At the Table with Chef John Besh

Long before I met New Orleans chef John Besh, our paths crossed several times. A handful of e-mails and a couple interviews later...a reverent admiration began to take shape. Conversations with John are deep and soulful, and leave me pondering long after they're over.

A quick two day trip brought John to Seattle. Day 1: John was cooking dinner for the folks at Amazon.com, based on his book My New Orleans. Day 2: dinner together.


Choosing a restaurant can be a tricky thing. I wanted a quiet spot where we could talk in a relaxed atmosphere...with fabulous food. Tall order. I called a few friends and quickly realized, many were tied up with another event. What to do? I threw out a request for restaurant suggestions on Twitter.

Private chef Becky Selengut heeded the call...and offered to cook. Pastry chef Dana Cree took on the dessert course. Word spread quickly and before long, we had oysters donated by Taylor Shellfish and wines delivered to our doorstep by A&B Imports.

To quell my nerves, I invited a handful of friends 'round the table. Each, in their own way, play a hand in shaping the Seattle food scene. William, owner of Bakery Nouveau, arrived with baguettes hot out of the oven, and Andy provided an array of chocolates from Theo's.

During dinner, John asked, "What is Pacific Northwest cuisine?"

This is another topic I've considered long after our conversation. Rather than being anchored by specific dishes, Pacific Northwest cuisine is ingredient-driven -- sweet Dungeness crab, briny oysters, foraged mushrooms, etc. The application of those ingredients is less about specific dishes, and more about coaxing the maximum flavor. Often it is the simplest applications that let the flavors shine.

Unlike the Pacific Northwest, New Orleans cuisine is rooted in traditional dishes...red beans & rice, crawfish ettouffee, beignets, and gumbo. It's a shared cuisine that reflects a sense of history and place.

After this dinner, I've thought about the differences between our two cuisines, and its impact on the culture. Ingredient-driven Pacific Northwest cuisine, lacking in dishes that provide a common thread, reflect our cultured yet fiercely independent spirit. While in New Orleans, debates linger over esoterics like the proper technique for roux. "When you think it's done, let it cook some more." It's a unifying component of the culture. Food's role in a culture varies greatly and juxtaposing our two cuisines was an eye-opening experience.

As an ambassador of Pacific Northwest cuisine, I was thrilled to have Cornucopia's Becky Selengut at the helm. She has a remarkable palate and I've been a longtime fan of her work. Providing the dessert course, Dana Cree is another incredible Pacific Northwest-based chef. Highly influenced by molecular gastronomy chefs Heston Blumenthall, Wylie Dufresne, and Sam Mason, her work fuses seasonal ingredients with a comfort food spin.

Ready for some food porn?

Cornucopia chef, Becky Selengut

In the kitchen with Ashlyn Forshner, Becky Selengut, and Jeanette Smith

First course: Kumamoto oyster with champagne gelee, Totten Virginica oyster with spring onion mignonette

Detail: First course (love the sea beans)

Second course: Port Madison chevre tart, port-soaked cherries, pickled red onions, lemon thyme

Third course: Dungeness crab-apple sandwich, ginger and vermouth fumet, Skagit River bacon and shiso salad

Between courses

Andrew Daday, then with boutique chocolatier Claudio Corallo, now with Stumptown Coffee Roasters and Dana Cree, pastry chef at Poppy.

Theo Chocolate's chief scientist and COO, Andy McShea

Ashlyn, pan frying nettle gnocchi. To the right, halibut smoking over tea leaves in the wok.

First of the season halibut, wok-smoked over tea leaves.

Becky, preparing the next course, plus a quick peek into her kitchen, newly restored in a circa 1910 building.

Waiting for the halibut.

Wok-smoked halibut, stinging nettle gnocchi, chanterelles, fiddleheads and fried nettles

L-R: John Besh and Erick Loos, John's sous chef at La Provence restaurant.

