds of pickles, a slew of slaw, a multitude of mayonnaise bottles, and mustards to make your mouth water.
Krall drops the franks in now boiling water. As they cook, he shows off his studio, a happy, cluttered exhibition of his own work and the work of people he admires. His desk is stacked high with Serious Eats wiener cartoons, which he sells on his website as prints and t-shirts.
Krall selects a Coney Island dog illustration and points to a spot where the ink line runs too thick. “I would fix that now,” Krall grins. “I wouldn’t just leave it there.”
While Krall likes food, he loves illustrating. A Jenkintown native and the son of an art director and freelance painter, Krall always knew he was going to be an artist. His mother brought her nine-year-old to Penn’s Landing and Reading Terminal Market to draw. “My mother,” Krall says, “Taught me how to draw from life.” The process taught Hawk everything he knows, but it wasn’t all fun and games. “It was serious,” he says. “It wasn’t like ‘Oh good job, Hawkey, you drew something.’ It was like, ‘You need to fix that perspective.’”
Krall’s adolescence and twenties were Anthony Bourdain meets Robert Crumb. He worked at restaurants – Pizza Hut in Jenkintown at sixteen, Tillie’s in Brooklyn during college, North Star in Philly after graduation, Brasserie Perrier for five years after that – as he refined his illustrating technique - reading the great underground comic artists of the sixties, studying illustration at the Pratt Institute, freelancing whenever possible and coming into his own anarchist, satirical sensibility.
That was back when he had a mohawk. Now, Krall puts the Coney Island illustration back on his desk and jumps down the stairs, two at a time, to his experiment. The Russians are ready, and it’s time to taste them, both plain and with toppings. Turns out they’re delicious, by far tastier than your average super market find. So in a week Krall will post another feature article on Serious Eats, this one endorsing Net Cost, the Eastern European store in northeast Philadelphia where he found these natural casing dogs. A Serious Eats fan will comment on the blog, thanking Hawk for the information. Maybe someone will request he make a Vienna sausage print. Regardless of what the future might hold for Krall, right now he’s chilling out, riding waves of creative inspiration.
Sunday, December 2, 2012
Afternoon with a Haute Dog Artist
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Canal House visits Penn
Near the banks of the Delaware, just across from an old-fashioned hardware store, tucked on the second floor of a red brick building, is a kitchen-studio.
On a normal day, it’s a hotbed of activity. Eight burners and two ovens blaze. Christopher Hirsheimer and Melissa Hamilton are turning food on.
The team self publishes their own seasonal cookbooks, the newest of which, Canal House Cooks Every Day, hits book stores this month. This hardcover tome is different from the triannual books they have published in the past.
But this day isn’t a normal day for the Canal House cooks. They’re not in their Lambertville, New Jersey studio. Instead, they’re in West Philadelphia introducing Penn students to the Italian snack tramezzini. Hamilton presents a silver platter bearing stacks of whitish spongy bread and silky truffle butter.
She opens one of her cookbooks and reads, “The truffle’s heady, intimate fragrance is powerful. Choose your company wisely.” She grins.
When Canal House started out, self-publishing was “a bit of a dirty word,” Hirsheimer says. But the former Saveur editors believed if they were interested in a subject, others would be, too. “I love this work,” Hirsheimer adds. “I’m excited every day. I like to be turned on.”
Hirsheimer and Hamilton prize reader-writer intimacy. Rather than simply listing recipes, they offer stories. A comment – signed C.H. or M.H. - ushers in each culinary concoction. “The head note has to illuminate,” Hirsheimer explains. “It has to tell something about our experience or have useful information.”
One inscription recounts the time Christopher and Melissa lugged a thirty-five pound Cinderella pumpkin home, coated its insides in pimetón and preserved lemon, and filled it with chicken broth. When the gourd was roasted, guests scooped soup and flesh straight into their bowls. They declared it the best thing they had ever tasted (“Aw, shucks!” writes C.H.)
Another head note accompanies photographs showing a cross section of a boiled egg’s insides after sequential minutes. When Hamilton told Hirsheimer she was going to nail the boiled egg, the latter loved the idea so much she leapt off her desk chair. “When people really know how to cook, often they talk about this,” Hirsheimer says, touching the egg diagram. “They think this is really wonderful!”
Self-proclaimed “platterists” (translation: they think plating each individual dish is missing an opportunity), Hirsheimer and Hamilton know meals create bonds. When they feed a group of people who don’t know each other well, they hand one guest a platter and let her figure out what to do next. The passing of a platter “engages people,” Melissa explains. “It breaks the ice, it gets people to be courteous. It’s a way of warming them up to each other.”
One more thing about the truffle (there are still a few sandwiches left on that shiny platter.) “The quality of a truffle,” Hamilton reads, “Like sex, is hard to describe. Its taste is so fundamentally good that even if you know nothing about it, your body will recognize the experience and know what to do.”
“Eating a truffle,” she says, “Involves following your senses and then some, so close your eyes and go with the feeling.”
The room erupts into laughter. Intimate, indeed.
TweetWednesday, April 18, 2012
Food 411 Q & A: "In the Magazine" Exclusive
To gear up for this issue’s picnic feature, we asked some of our favorite Philly food people for ideas. Here’s what they had to say (and don't forget to join us TONIGHT, April 18, at 7:30 pm at 3627 Locust Walk to celebrate the launch!):
Jonathan Adams [Executive Chef, Pub & Kitchen]
“My favorite picnic food is probably biscuits. You can bake them ahead of time and eat them at room temperature. They’re kind of different than a slab of bread and there are a million different varieties.”
Peter Woolsey [Executive Chef, Bistrot La Minette]
“Deviled eggs are the greatest picnic food in the entire universe. They always get a little messy when transporting, but they’re always delicious and worth the trouble Ouefs mimosa are the French version of deviled eggs, and they’re made with Dijon mustard and tarragon instead of paprika.”
Craig LaBan [Restaurant Critic Philadelphia Inquirer]
“There’s nothing like eating fried chicken at room temperature. Speaking of which, it’d be fun to go to Federal Donuts and pick up some hot doughnuts and fried chicken. Don’t forget the chicken salad and traditional Philly hoagies. South Philly is fantastic for provisions: peppers with provolone, prosciutto, and marinated mozzarella balls for Italian fare; bánh mì sandwiches for classic Vietnameses; and oh—the Mexican food! I love chicharrones [fried pork rinds]. There are lots of little stores in Philadelphia that sell them. Tortilleria San Roman in the Italian Market makes authentic tortillas from masa, and incredible salsa. They have the best tortilla chips in the city; I’d want those on my picnic.”
Friday, April 6, 2012
Take Five with Chez Yasmine's Jihed Chehimi
Chez Yasmine is one of Penn's latest food carts to hit the scene, with its grand opening about five months ago. The cart serves up gourmet sandwiches, soups, and salads at its location at 37th and Spruce. There's no doubt that business is thriving; even with two people working inside the cart (owner Jihed Chehimi and his partner-in-crime Jeannine), the line was consistently 10-15 people long while I was there. While juggling baguettes of bread, a sizzling pan of mushrooms, and bowls of couscous, the ever-friendly Jihed shared his thoughts during a busy (as usual) lunch hour.
