Gramercy Tavern

Stage#2

GRAMERCY TAVERN

Flatiron District

42 east 20th street New York, NY

www.gramercytavern.com

This was a great stage and the amount of food they feed me was unreal and absolutely delicious. The kitchen was beautiful and spotless; everything labeled and dated with blue tape, all stations complete with bain maries, all-clad pans, kunz tasting spoons, temperature probes, and freshly pressed side towels. It reminded me of being in culinary school; all of the chefs were in matching shoes, pants, coats and hats and I don't think anyone was over the age of 28. However they cooked every dish flawlessly and completed 360 covers without breaking a sweat. The kitchen consisted of 9 line cooks and a sous chef all working as a perfectly sychrinized brigade.

The lower level of the restaurant is where all prep is conducted and includes a pasta room, sous vide department, charcuterie cooler, and pastry station. This is a company that is run with great care and is truly a breath of fresh air. This is a way a restaurant is supposed to be run. Everyone should experience one of Danny Meyer's restaurants if they can!

Just a few of the dishes I tried....

Smoked Trout, Cipollini Puree, Pickled Onion

This was my favorite dish of the night. The trout was smoked over white oak and served over cipollini (baby onions) puree with pickled onion rings. AMAZING!!!!

Red Kuri Squash Soup,Brussels Sprouts, Apples, Pumpkin Oil, Fried Oyster

Ruby Red Shrimp, Polenta, Salsa Verde

Sea Urchin, Nantucket Bay Scallops, Trout Roe

Smoked Artic Char, Green Cabbage, American Caviar

Delicatessen

Stage #1

DELICATESSEN

SOHO

54 PRINCE STREET

NEW YORK, NY 10012

www.delicatessennyc.com

My day started around 12pm when the executive chef Michael Ferraro usually gets in. He took me on a tour through the restaurant which is absolutely beautiful consisting of 2-3 event spaces, 2 kitchens, 24-hour dining with a take-out/delivery macaroni and cheese bar attached to the dining room called "Mac Bar". Mac Bar consists of 12 different types of Macaroni and Cheese, prepped out of the main kitchen that are baked off in individual foil pans in a special type of oven that cooks them in 4 minutes. The foil pans are then placed in a yellow plastic container shaped to look like a macaroni noodle.

Chipotle Mac

Delicatessen's menu is based on comfort food with a twist. The dishes were straightforward with a lot of flavor. Some dishes I sampled...

Tuna Tartare

Wasabi Tobiko, Creme Fraiche, Tarro Root Chips

We were sampling some lasagna I helped make

It was layered with braised pork, fresh ricotta, marscapone and tomato ragu

Roasted Sea Scallops

Sweet Potatoes, Charred Apple, Bacon, Warm Egg Yolk

I absolutely love scallops and what I liked about this dish the most was the play on "bacon and eggs". The "egg" factor is made by whisking egg yolks and stuffing them into a piece of plastic (they use the plastic wrapping from a "flavor ice" popsicle) and poaching it off for about 30 minutes. They hold the yolks in a cvat and slice it to order, place it over the scallops and finish it with bacon!!! I love this type of cooking-its creative, daring, and for whatever reason it works.

The Burger-I love the pizza peels they are served on

Cheeseburger Spring Rolls-the most popular appetizer

Chili Bowl-braised pork, avocado sour cream, aged cheddar, stuffed in a jalapeno cornbread bowl

Fish Tacos on bamboo skewers

Ovaltine (yeah Ovaltine), Pudding Parfait

Chocolate Malted Pudding, Crunchy Chocolate Pearls

After sampling this I think I went in a food coma. I finally told the chef if he fed me one more thing I thought I was going to throw up but it would have been worth it!

My day wrapped up around 7pm and it was a great one! This restaurant is much different than ones I have worked in the past. They are doing about 9 million year in revenue and have a huge staff. By the time I left an entire new crew had come in to finish out the night. It is amazing how many people it takes to run that type of operation especially compared to the 5 people that run my business.

GREAT FIRST DAY!!!!!!!

More to come tomorrow!

Next Weeks Schedule

My stages...

Monday Jan 10^th

Delicatessen www.delicatessennyc.com

Tuesday Jan 11th

La Mangeoire www.lamangeoire.com

Wednesday Jan 12th

Gramercy Tavern www.gramercytavern.com

Thursday Jan 13th

La Mangeoire www.lamangeoire.com

Friday Jan 14th

David Burke at Bloomingdales www.burkeinthebox.com

Monday Jan 17th

Dovetail www.dovetailnyc.com

Tuesday Jan 18th

Egg www.pigandegg.com

Good Food

Thai Mussels

Barbuto West Village

http://www.barbutonyc.com/menu.html

Jonathan Waxman

Roasted Chicken-I never order chicken at restaurants but this was one of the best pieces of chicken I have ever eaten. Roasted to perfection and drizzled in salsa verde

My Neighborhood

My Apartment

Some pics from the city

Me and Laura

Me and Joey

My First NY Slice

NY Pie

Cupcake Stand

1st day in the city

What a day!!!!

ok so I started out learning the subway, not going to lie, I got lost a couple times but I made it to all my destinations!

First stop was David Burke at Bloomingdales....

I met with executive Chef Jose and he was very cool. I am really excited about working with him because we do a similar operation. I will get to see the boxed lunches, how the hot line works, etc.

2nd stop: The Little Owl-met with the beverage director, Tracy Gribbon

www.thelittleowlnyc.com

I ate lunch at this quaint place and damn was it good!

I started with lamb and eggplant ravioli, then a side of brussel sprouts and beignets for dessert that were truly out of this world. I love their philosophy on food. It is straight forward food that is done right. Their pasta is made from scratch and all ingredients are fresh.

Tracy was awesome to talk to and offered a lot of insight. The thing that she said that stood out the most was when I asked why she liked the food industry. She said that she was at an event with Jonathan Waxman and a couple other chefs and when she looked at them realized how dedicated they were to their career, "work is their life". This is a profession that you become engulfed in, you are essentially always working, you always have to be one step ahead. She said that watching their commitment made her want to be apart of this industry forever.

I can relate a lot to this because it is such a tough career with long hours, back aches, high pressure, etc. but at the end of the day it shows you how disciplined you are. It allows showcase your passion and be around other people that feel the same way. People wonder why a lot of chefs are so arrogant and its because its tough out there and you better be confident in what you are doing or you'll get your ass kicked.

My 3rd and last stop of the day was with Chef Christian Delouvrier at

"La Mangeoire"www.lamangeoire.com

This guy is the "real deal" straight from France chef. Arguably one of the best chefs out there and I am sitting across the table from him. It was truly an honor, I really could not stop smiling! We talked about what I was doing in New York and he then invited me to stage at the restaurant a couple days next week and I cant wait for what he will show me. I actually get to cook right by his side for an entire day!!!!! I realize that to you non foodie people out there that this means nothing to you but for a chef it is truly an amazing opportunity.

It was an exhausting day but an amazing one and I cant wait for the rest of the journey to unfold.

Here's the schedule for next week

Monday-Delicatessen stage with Chef Michael Ferraro 12pm

Tuesday-La Mangeoire with Chef Christian 3pm

Wednesday-Gramercy Tavern with Chef Michael Anthony 5pm

Thursday-La Mangeoire with Chef Christian 11am

Friday-David Burke at Bloomingdale's Chef Jose 8am

more later Marj just got to town and we are off to Barbuto