Fifth course: Estrella Family Creamery cheeses, rhubarb-thyme jam, miner’s lettuce salad and dandelion cracker

Sixth course: Wildberry sherbet with caraway streusel and duschelly hazelnuts

Seventh course: housemade nutterbutters

John, taking a stash of nutterbutters back to his hotel

Eighth course: Theo Chocolate plunder

John with our hosts, sommelier April Pogue and chef Becky Selengut

John with William Leaman, owner of Bakery Nouveau and captain of 2005 world champion baking team, Bread Bakers Guild Team USA.

L-R: Erick Loos, April Pogue, William Leaman, Becky Selengut, Ashlyn Forshner, John Besh, Andy McShea, Jeanette Smith, and Andrew Daday.

***

If you're drooling over these dishes, Becky's book on sustainable seafood will be released March 2011. With any luck, it will include my favorite...course #3.

Poppy Tooker's Mission: Rebuilding the Food System

New Orleans-based Poppy Tooker opened Seattle's 2010 Farmer-Fisher-Chef-Connection with a compelling and thought-provoking keynote.

Take a trip to New Orleans and you will quickly learn, the citizens of that great city have a shared identity, bound together through food. Legendary New Orleans dishes like jambalaya, red beans and rice, beignets, and Creole cream cheese, have had a tremendous cultural impact, and resonate with the flavors of “home.”

But in a post-hurricane Katrina world, the citizens of New Orleans are asking themselves some tough questions. While the nightly news coverage featured devastating images from hurricane Katrina, when the camera crews packed up and went home, what remained was an equally compelling story about basic survival: How do you save the food system?

In the days following hurricane Katrina, Poppy began to assess the damage. Taking up residence at her sister-in-law’s home in Baton Rouge, Poppy was the sole remaining person from New Orleans’ Crescent City Farmer’s Market still in Louisiana. The mandatory evacuations had scattered residents across the country, and basic communication--phone service, internet and even mail was disrupted for months. (Some residents were without phone service until February 2006, six months after the hurricane hit shore.)

From her southern outpost, Poppy sleuthed together the puzzle: What happened to the farmer’s market vendors?

Assessing the damage, she embarked on a mission to determine the impact on the vendors: What was their current situation? Their loss? And did they have anything left to sell?

An e-mail from a shrimp fisherman, dated September 15, 2005 painted a grim picture:

Hi y’all.

Things could definitely be better. We have lost everything. The boat
has sunk. We are at the hands of scalpers to rent a barge, a crane, a cherry
picker, and $5/gallon gasoline.

We’ve just about exhausted our savings. I just received my $2,000 from FEMA, and $1,500 is going to the crane operator.

Well, there are some good Samaritans. Ray has nowhere to stay, and the Vietnamese fishermen have taken him in on their boat. They’re helping him, for free. There is a silver lining for everything.

Our home still has 3-4 feet of sludge sitting in it. The only good thing is, I still have some insurance. However, if they bull doze the house like the parish official said in Baton Rouge yesterday, it won’t be enough to cover the mortgage and rebuild. I guess we should have revamped our insurance when real estate soared. Oh well. At this point I can only push forward and I do have beautiful memories of my parents, grandparents, and children.

There is nothing left to our business but a fish cutting room and the cooking rig. I’m sure the Lord is trying somehow to guide me, but I just need to find the path. It will be hard to rebuild the business and the boat, when neither one had any insurance.

I’m wondering how I could possibly get work? Maybe cooking for the workers who are rebuilding everything? I’ve never been afraid of work. I’m willing to do anything to save my family and my husband’s heritage.

I hope that maybe any one of you could shed some light on this grim, grim subject.

Thank you for thinking of me. Words of hope from good friends are
worth their weight in gold. Our home is in Shreveport until my nephew kicks me
out.

I know you’ve all faced tragedy from Katrina and I wish you all the
best in the rebuilding process.

Love,
Kay, a.k.a The Shrimp Girl – this girl will be back!

They quickly learned, desperate times call for basic solutions.

Eventually, Poppy identified the few farmers who had crops left, and cobbled together a 19th century distribution system. Farmers took turns driving produce to a cooking school where there was a working walk-in cooler. The first chefs to return to New Orleans after the hurricane—like John Besh—bought whatever the farmers could supply. An envelope with cash would be left for the farmer, and retrieved on his next trip into town.