NW: What did you do before Chez Yasmine came to fruition?
JC: I have a PhD in Viral Immunology. After twelve years at the Wistar Institute [at the University of Pennsylvania], I was burnt out from research and wanted to do something different.
NW: How did you create Chez Yasmine's menu?
JC: The menu reflects my life: my work, my travel (from the streets of Paris' Latin Quarter to the souks of Tunis and Ancient Carthage to the tiny roads of Gamla Stan, Stockholm’s Old City), and where I grew up (Tunisia, in North Africa).
NW: What's the story behind some of the different menu item names?
JC: There's a lot! I worked at Wistar for a long time; the sandwich [filled with brie, sautéed mushrooms, avocado, basil/walnut pesto, and herbes de Provence] is named in honor of the first independent nonprofit biomedical research Institute in the country. The quinoa salad is also known as "The Gretchen," who is a regular visitor at Chez Yasmine. And the name Chez Yasmine itself? It's for a young Swedish girl born in Philadelphia... my daughter.
NW: What's your cooking philosophy?
JC: I want everything I make and serve to be healthy. We always give a bottle of water and a piece of fruit with every option on Chez Yasmine's menu. Also, I always want my food to be different; it should be food that you want to eat at home.
NW: What's the must-try dish on your menu?
JC: People always order the Swedish Salmon Smörgås (smoked salmon, cucumber, radishes, hard-boiled egg, dill, lemon, capers and a sprinkle of caviar, best served on rye or pumpernickel bread). A personal favorite is the Tunisian Sandwich (dolphin-safe albacore tuna, hard-boiled egg, tomato, green pepper, cucumber, olives, mint, parsley, and a dressing of lemon juice & extra virgin olive oil with spicy harissa): it was a childhood meal.
Check out Chez Yasmine's website here!
Monday, April 2, 2012
Philly Kitchen: Sarah Riblet and Jake Gutman
Every other week Penn Appétit profiles a student who cooks on a college budget and in a college sized kitchen
This week I got to catch up with the cutest cooking couple in town, Sarah Riblet and Jake Gutman. Eating the delicious vegan meal they made was almost as much fun as getting to watch them cook together. Sarah has been a vegan for the past six years so for dinner we had tacos made with seitan. Seitan is a meat substitute made from wheat gluten and I was personally surprised and how much it actually tastes like meat (as I exclaimed several times over the course of dinner). They told me about their adventures trying to eat vegan while abroad and proved that cooking is much more fun with two people together!
Penn Appétit: Who is the better cook?
Jake Gutman: Probably Sarah, she has more experience.
Sarah Riblet: Jake brings a spirit of… exploration.
JG: My expertise is taking something that other people don’t like and trying to make something out of it, it’s like Chopped!
SR: You had to talk about Chopped, didn’t you?
PA: Would you eat garlic on a first date?
SR: I’m pretty sure that we did eat garlic on our first date.
JG: It’s bad; I like garlic and onion too much. If Sarah didn’t happen to be a garlic and onion person this relationship wouldn’t have worked out.
PA: How did you learn to cook?
JG: My mom cooked every single meal of my life essentially, so I learned a lot of recipes from her. But I also experimented a lot, I’d just find things in the fridge, I never followed recipes and that still shows in my cooking.
SR: My mom also cooked a lot but I first cooked on my own in this community where I lived in Ireland on a service project. As a volunteer you had to help them run the house so I was responsible for cooking meals for 12 people with all natural ingredients from the farm. I wasn’t a confident cook back then but it helped a lot.
PA: What’s your favorite dish to cook?
SR: I know what you’re going to say.
JG: What do you think I’m going to say, pasta?... probably. It’s my favorite thing to eat.
SR: It’s his favorite thing for me to make for him.
JG: Not true, she’s obscuring the truth! You can do anything with pasta; you can make it so many ways. We tend to cook it with a thick tomato meat sauce.
PA: Fake meat sauce right?
SR: Yeah, we have this super good sausage (Field Roast Grain Meat Sausage) made with wheat gluten, it’s so good it tastes like real sausage. We take the casing off and then crumble it into the sauce, once we even made cheese steaks with it.
(Note: I got to try a bit of the sausage and it actually did taste just like meat!)
PA: Do you have a cooking philosophy, other than to not eat animals?
JG: I don’t, I just go by the seat of my pants.
SR: Yeah, I do that too. But you [Jake] put all this weird food together that I never would. For you it’s like “If I have peanuts I’m making food with peanuts in it!” I do what makes sense; you do what’s there.
JG: True, I’m a scavenger.
PA: What’s your advice for people who want to start cooking?
JG: Just go for it, you have nothing to lose and you can always experiment, that’s how I started.
SR: I would say that cooking is always more fun if you’re doing it with someone else or for someone else. If you can get your friends together it will be a lot more fun.
Sarah and Jake’s Seitan tacos
Time: 45 minutes Serves: 4
Ingredients
• One red and one yellow onion
• One whole green pepper, cut into strips
• One package seitan (local if possible)
• ½ cup corn (fresh, canned or frozen)
• 2 tomatoes (Or kumatos, which look like a brown tomatoes, available at Whole Foods) + 3 grape tomatoes
• 4-5 cloves of garlic
• 2 tbsp limejuice
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 avocados
• One bunch of cilantro
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• Chili powder, southwest seasoning, salt, pepper
• Jalapeno pepper (optional)
• Hard or soft taco shells
For the Seitan:
Rinse the seitan in a strainer. In a large pan, add 2 tbsp olive oil and 2 cloves of crushed garlic. Bring to medium heat. Add the seitan and cook for about ten minutes until it starts to brown. Add the southwest spice blend and ½ - ¾ cups of water; this will help the seitan absorb the spices. Chop your yellow onion into long strips and add to the seitan. Let cook until all the water has evaporated. Then add as much frozen corn as you like (we used about ½ cup). Once seitan has browned to your liking add it to the taco shells.
For the Salsa:
Chop up your tomatoes and place into your serving bowl. Take about ¼ red onion and dice, add to the tomatoes. Crush and add one clove of garlic. Add a dash of salt and pepper and about one spoonful of limejuice. If you like, chop up and add a few springs of cilantro. To finish, add about a tbsp of tomato paste to thicken it up. Add on top of the tacos.
For the Guacamole:
Take your avocados, scoop out the insides and add to a bowl. Coarsely chop a few springs of cilantro and add. Crush and add one clove of garlic. Very finely chop up ¼ of a red onion and add. Add 2-3 shakes of chili powder, a dash of salt and pepper and about a spoonful of limejuice. Cut up three grape tomatoes as small as you can. If you like, you can very finely chop a bit of jalapeno pepper and add it. Mix until you get your desired amount of chunkiness. Add to the tacos or serve on the side with chips (or both!)