As you can tell, Poppy Tooker is a woman who gets things done. In 1999, she founded the New Orleans chapter of Slow Food and is Vice President of the Crescent City Farmers Market. Raised in a food culture with deep traditions, her quest is in preserving both foods and traditions quintessential to their culture.

Through Slow Food’s Arc of Taste and her own “Eat it to Save It” mission, Poppy focuses on regional foods that are often crowded out of the marketplace. Ever heard of Creole cream cheese? A throwback to her childhood, Creole cream cheese was delivered weekly by the milk man. As Poppy puts it, nostalgically, “It was like solid mama’s milk.”

When the local dairies folded, the larger, industrial corporations supplied their dairy from out of state. They didn’t understand this local product. Without a supplier, Creole cream cheese was nearly driven to extinction.

At a Slow Food meeting, Poppy posed the question, “What local food needs to be saved?” The response was unanimous.

Enter the Creole cream cheese revival.

Next question: “How do you save something?” If you can’t buy it, teach people how to make it themselves.

A demonstration at the Crescent City Farmers Market began the Creole cream cheese crusade. Within weeks, dozens of people were making it at home. Add some news coverage and few well-placed articles and eventually, and an artisan Creole cream cheese market was launched. The first product available at the farmers market drew over 200 people. That day, 500 units of Creole cream cheese were completely sold out by 10 AM. “This created a craze like you cannot believe!”

As Poppy tells it, “Today, Creole cream cheese is commonplace again in New Orleans.”

Weaving together survival stories from hurricane Katrina and the urgent need to preserve our food culture, Poppy is quick to note, “Preserving our food traditions, lies not only in an awareness, but a market demand for culturally-rich foods.” Here in the Pacific Northwest, we too have a thriving local food tradition—Olympia Oysters, Shuksan strawberries, etc. Without market demand, these indiginous regional foods could be pushed to extinction.

Poppy’s mission reminds us that food—local food—is an important cultural link. And behind her message is bold-faced call to action: to preserve local food traditions, you must “Eat it to Save It.”

The challenge we are left with is great.

Under the presence of a catastrophic event, like hurricane Katrina, what three things would you preserve? Fundamental to our local way of life, what seeds would you save? Build an ark. What native animals would you include? Consider that during hurricane Katrina, thousands of people lost their entire recipe collection. The displaced citizens of New Orleans, attempting to recreate local dishes were without recipes to guide them back to the flavors of home. In an evacuation situation, what recipes would you bring?

This is your food heritage.

What would you preserve?

Moonstruck by Master Chocolatier, Julian Rose

French Canadian Julian Rose is a master chocolatier and the director of research & development for Portland’s Moonstruck Chocolates. Julian is classically trained both in pastry and confections and is a highly regarded authority on chocolate. Dessert Professional magazine recently named him one of the top ten chocolatiers in North America.

I reached out to Julian, hoping to snag a list of his most influential cookbooks. His response was brief and the book choices weighed heavily on molecular gastronomy. While science is a major component for confectioners, his list surprised me. I arranged a call with Julian, hoping to learn more about him and the motivations behind his list.

Julian turned to molecular gastronomy…seeking “a complete approach to food.”

“It’s a conscious decision.”

In school, he found instructors offered insufficient answers to his questions, “We do it this way because…that’s what you do.”

“I wanted to understand why things worked—not ‘just because.’” He adds, “I don’t push molecular gastronomy, but it’s the foundation of the way food reacts.”

Julian is quick to acknowledge that molecular gastronomy has its pros and cons. “It’s a mistake to do 100% molecular gastronomy.” Balancing science and traditional technique, he emphasizes, “You need to put your soul into it the food.”

After graduating from culinary school, Julian specifically sought out mentors who would explain pastry techniques in depth. While he admired their knowledge, he adds, “Their jobs were easier because they understood the food.”

“Every chef has access to the same ingredients—some pull it off better than others.” Why? It’s in the science.

Mentor Jacques Belanger was a master craftsman in France, and taught specialty classes at the culinary academy. “I took four of his classes. He was approachable and down-to-earth. Happy to share information—a quality I admired.” As Julian explains, he developed entire classes on eggs. “It was fascinating!” Belanger emphasized that timing was critical. When eggs were added to a dish had an effect on the final products’ structure. “For example, egg yolks cook differently than egg whites.”

Turning to his list of books, Julian notes a self-titled copy by Paco Torreblanca. “Paco cooks for the king and queen of Spain and he’s very generous with recipes.” His voice builds with a harnessed enthusiasm, “I asked him for his very best chocolate cake and he gave it to me!”

While some chefs are notoriously secretive with their recipes, Julian takes an opposing view, “Sharing [recipes] makes you better. It’s out there for the world…and it pushes you to be better.”

Julian sheds light on Paco’s career. “He used to be a culinary chef but he didn’t derive pleasure from it. Pacco is very exact and he wasn’t getting satisfaction from being a culinary chef. But in baking, there’s a big difference between 10 milligrams and 15.

Because of his culinary background, he has an interesting approach to pastry. He uses flavor associations that are very different--utilizing herbs and savory spices.”

He continues, “Paco’s presentations are also very naked and yet delicate in the way he holds back. For example, he uses a crystallized branch of rosemary on a cake. You open the box and get a whiff of rosemary. It creates a desire and you immediately want to eat the cake.

Everything Paco does is spot on—there’s nothing neglected. For example, his boxes are black with a small window so you can see a tiny view of what’s inside. It’s the right box. Everything is spot on. For him, there is no other way. From the moment he gets up in the morning, he’s a professional. He would not do less, because he would not be satisfied.”

Within the context of food, Julian says, “I am both a sculptor and a painter.” Exposing the vulnearable nature of the artist, he adds, “Inside, you’re never happy with what you express on the outside. It never comes to life exactly the way you wanted it to be—the perfect expression.”

Julian picks up momentum and sums, “There’s a fine line between ‘artists’ and ‘chefs.’” It’s the creative drive that fuels the passion. “You have to be an artist to be in this business.”

Traca’s note: I’m intrigued by the process of moving from idea to expression and I asked Julian, “How do you capture your ideas?”

“I carry a voice recorder with me.” His voice trails off. “Sometimes I get inspired standing on the corner of a street. I used to try remembering those bits of inspiration and by the time I put pen to paper, it was lost. A friend of mine bought me that tape recorder and I carry it with me everywhere. So when I’m standing on a street corner…or wherever I am, I can capture those ideas. I play back the tape and record those ideas in my notebook.

When I have a dry spell, it’s a source of inspiration.”
--

Most Influential Books:

Fine Chocolate, Great Experience by Jean-Pierre Wybauw This is a wonderful book on fine chocolate and one of the first books to explore the science of chocolate on all facets.


Molecular Gastronomy by Herve This This one is not exactly a cook book but a food science book with in depth relations to food transformation. Herve This is the grandfather of molecular cuisine and trend setter!


The Science of the Oven by Herve This This is a great book exploring the science behind cooking. It has the fundamental explanations on how food reacts to heat and cold.


Taste Buds and Molecules by Francois Chartier This is a book exploring the taste buds and how the perceive flavors. Then by taking a given wine, tells you how to compose a flavor association in a menu. (French, not available in English. Read comments here.)


Paco Torreblanca by Paco Torreblanca This recipe book is a very progressive pastry bible from one of Europe’s best pastry chefs from Spain. Paco has a natural sense of aesthetics and flavor association like no one else!


Biography:

CHEF JULIAN ROSE
Master Chocolatier and Director of Research & Development
Moonstruck Chocolate Co.

World-renowned chef Julian Rose joined Portland-based Moonstruck Chocolate Co. as its Master Chocolatier and Director of Research and Development in October 2007. Chef Rose is a classically educated pastry chef and confectioner who is known the world over as an authority on chocolate, and he brings more than 25 years of experience to his position with Moonstruck Chocolate Co.

As Master Chocolatier and Director of R&D at Moonstruck Chocolate Co., Rose is responsible for developing new products, refining existing ones and ensuring the utmost quality of the entire Moonstruck Chocolate Co. product line, which includes chocolates, beverages and pastries.