-Leyla Mocan
Do you or someone you know cook in your college sized kitchen? Want to be profiled on our next post? Send an email to pennappetit.blog@gmail.com and we’ll contact you to be featured
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Fee Fi Fo Yum: Cake and the Beanstalk
Walking past 1112 Locust Street, I’m stopped in my tracks by the cheery “Fee Fi Fo Yum” wording on the window. A leafy green beanstalk painted on the wall between the two entrances threads its way upwards towards the business’s hanging sign that reads Cake and the Beanstalk. A tantalizing display case filled with sweet treats galore beckons me to further investigate, and I step inside.
The cozy place is composed of two rooms; one houses the display area and “kitchen” (more on that later), while the well-lit sunroom offers plenty of seating and a view of the community garden. The external motifs match the whimsical interior décor. From a “kid’s corner” with crayons and LEGOs galore to stunning hand-painted chairs (designed by owner Daniel Klein’s wife Jenn) that tell a story through their artistry, Cake and the Beanstalk is the perfect spot for people of all ages.
Cake and the Beanstalk just celebrated its one-year anniversary at the beginning of the month and is going stronger than ever. The bakery and café’s menu offers a bevy of tasty treats, including tantalizing baked goods, savory soups, Le Bus-bread paninis, and locally roasted Chestnut Hill coffee. That’s not all, though; the place also hosts diverse events such as Story Time at the Stalk for youth ages 4 through 7, Open Mic at the Stalk for performers of all kinds, and art receptions.
Owner Daniel Klein is no stranger to the restaurant and baking world. After graduating from Penn State with a degree in hospitality management, he sharpened his skills in the pastry departments of Striped Bass, Circa, Morimoto, Le Bec Fin, and Twenty21. On top of that, he gained front-of-house experience working for City Tavern and Moshulu. Thanks to the folks at Lokalty , I had the opportunity to talk with the incredibly personable Klein about his experiences and his blossoming bakery and café.
NW: What’s your first food memory?
DK: I grew up in the Philadelphia area. When I was younger, I used to take road trips with my family; one trip we took when I was about six years old brought us through Chicago and into Wyoming. I remember I had this great shrimp dish in cream sauce at a restaurant there.
NW: How did you get your start in the food business?
DK: I graduated from Penn State in May 2001 with a degree in hotel and restaurant management. Many people I knew went straight into the hotel industry, joining places like Marriott. I wanted a different path; I had always enjoyed baking. I loved making people happy and wanted a career where people could consistently return to a place and enjoy their experiences there. So, I gained hands-on experience: I spent five years working in pastry at Striped Bass, Circa, Morimoto, Le Bec Fin, and Twenty21. A dessert lounge had always been on my mind, and eventually I launched Cake and the Beanstalk.
NW: How did you come up with the name for your bakery?
DK: My father in-law suggested to my wife Jenn and I that we come up with a name that lets people know that we offer both desserts and coffee. Cake is cake, of course, and the bean in beanstalk is the coffee reference. It also fit beautifully with our amazing location overlooking a community garden. In the summer, some of the sunflowers start to grow so high it seems like we have our very own beanstalks. Jenn is also a kindergarten teacher, so that just might have had something to do with it. After we had chosen the name, we designed the shop to match both the name and vibe we wanted to come across. We were lucky enough to inherit walls painted with the perfect colors and designed the chairs and wall art with the "beanstalk" in mind.
NW: What is one of the hardest parts about owning a bakery?
DK: Keeping up with the bakery products. For Cake and the Beanstalk, space certainly poses some limitations. My kitchen is literally what you see behind the display case. My counter has just enough room for my mixer and induction plate, and nearly all of my baking comes out of this microwave-sized convection oven. The sink is tiny as well and the turnover of washing bowls and utensils isn’t high.
NW: How do you do it all in such a small space?
DK: I can’t produce as much as I’d like, which just means I have to be selective with the treats I make for the day: there’s usually about six items available on any given day that change on a rotational basis. Of course, there’s the pace of daily demands and any specialty orders we have to fill, staff management, and other factors that come with running a business. Don’t get me wrong—I love owning Cake and the Beanstalk! It’s been a very rewarding experience so far and I’m looking forward to growing the bakery.
NW: That’s great to hear! On that note, what’s your favorite part about running Cake and the Beanstalk?
DK: It would have to be seeing people’s happy reactions after they bite into one of Cake and the Beanstalk's menu items, whether it's our blondie or our blueberry crumb cake. Knowing that our products make them happy and seeing customers return again and again means a lot to me. For instance, there’s one woman who lives in South Philly that comes out of her way every week just to purchase something. She doesn’t have to, but she makes the effort because she loves our bakery so much.
NW: How did Cake and the Beanstalk evolve into more than just a bakery? It was neat to see you offered everything from children story times to open mic sessions.
DK: I designed the bakery to be a community place. Philadelphia has such a vibrant community and I wanted to cater to the interests of all groups. The neighborhood has everyone from baby boomers to college students to young families, and I wanted to involve all of them.
NW: What is one of the lessons that you’ve learned during your career?
DK: Time management is key. Things can go wrong, but you need to be adept and know how to change and adapt.
NW: Do you have a culinary guilty pleasure?
DK: A big bowl of ice cream and a soft pretzel from Center City Soft Pretzel Co. The pretzels come out hot and fresh at midnight: it’s the perfect midnight snack!
NW: If someone could only pick one thing on your menu to try, what would you recommend?
DK: The banana chocolate walnut cake. It’s studded with chocolate chips and walnuts and is finished with a silky chocolate glaze. It’s my specialty; the recipe has been in my family for years. I tweaked the original recipe, reducing the amount of sugar and adding more bananas to add natural sweetness; I also added the glaze component. It’s a must-try!
NW: What is the most inventive item you’ve created at your bakery?
DK: It’s a tie between the cheesecake and the blondies. The cheesecake is unique because it has a chocolate tree nut cookie base. The idea came from a catering event I did. The cookies, which include pecans and almonds, make a delicious base that is not your standard graham cracker crust. The blondies are also special in that the add-ins rotate throughout the week; we’ve included everything from Oreos to candy bars in them.
NW: What is your cooking/baking philosophy?
DK: You eat food to live, but you eat dessert to live happily. This mantra inspired me to open Cake and the Beanstalk and has been at the heart of everything I do.
NW: What’s on the horizon for Cake and the Beanstalk?
DK: I’d like to increase our wholesale operations. We’re currently working on stocking our brownies and blondies at smaller cafes and delis, but would love to expand into places like Wawa and 7-Eleven. Increasing the number of specialty orders we fulfill is also a goal (see some of their amazing creations on the right!). I’m also hoping to increase the size of our cooking area. For instance, my mixer only has the capacity to make one cheesecake at a time. If I could get a mixer that makes two or four cheesecakes at once, I’d be able to increase output and satisfy more customers!
I had the opportunity to try the cheesecake Klein referred to earlier. The filling was creamy and light, filling my mouth with its cloud-like texture and perfect sweetness. The chocolate tree nut cookie crust was definitely unique as well, grounding the heavenly filling. I highly enjoyed this component as it made it stand out from other cheesecakes in the crowd. On another visit, I indulged myself with their decadent flourless chocolate cake. Its chocolaty richness and satisfying density make this a must-have treat for both omnivores and gluten-free eaters everywhere.