Rose came to Moonstruck Chocolate Co. from the world of private consulting following a seven-year stint at large European chocolate manufacturer Barry Callebaut. Rose served as Callebaut’s North American Technical Advisor, as well as Director of Callebaut’s Chocolate Academy in Canada. In these roles,Rose taught and demonstrated the subtle secrets of chocolate to the best pastry chefs, confectioners and culinary instructors throughout the U.S.,Canada and Mexico.

Rose was born and raised in Montreal, where his family owned a well-known and well-regarded pastry shop, “Patisserie Rose,” for nearly 40 years. Rose began working in the shop at a young age and in 1980 decided to formalize his education, enrolling in the pastry program at the prestigious Institut de tourisme et d’hotellerie du Quebec (ITHQ). After graduating with honors,Rose took over the pastry chef positions at two restaurants in Montreal while continuing to work in his family’s pastry shop on weekends. In 1984, he returned to ITHQ to attend the chocolate and confectionary program, continuing his never-ending quest to perfect his craft.

Shortly after, Rose began a private consulting business that counted Barry Callebaut as a client, and in 2000 he went to work for Callebaut. Since joining Moonstruck Chocolate Co., he has created a number of acclaimed new products, including the company’s first Sea Salt Caramels, the unique Chocolate Moonsticks and the politically themed Election Collection ’08, featuring truffles handcrafted in the shapes of donkeys and elephants.

Interview with Momofuku Chef David Chang

David Chang, pictured with Serious Eats writer, Leslie Kelly

The brainchild behind New York’s hottest restaurant group, Momofuku, was in town. On tour with his first book, David Chang fielded questions from a group of reporters at Mark Fuller’s restaurant, Spring Hill. (Props to Kim Rickett’s Cooks & Books for organizing the event.)

While David spoke, we were treated to dishes from the book. As the first course arrived, he noted “It’s surreal having someone else make your food.”

Prior to his visit, research on David ran the gamut from “One Who Drops F* Bombs” (as a cook, is that really surprising?) to a deep sense of humility. Among the reviews, the common thread was an uncanny reverence.

I posed the question on Twitter, “What’s the big deal about David Chang?” The response confirmed: chef worship.

Call me suspicious, but I didn’t see the point in worshiping a guy whose restaurant is 2,000 miles away. After our chat....call me a convert! I heart David Chang….here’s why:

Writing fast & furious, my notes from our group chat....



Why did you write the cookbook?

My first thought was, “We have to document this because I don’t think we’ll be around in a year!”

Tell me about how your develop recipes. I understand you have a group of cooks who e-mail each other recipe ideas.

"We hit our sweet spot with that about a year ago.”

“Our cooks are constantly talking about food and ripping ideas apart. It’s not just criticism for the sake of criticism--you have to have logical approach to why a dish will or won’t work.”

As we’ve grown, the group [who weighs in on new recipes] has gotten larger. Everyone is contributing to the group and eventually, it splintered off into smaller groups.

“The creative process is a big struggle. It’s not just about new ideas, but improving existing ideas. It’s frustrating when people stop critiquing ideas that have already been accepted.”

As we’ve gotten bigger, it’s been difficult. We now have 300 employees and will be opening our 5th restaurant soon.

“We need to be our own harshest critic. There’s always a way to make it better.”

“If we just meet expectations, we’ve failed.”

When [New York Times Food Critic Frank] Bruni came in…I said, “Who cares?” We have a level of accountability on the team. I want our standards higher than a Michelin three-star restaurant. When Bruni leaves our restaurant, I want him to think, “Good Lord, what the fuck just happened?”

“Having high standards has always been synonymous with fine dining. Why? Why not us? Why not now?”

Ko is a 12-seat restaurant. We have a duck dish on the menu that’s dried for 24 days. We make forcemeat out of the legs and stuff it under the skin. The duck is then roasted and basted on a spit. As a diner, you see the meat roasting…and by the time the meat course is ready, the duck is done.

That dish is a good example of our collaboration process. I presented it as a challenge [to the cooks]. The staff came up with that technique and I thought, “Why didn’t I think of it?” It’s incredible!


Any foods you don’t like?

“I’ll try anything once, but I really don’t like farmed salmon.”



[In the book, he profiles meat/bacon purveyor Allan Benton.] How did you find him?