I highly recommend checking out Cake and the Beanstalk; the eats are excellent and the service is stellar! For more information about Cake and the Beanstalk, check out their website at http://cakeandthebeanstalk.blogspot.com/ or follow Klein at @Cake__Beanstalk on Twitter.
Monday, March 26, 2012
Food for Thought Interview with Jonathan Adams
Jonathan Adams, chef and owner of Pub & Kitchen and Rival Bros. Coffee Roasters, also wholeheartedly supports ACHIEVEability, and both Pub & Kitchen and Rival Bros. will be present at the Food for Thought gala event.
Check out our interview with Jonathan Adams below!
How did you get involved in Food for Thought? For how long have you been involved? Why is the Food for Thought fundraiser important to you? Why do you think people should attend?
I have mutual friends from the restaurant, who also worked at Urban Outfitters. When the event came up last year, they asked whether or not the restaurant would be willing to be involved. When I learned about the event I was kind of blown away because I’ve never seen anything like this before. I had never seen people who were so dedicated to charities, never seen people devote so much of their time. They’re changing every aspect of a family’s life. They’re taking care of so many loopholes in society. I then saw the other chefs who were behind this, and they were a lot of my friends.
After I started the coffee company, I reached out to ACHIEVEability and said I’d love to bring the coffee truck, to be even more involved. I wish I had more time to be involved in ACHIEVEability as it is such a great organization.
Can you give us any hints as to what you'll be cooking for the event?
We’re serving two dishes: a savory hors d’oeurve of poached chicken and black truffle terrine served on pretzel chip with cornichon mustard and a sweet coffee cream puff with dried cherry and sea salt.
The food at the event is out of control. There is such a mix of chefs there, who all serve fantastic food. This year we changed our menu after we saw what was offered last year.
Are there any other exciting upcoming events that you or Pub and Kitchen is involved in?
We have done events with the Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Whenever we have the opportunity to do an event we try to. We also like to host events at the restaurant, we do not have many events like the Food for Thought Benefit on the horizon. I’ll be the Cook Studio on April 7th to do a dinner based on seafood. It will be 5 courses of seafood focused fine dining for $200 a head.
What do you like about the Philadelphia food scene? Why you think Philly a good place to start a gastro-pub?
Philly is manageable and accessible. I love New York, but it’s such an anomaly in culture and society, and the scope is so broad. Philly feels real. I’m from here, and I’ve lived all over the world but I’ve always ended up back in Philly so I decided to root down here. It’s easy to get around, and it’s not too overwhelming. The location is also great; we have mountains, the ocean and plains – everything you could possibly want within 200 miles. You can always find something to cook.
Where do you draw inspiration for your restaurant and menus?
Some of our favorite restaurants are in London, and we created a UK vibe for the restaurant. The general overall vibe is from the dark wood and the classic rock and roll soundtrack targeting good, classic Americana. Everyone in charge of Pub and Kitchen came from fine dining. We know how to make the place shine and an evening stand out, but we did not want to make that kind of space. We opened the kind of place we would want to go to. We want to unify everyone through music, food and drink, and create a “come one come all” atmosphere. We took inspiration from everything. We would go eat out somewhere and would always leave with a good idea. Also from everyday occurrences. We wanted to incorporate all of that.
Want to know more about Jonathan Adams? Check out the Spring 2012 Issue of Penn Appétit on racks all over Penn soon!
Find ACHIEVEability on the web: http://www.achieveability.org/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/ACHIEVEability
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/ACHIEVEability/179026932125700
Tickets to the Gala can be found via this link: http://bit.ly/A7d5n7
Sunday, March 25, 2012
A Conversation with Chef Zayat
You only need to take one bite of Chef Wissam Zayat’s renowned baklava at Manakeesh Café Bakery to know that he’s a great pastry chef. However, few are aware that the pastry he is most proud of isn’t his famous baklava but his madd crème cake, a semolina cake filled with sweet cream and pistachio. Even fewer know that his journey to becoming a master chef began when he was twelve years old, as an apprentice to a pastry chef in Beirut.
Thanks to the folks at Lokalty, I had a chance to chat with Chef Zayat and General Manager Abd Ghazzawi (who served as translator) over a steamy pot of mint tea. We discussed Chef Zayat’s experiences baking and cooking at their fledgling café-bakery Manakeesh. Even though Manakeesh has only been open for a year, it has already become quite a fixture in West Philadelphia, popular with locals, the Philly Muslim community and Penn students alike. It’s this melting-pot atmosphere, evident among both the clientele and the menu, that makes Manakeesh such a unique gem. And of course, there’s the food. Chef Zayat’s really, really good food.
Chef Zayat was recruited by the owner, a friend of his, before the bakery’s opening. Unlike other chefs, he was given free-reign over developing the pastry menu. The final product consists of both traditional Lebanese pastries, like shamiyaat, small date-filled cookies, and ma’moul , stuffed shortbread. However, he also developed his own creative sweets, like his popular powerbar, a honey-glazed cookie.
Most people, however, are only aware of his baklava which is sold not just at Manakeesh but in nearby grocery stores. Baklava, which according to legend originated in the Ottoman Imperial courts, is now found all across the Mediterranean, with specific regional variations. Even though Chef Zayat’s is made in the Lebanese style, it has its own distinctive taste. Ghazzawi told me, “we’ve had lots of customers who’ve gone back to the motherland, so to speak, and they eat sweets there and they eat sweets there and they say it’s still something that’s not comparable.”
Even though Chef Zayat is first and foremost a pastry chef, he says that through his experiences baking he’s learned to cook excellently as well and that this has been “the most pleasant surprise” of his culinary journey. He developed all the toppings for the manakeesh, the Lebanese flatbreads from which the café-bakery takes the name. He is most proud of the chicken tawouk topping, which is coincidentally the bakery's most popular flavor. Although for most of the year you can’t get the chance to try Chef Zayat’s home-style cooking, during the entire month of Ramadan the menu includes his own traditional Lebanese meals that are served after sundown.
Chef Zayat has also figured out how to “Americanize” some of the Lebanese dishes. Ghazzawi explained that “Chef had never cooked with sausage and bacon and turkey and stuff like that. It’s still halal food you know- it’s beef sausage and turkey bacon- but it’s something that we’re not really accustomed to.” Even so, Chef Zayat experimented and has combined these American ingredients into manakeesh toppings, for example his egg and cheese manakeesh.
I got to sample Chef Zayat’s non-Lebanese but still amazingly delicious crème brulée. It was a super thick, incredibly decadent custard with just the right hint of vanilla and a spot-on caramel crust. Delicious, as always. Abd Ghazzawi put it nicely, “we believe if it’s not something you would eat yourself it then it’s not something you should be serving others.” And trust me, Chef Zayat’s food is something you will want to eat yourself.
-Elliott Brooks
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Food for Thought Interview with Peter Woolsey
Philly is incredibly lucky to attract chefs who are not only talented, but also socially conscious. ACHIEVEability was able to bring many of these chefs together, in support of its cause of breaking the poverty cycle with the help of education, and gaining self-sufficiency. Peter Woolsey is one of these chefs – he is always making sure to stay active in the Philadelphia community, but never to sacrifice his craft.
After working at the Waldorf-Astoria in NYC, Woolsey went to study pastry at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, where he ended up mastering not only pastry, but also the art of French cooking. With these skills under his belt, Woolsey moved back to the U.S. and then to Philadelphia with his French wife and created Bistrot La Minette, an authentic bistro serving classic French cuisine.
Read Penn Appétit’s exclusive interview with Peter Woolsey below!
How did you get involved in Food for Thought? For how long have you been involved? Why is the Food for Thought fundraiser important to you? Why do you think people should attend?
The woman who put together the gala last year was my next-door neighbor and good friend. She’s a real foodie, but she was shy about asking the first time because we’re friends and neighbors, and did not want to cross any lines. But when she told me about it, I did my research, and ACHIEVEability is very easy to get behind. When dealing with poverty, so many people just throw money at the problem, without thinking of ideas that are out of the box. ACHIEVEability’s goal is to break the poverty cycle, and it has thought of creative ways to fix the problem. I’m from West Philadelphia, and lived very close to it. It’s amazing how different the city can be a couple of blocks away.
Can you give us any hints as to what you'll be cooking for the event?
I can actually tell you what we’ll be making! Our beouf bourguinon and a millefeuille.
Are there any other exciting upcoming events that you or Bistrot La Minette is involved in?
This month we’re doing Dinner in Périgord, which will feature the typical food of this region of France. It will include, foie gras, duck, walnuts, and black truffles. It’s a lot of rich, delicious, awesome food, all because of the ingredients. It’s a prix fix that is four courses for $35. Also I’m working on planning another collaborative chef dinner for the end of March. I’ve just started planning it so I can’t give you any clues as to who will be there. There’s always something going on at Bistrot.
What do you like about the Philadelphia food scene? Why do you think Philly is a good place to start a French restaurant?
Well I was living in France, I ran out of money and my visa ran out. I knew I had to move somewhere, so I moved back home. I opened a French restaurant because that’s my training. When I opened Bistrot, there weren’t many other French restaurants in Philly. Since I opened it, a few others have come along but none of them are along the lines of what I wanted to do. My goal was to make the most authentic French bistro possible.
Where do you draw inspiration for your restaurant and menus?
The easiest places to find inspiration are people’s homes. I like going to restaurants and seeing other people’s work, but it’s rarely inspiring. My wife is French, and the food that she cooks at home is very inspiring. Simple home cooked meals, eating with my in-laws, and with friends. The only restaurants that I find really inspiring are off the beaten path, mom and pop restaurants that specialize in one or two things. These are the only places to find treasures of great, great food.
Want to know more about Peter Woolsey? Check out the Spring 2012 Issue of Penn Appétit on racks all over Penn soon!
Craving a late night snack? So was Jonathan Adams! Learn all about Adams and his restaurant Pub and Kitchen (open until 2 AM) tomorrow!
Find ACHIEVEability on the web: http://www.achieveability.org/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/ACHIEVEability
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/ACHIEVEability/179026932125700
Tickets to the Gala can be found via this link: http://bit.ly/A7d5n7
Monday, March 19, 2012
Philly Kitchen: Penny Jennewein
Every other week Penn Appétit profiles a student who cooks on a college budget and in a college sized kitchen.
This week we catch up with Penny Jennewein, a proud member and founder of Penn’s first ever co-op. When she’s not engaging in the “science experiment” of vegan baking, Penny is part of a system of shared cooking at the co-op. The members of the co-op put in money for a mutually agreed upon grocery list and then take turns cooking strictly vegan for everyone throughout the week. I got to enjoy a lively discussion about the power of food to bring people together and promote social justice over a delicious plate of homemade green coconut curry (recipe below!). I hope you’ll come away as inspired as I was to grab a group of friends and start cooking together similar to how the co-op does.
Penn Appétit: How did you learn to cook?
Penny Jenewein: My mom was a caterer for a while and a baker, she’s a really good cook. She would always teach us how to bake so me and my sister would make soufflés and things like that, but I didn’t really learn to cook until high school, I just felt like I should learn domestic things.
PA: Why did the co-op decide to make communal meals vegan?
PJ: Not a majority but a lot of members are vegan. Originally when we started out we decided that we all have a shared commitment to social justice and a lot of people, even if they aren’t vegan, agree that food is a source of social justice. I think that veganism is a way to be socially just and functionally the system wouldn’t work well if we were doing communal food and people had to pay for things they wouldn’t be able to eat.
PA: What’s the hardest thing about cooking in a college sized kitchen?
PJ: There’s not enough time for it, I rarely have blocks of time to do anything…I get around this because other people at the co-op cook and I can still have a healthy and good tasting meal but not have to put the time in every night.
PA: What’s the best thing?
PJ: I think it’s a relaxer. I look forward to cooking food and it’s something that I do with other people. Food is such a social justice thing, you know, if you plan your life in a way that you can cook food and enjoy food with other people that can be something that brings people together. I think it really does in the co-op when people sit together, eat and laugh.
(The co-ops cooking schedule, left)
PA: What’s your advice for people who want to start cooking?
PJ: I would say try to cook something that you really like first. But also, it’s not a science; you should just throw things in a pot, see what tastes good and add more or less depending.
PA: What’s your cooking philosophy?
PJ: I usually don’t follow the recipe that much.
PA: Why is that?
PJ: Usually I always do something wrong so I have to make up for that. Especially with cooking vegan I have to shift things so I will try to find a substitute or I wont add things and I’ll just see what happens.
Thai Green Curry – serves 9 people in a co-op
(Adapted from Oh Kitchen, June 20 2011)
Ingredients
• 3 Tbs green curry paste
• 2 14oz can of coconut milk
• 2 large cloves garlic
• 1 1-inch knob of ginger, peeled and grated
• 1 full onion
• 4 large red (or other thin-skinned type) potato
• 5-6 carrots
• 1 Tbs brown sugar
• ½ 14 oz package tofu
• 2 cups brown rice
WITHOUT SHAKING, open the can of coconut milk. Take the coconut "cream" layer off the top and put into a sauce pan along with red curry paste. Heat over medium heat and stir to combine.
Let coconut cream and curry paste come together till they thicken up and become more paste-like. Lower heat some and then add garlic, ginger and onion.
When garlic and ginger become fragrant, add rest of coconut milk, along with 1 cup of water. Add diced potatoes carrots, and tofu to the pot.
Turn up the heat till pot boils and then reduce to a simmer. Put the lid on, but leave partially open. Let simmer for 30-40 minutes or until potatoes are soft.
Add brown sugar and squeeze of a lime or a splash of rice vinegar. Taste and adjust to your liking.
Serve with brown rice.
-Leyla Mocan
Do you or someone you know cook in your college sized kitchen? Want to be profiled on our next post? Send an email to pennappetit.blog@gmail.com and we’ll contact you to be featured!
Monday, March 5, 2012
Philly Kitchen: Dayo Adewole
Every other week Penn Appétit profiles a student who cooks on a college budget and in a college sized kitchen.
If anyone ever said that it takes having your own kitchen to be able to cook in college, Dayo Adewole is here to prove them wrong. Apparently all one needs is a desire to make your own food and a few generous friends who are willing to share a kitchen. Though he eats partially on a meal plan he still finds time to frequently cook in his friends’ kitchen and maybe even share an inventive recipe or two.
Penn Appétit: How did you learn to cook?
Dayo Adewole: My dad always encouraged me to follow him around the kitchen and to help out, that’s where I learned some basics and different styles of cooking. I started to cook for myself when I was 12. At first I just made food for myself but then I started to get better. When my parents tasted it and realized that it was good I started making bigger portions for the whole family.
PA: What’s the most difficult thing about cooking in a college-sized kitchen?
DA: Maybe the actual lack of a kitchen. But actually, getting ingredients can be a bit expensive. It’s still less expensive than eating in a dining hall, but you still have to plan and budget.
PA: What’s the best thing about cooking in a college-sized kitchen?
DA: You get to show off to your friends.
PA: What do you like most about cooking?
DA: I like the fact that you can create anything. I think it’s about the chance to experiment and try out new things and new flavors.
PA: On that note, what’s the most inventive thing you’ve ever cooked?
DA: Probably honey glazed shrimp. I had honey and shrimp, two things that I like, so I thought I’d put them together. It was better than expected but maybe needed a bit of tweaking for next time because honey doesn’t really go well in the fryer.
PA: What’s your favorite tool to cook with?
DA: I love the spatula, maybe because as a kid I watched a lot of SpongeBob.
Jollof Rice and Chicken
Ingredients:
• chicken
• 3 tbsp oil
• one onion
• tomato purée
• one chicken stock cube
• one red and one yellow pepper
• rice
• garlic
• ginger
• one whole tomato
Instructions:
• Fry the chicken in 2 tbsp of oil for about 10 minutes.
• Add onions and tomato purée to the chicken.
• While that's frying, separately mix the garlic, tomato, onion, and ginger to make a base.
• Add 1 tbsp of oil, the garlic tomato mixture, and the stock cube to the chicken. Add 2 cups of water as well and bring it to a boil for another 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, wash the rice and add it to the chicken (if necessary, pour enough water to reach the level of the rice). Let simmer for 20 minutes
• Chop the peppers and add to the pot. Let cook for another 10-15 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
Do you or someone you know cook in your college sized kitchen? Want to be profiled on our next post? Send an email to pennappetit.blog@gmail.com and we’ll contact you to be featured!
Monday, February 20, 2012
Philly Kitchen: Celia Lewis
Every other week Penn Appétit profiles a student who cooks on a college budget and in a college sized kitchen.
Call her the queen of spices, Celia Lewis stays true to her cooking philosophy of “keeping it simple,” regardless of how big her spice collection might be. Though she’s famous in some circles for her baked treats, it turns out that she’s an accomplished cook as well. I had the pleasure of cooking with her one sunny afternoon in her high-rise kitchen and learning more about her journey from being dependent on restaurants around campus to cooking her own food. While I was there she made a full and delicious meal of pan seared salmon, roasted asparagus and rice. See the recipe below to make this easy but satisfying dinner yourself!
Penn Appétit: When did you start cooking and how did you learn to cook?
Celia Lewis: Before this year I didn’t cook, and I was kind of intimidated to start. I didn't have a meal plan, so I was supplementing eating out once or twice a day with yogurt, granola bars, deli meat, and other no-prep items I picked up from the grocery store. Not only was this costly, but I also realized I wasn't particularly satisfied from the eating the same thing from the same places all the time. After I came back to Penn from Thanksgiving, I decided that I needed to start cooking. I started with a lot of easy dishes, like omelets and pasta, and then started expanding to full meals with rice, a protein and basic vegetables… I taught myself [how to cook]. I never really helped my mom when she cooked but I used to always sit in the kitchen with her so I guess that helped… most of what I cook is really simple so it made it easy for me to do. Sometimes I’ll use Google if there’s a specific thing I need to look up.
PA: What’s your favorite dish to cook?
CL: Any kind of roasted vegetable, which is funny because I didn’t really eat so many vegetables before [I started cooking]. The prep is very easy but I like them really smoky and charred so it takes a while, but you can throw them in the oven and do your homework or something else while you wait. Plus once they’re cooked they take up much less space in the fridge.
PA: What’s your cooking philosophy?
CL: Keep it simple and use lots of spices. I really like spicy food so I will get dried chilies, break them apart by hand and then stick them in an omelet or eat them with vegetables. My three favorite spices are Herbs de Provence, Kansas City Classic Rub and Mozambique Peri Peri (a combination of red pepper flakes, paprika and other spices) [all available at Whole Foods]. As a college student, using a lot of spices means that I can have things that are really flavorful but don’t need a lot of ingredients.
PA: What’s your advice to someone who wants to start cooking for themselves?
CL: One thing that people find intimidating about cooking is that you need to plan ahead and figure out what to get at the grocery store. Even though you end up spending a lot of money upfront you save money in the long run. Start simple, figure out what your favorite spices are and buy those. Get frozen versions of your favorite proteins, like frozen chicken breasts or salmon burgers. You can also order staples, like oatmeal and rice, on amazon.com and if you have a prime account you can get free shipping. That helps a lot because one problem can be carrying heavy groceries from the store. Stock up your pantry because then you get over the hurdle of getting to the grocery store and you just have to find the time.
Celia’s Pan Roasted Salmon with Spicy Grilled Asparagus
Serves: 2 Time: 1 hour
Ingredients
• Olive Oil
• 1 bunch of asparagus
• 1 frozen salmon filet
• Salt, pepper, paprika, and Mozambique Peri Peri
• White rice
Start with the asparagus about an hour before you want to eat:
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Wash your asparagus, cut about an inch off the ends. Place them in a bowl and toss with about a tablespoon of olive oil. Add pepper, paprika and Peri Peri spice to taste (several shakes should suffice)
• Place on a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Put into oven.
• After about 30 minutes, turn the asparagus over
• Let cook for another 20 – 30 minutes or until asparagus are well charred
For the Salmon,
• Thaw one packaged filet (between 0.5-1 lb) of salmon, you can get good frozen ones at Trader Joe’s. These filets come packaged in plastic bags already, so to thaw properly put them in the fridge the night before or place into a bowl of warm water that day.
• When you’re ready to cook, place salmon into a pan on the stove.
• Drizzle about 1-2 tbsp of olive oil over the salmon. Turn the heat to medium low.
• Sprinkle paprika, Peri Peri, and black pepper onto the filet.
• Cover the pan with a lid.
• Let cook for 10-15 minutes. You can cut it in half to check and make sure it’s done. You’ll be able to tell when the salmon changes from the red pink to a light pink, you want it to be thoroughly cooked and all the same color.
Serve with white rice. If you have a rice cooker like Celia set the timer for when you’re ready to eat. Otherwise cook on the stovetop (will take about 15 minutes for white rice).
-Leyla Mocan
Do you or someone you know cook in your college sized kitchen? Want to be profiled on our next post? Send an email to pennappetit.blog@gmail.com and we’ll contact you to be featured!
Thursday, December 29, 2011
How Lucky Old Souls Became “McDonalds for the Mount Airy and Chestnut Hill set”
No food truck has drummed up more hype lately than Lucky Old Souls, the locavore burger-joint-on-wheels from jazz promoter Matt Feldman. We sat down with Feldman to discuss the music-food connection, his methods for local sourcing, and the wacky menu specials that have made his truck stand out from the crowd.
You’ve been performing and promoting jazz under the “Lucky Old Souls” moniker for years, and you chose to attach that name to this endeavor too. How exactly does a jazz show translate to a burger truck?
I have two main passions in life: music and food, and my interests in both of them focus on avoiding things that are mass produced, in favor of things that are genuine and heartfelt. To me, they really go together; I support local musicians, and I support local farmers. It might seem like an odd pairing, but it’s truly how I live.
I’ve had long-term plans to open a jazz club, and for various reasons, that hasn’t happened yet. I saw the truck as a way to spread the word about shows I promote and about jazz in Philly in general. If and when the club does open, the truck will be a mobile ambassador for it. As for the burgers, it bothered me that there was no place in Philly to get a relatively inexpensive, take-out burger made with good beef—that is, local, grass-fed beef. I have a family, and that’s the way we eat, and the only way to get anything like that would be to go to a bar.
Once you figured out that a burger truck was the right thing to pursue, how did you know what first steps to take? Like, where does one even buy a food truck?
I didn’t go about it in a particularly methodical or premeditated way. I had this idea in the spring, and my wife and I discussed it, and we decided that it was a good idea but—for personal reasons, mostly—not the right time to do it. Fast forward to the end of July, and I saw that the Renaissance Sausage truck was for sale. [Don’t worry, it's still around on new rolling stock – ed.] I was familiar with it, just as a customer, and it seemed like the price was very reasonable. I did some quick research to verify that my initial reaction was right, and it turned out it was a good price. That same day I saw it was for sale, I called the owner, went and saw it, and put a deposit on it. A few days later, we closed on it, and by the beginning of August, the truck was mine.
Around then, my wife and I started working on recipes. Most of them were based on ingredients we used at home. The beef, for example, comes from Rineer Family Farm, and we’ve been using their beef at home for at least two years—they sell at a couple of local farmers markets. I did try some other local farms’ beef to do my due diligence, but we still ended up going with Rineer. Same thing for the rolls, which are from Wild Flour Bakery—we’d been using those at home for a while.
Your specials—which can be really out there—seem to be the biggest thing setting LOS apart. What’s the process for creating them?
It’s not all that systematic. Something comes to me, I try it out, I taste it, and then I have some people taste it. If we think it’s pretty good, we go with it. Generally it starts with me looking at what’s available from the farms and thinking, “What sounds like fun to play with? What can I do with this?”
What are some of the most popular combinations you’ve offered so far?
We’ve been running a special that’s been really popular with collard greens, because they’re so available this time of year. I cook the greens with bacon (which I cure and smoke myself), and thought one day, “That might be good on a burger.” I tried it once, and it was.
Another thing that’s been really popular that, I’ll be honest, took me by surprise, is the smoked poblano mayonnaise. One of my purveyors had poblanos that were pretty cheap, and I honestly didn’t even know what I was going to do with them. I threw a few into the smoker that I use for my bacon, then I pureed them into homemade mayo, and I liked it so much I ended up not even adding anything else.
Other things are just happenstance. With the maple-black pepper shake, for instance, I had bought a whole big case of syrup for my bacon cure, because it was at a good price. I was talking with one of my employees, and he said, “Let’s do a milkshake with it.” At first, that sounded too sweet, but then I immediately thought of black pepper. To me, those are two things that just naturally go together—they’re both in my bacon cure, for one.
The ginger spice milkshake we’re doing now took a while to get right. It was never gingery enough, so I ended up making fresh ginger tea, then straining the ginger out and putting the tea in the shake.
What’s next?
Our next special starts Thursday. It’s going to have sliced apple, homemade mustard, Swiss cheese, bacon, and caramelized onions. I’ve known for a while that I wanted to do something with apple, and last week my wife was eating apple, sausage, mustard, and cheese as a snack, and I thought, “Oh, maybe we should try that on a burger.” We tried one right then and there, and it was great.
Most of these sound at least somewhat reasonable, but how’d you come to pair blueberry jam with habañero cheddar?
That’s a combination you can get on our breakfast sandwich and breakfast burger, and for me, sweet, savory, and spicy are the flavors of breakfast. Every time I go out for brunch, I always have the dilemma: do I get sweet, or do I get savory? In fact, my ideal brunch is when I’m with someone else and we can share one of each. I love getting pancakes, eggs, and potatoes, then putting hot sauce on the potatoes and syrup on the pancakes—to me they just counter each other very well.
You’ve tried locations all over the city. How do they vary in terms of customer preferences?
Depending on location, people are more or less likely to “get” something like the breakfast burger. When I was at the Punk Rock Flea Market, people really got it, and told me, “man, this works together.”
Love Park during the week is mostly office workers, on the lunch rush. Clark Park on a Sunday is more relaxed. We go up to Chestnut Hill on Saturdays to do a farmers market, and there we get a lot of families. We’ll have fathers come and get six burgers to bring home to the family, and that’s something we don’t see anywhere else. We’re like McDonalds for the Mount Airy and Chestnut Hill set, who appreciate grass-fed beef and want their children to be eating that kind of meat.
We also tried a Wednesday stop last week at 33rd and Arch, and there’s a good chance we’ll be adding that as regular Wednesday stop sometime early in the New Year.
What else is on the horizon for LOS—both as a truck and as a jazz organization?
Well, I have to keep reminding myself that we started at the end of the nice weather, so as well as we’re doing now, spring and summer are going to be even better. Plus once spring hits, there are a lot of different possibilities for ingredients.
As far as other LOS stuff, we’re still doing a concert series, and we’ll see what happens with the club. Certainly I can’t be on the truck every day forever, but as far as when and how that change will be made, I don’t know yet.
--Alex Marcus~Tweet
Monday, December 5, 2011
Davio's Executive Chef David Boyle
Davio’s Northern Italian Steakhouse, a refined restaurant residing in Center City, focuses on simple, regional Italian foods with an emphasis on the grill. The Philadelphia location joins other branches situated in Boston, Foxborough, and Atlanta. Located in the historic Provident Bank Building near Rittenhouse Square, the open space inside is elegant with tall arched windows, high ceilings, and beautiful wood floors. Yet there is still a warmth and intimacy that glows throughout the restaurant, making it the perfect spot for a birthday meal, special anniversary, or business dinner.
I had the pleasure of talking with charismatic Executive Chef David Boyle, captain of Davio’s well-oiled machine of a kitchen in Philadelphia. Born in this “City of Brotherly Love,” David grew up in a suburb of Anchorage, AK, before returning to his roots and enrolling in the Restaurant School of Philadelphia. After an enriching externship at the Four Seasons Hotel, he stayed with the team past graduation with a yearlong interlude at the Michelin Hotel Restaurant in Le Grande Monarque Hotel in Chartres, France. He eventually took his talents to Jake’s in Manayunk and worked his way up to Executive Chef in only eight months. After years of rave reviews (including complimentary words from Zagat and Philadelphia Inquirer food critic Craig LaBan) there, he brought his honed skills to Davio’s.
NW: How did you get your start in the food business?
DB: I first dabbled with the food world when I worked on a vegetable farm as a teenager. You’d wake up at 6 am, grab a burlap bag, and start picking in the field until sundown. Corn, tomatoes, you name it… I learned a lot during my time there from the people I worked with and the overall experience.
NW: Was it difficult transitioning between the different restaurants you’ve cooked at during your career?
DB: There was no real transition. Being trained classically, you learn how to use ingredients and apply basic techniques. I’ve had the opportunity to work in a variety of kitchens, whether it was strictly French or had a heavy Asian influence. You find over time that a steakhouse is much different from a normal fine dining establishment versus a tapas bar versus a BYOB. It’s really a continual education.
NW: What makes Davio’s different from other steak houses?
DB: We pride ourselves on quality. Sometimes the steak itself will be 50% of the end price, so excellence is certainly important to us. We take the finest ingredients and prepare them properly to create an exceptional final product. Our dishes don’t necessarily have to be complicated: they just need to be consistent, simple, and good.
NW: Speaking of something that’s good, you’re known for inventing the Philly Cheese Steak Spring Roll in 2003. How did it come to life?
DB: My wife is Vietnamese, so she definitely inspired the spring roll concept. We used to have a duck and vegetable spring roll at the Four Seasons, which was quite popular. Eventually, we thought, “Why not apply that to a Philly classic?” We use spring roll wrappers because they’re a little thinner and crispier than egg roll wrappers. The rolls are also complemented with a spicy house-made ketchup and Sriracha dipping sauces, which both add a dash of Asian influence. After we put the new spring rolls on the bar menu and heard rave reviews, we sent it up to Boston; before I knew it, the spring rolls were being sold in the freezer section at the local supermarket! Now there’s a range of flavors available, including Buffalo Chicken and Chicken Parma. The classic will always be the Cheese Steak version, though—that’s what people come for.
NW: What motivates you in the kitchen?
DB: There are two vital criteria that I constantly aspire to meet with the dishes we serve: one, I would feed it to my mother, and two, I would feed it to a blind person. If you can satisfy these and achieve phenomenal look, smell, and taste, you’re set. I’m also fortunate to have a loyal crew that wants to come to work. My career keeps me busy, but it makes me happy. I’m able to balance my family and work lives and am creatively challenged every day.
NW: Does that mean you have a lot of autonomy with the menu, even though there are multiple Davio’s branches?
DB: We do have the opportunity to feature our own dishes. This especially applies to plates that feature seasonal ingredients. If one of my sous chefs has something special up their sleeve, I’m happy to feature it on the menu that evening. Of course, we always have our classic dishes—these should be cooked the same way all the time. It shows our attention to detail and expresses our commitment to a consistent quality product.
NW: What’s one of the lessons you’ve learned during your career?
DB: You’re only as good as your staff and your dishwasher.
NW: What’s your favorite food memory?
DB: Wow, there’s a lot… one would have to be when I was in Cleveland, OH. It was very simple, extremely casual: we barbecued turkey legs and had pitchers of beer. I’ll never forget how juicy the turkey legs were. For me, it’s all about taking simple, perhaps mundane ingredients and making them fantastic.
NW: Do you have a food weakness?
DB: I’m happy with ramen soup—add some cilantro, some bean sprouts, make it spicy… I cook all day, so I want something that’s easy to make when I get home! That being said, I’m fortunate that my wife is an excellent cook!
Friday, April 1, 2011
The Insatiable Journalist Part 4: Time to Start From the Beginning
I didn't have any crazy adventures with Chef Perrier or Chef Elmi or even Patti the PR woman since the last time I've posted. Don't get me wrong, it's not like I haven't been working on "LBF: the Life and Times" - my faux working title until I get a better idea of the story's arc. Quite the contrary. There have been interviews to transcribe and logistics to maneuver for the remaining visits and, oh yeah, a 7000 word story to consider.
Some of the best experiences are (I hope!) yet to come. But as excited as I am, I'm trying to go against character here and not indulge my giddiness by spilling all the details before they're worked out. Instead, I figured it's about time that I gave this crazy guy who flirts uncontrollably and smokes in the kitchen some context, the sort of context that explains why, in spite of those idiosyncrasies, he is one of the most well-respected men in the city.
Local legend remembers him as the man responsible for Philadelphia’s Restaurant Renaissance in the 1970s and since then for maintaining a standard that refuses to let Philly’s food scene be reduced to cheesesteaks and tastykakes. Recent years have seen Le Bec-Fin falter under the weight of economic realities and critics who don’t think people should have to spend a fortune or put on a jacket and tie just to eat out. The young crowd with new money doesn’t want to celebrate the hallmark moments of their lives at the same old restaurant on Walnut with the overbearing chandeliers and gilding that recalls the ballroom on the Titanic, where their parents and grandparents dined out in their best pearls and cufflinks. With the ethos that newer is better sweeping the nation and hot celebrity chefs opening “concept” restaurants it seemed that the short French chef with the even shorter temper might be reduced to a relic, or worse, a joke.
Eventually, despite lightening the dress code and holding promotions to defray the costs of dinning there, even the notoriously stubborn and self-assured Georges Perrier couldn’t ignore that with big names like Stephen Starr, Jose Garces, and Marc Vetri offering patrons a dinning experience that is hipper, younger, and sexier that the once-classic Le Bec-Fin was becoming obsolete. Last July, Georges Perrier announced that after forty years, Le Bec-Fin would be closing the upcoming May. That is, until he changed his mind.
In perfect Perrier style, he announced the non-closing on New Year's Eve to so much fanfare that it doesn’t take much of a cynic to infer why the line cooks rolled their eyes at any mention of the potentially tragic closing. Maybe they knew something the rest of us didn’t and had reason to retrospectively not take the would-have-been loss of a job seriously. But just because the foodies of Philly let out a sigh of relief on January 1st and tsk tsked the rest of the city to respect their elders doesn’t mean the scene is changing. Le Bec-Fin is just as out of place amid the unpretentious BYOs and monthly new Starr creation as it was this time last year. Maybe the threat of closing and the slowly stabilizing economy is the wake-up call the city needs to reclaim her epicurean icon. But if LBF is to last another half a century--as Chef Perrier assures me it will--something’s got to change.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Penn Appetit Talks with Chef Daniel Stern