I was at an event and I tried his bacon. “Good Lord, what is that?! Who is this? Where did you get it? Oh my God!”

“I don’t even think I asked. I went into the walk-in and stole myself a slab of bacon!”

For all of our purveyors, if I can’t visit the farm, I want as much information as possible. When I asked Allan to send me some information, I got a ripped piece of butcher paper. It was an incredibly long letter—in pencil. I thought, “You’re the man!”

Allan became instrumental in our food. His bacon is deep and smoky…“Allan’s bacon is a real slap in the face. We use it as a flavoring agent—like a flavoring vehicle. It allowed us to open new doors in terms of what we were serving.”

His story should be told. He also makes country smoked ham. It’s a unique product and I’ve grown to appreciate it. It’s like jazz or baseball. It’s American & we need to support it. There’s nothing like country smoked ham.


Momofuku's signature dish: pork buns. What is it about them that resonates with people?

It was an 11th hour dish added to our first menu. I don’t know what the appeal is, but I do know…I’ve seen more vegetarians converted off that dish! It’s a riff on Peking duck. At the time, I had no idea that steamed red was so prevalent in China.

[That dish is] about creativity and working within the limitations of what you have. We had 600 square feet. The menu was limited to ramen, pork belly and pork shoulder. We had to outsource the buns. But in that limited space, we came up with different variations on the pork bun---deep fried, buns with eggs. We had all these mushrooms, so we created a mushroom bun. We had all these chicharrones…

At the restaurant, we have a bun station and they do nothing but make buns all night. I don’t care who it is—everyone starts out there. If they don’t work there, we weed them out. It’s one of the most important stations.


Cooks on TV. What’s your take on it?

“I didn’t start cooking to be on TV.”

I know why certain chefs do it—they do it to put asses in seats. Those shows (like Iron Chef) are so important to keep restaurants busy.

“Alex Lee is probably one of the greatest chefs in America, and he’s one of the most intimidating people. Alex lost to Cat Cora! That’s TV.”

“They should have a show on why [Alex Lee] is so important. But it’s TV and there’s not a vehicle for that right now. I understand it, but I also have the flexibility to say ‘no.’ If the right opportunity presented itself, sure, I’m interested.”

“I already feel like I’m becoming a caricature of myself. I want people to learn. I’m struggling [with TV] – I know it will open doorways for people. I’m just saying, if I do it, I hope it’s the right call.”

When Heston Blumenthal agreed to do TV, he said the only way he’d do it is if it would help finance research and development. [His show] helped pay the bills.



Thoughts on up and coming cooks?

I would question cooking as a career…it’s a very different thing these days. I tell my cooks, “Dude, if you go on Top Chef, I’m going to be so pissed off!”

The standard of cooking is softer these days. It’s become more of a white collar profession. As a chef, it’s become more difficult. You can’t yell at a cook anymore. Cooking is more civil now.

“Jeremy Fox (Executive Chef/Partner in Ubuntu restaurant, Napa, CA) told me that one of his cooks has a journal of every hour she worked at the restaurant. Can you believe it?”

“If you’re in this business to make money, you’re the dumbest person alive!”

I never asked how much I got paid. I just thought, “Thank God I got a job working for the chef I wanted to.”

Young cooks say, “I want to learn how to butcher.”

I tell them, “Sure, come in on your day off.”

They say, “What? Then I have to work 7 days in a row!”

My thought is…“Yeah, and ?”

When I was a young cook, that’s just what you did. I’d work for weeks without a day off. I didn’t care if I got paid. I was there to learn.



What’s your hiring criteria?

Ko is like the Special Forces. New cooks make 3 dishes and family meal. Family meal is the most important meal in a restaurant.

I’ll ask about their knife skills. “If you tell me your knife skills are great and your knives aren’t even sharp? Their knives are so dull…I can scratch my back with them...Fuck you!”

“Knife skills in America can’t begin to compare to those in Japan.”

“The most dangerous person in the room is the one with nothing to lose. I want my staff to know everything is against us. I’m looking for drive and tenacity. Push, push, push.”

I can tell who is going to be a great cook but never a great chef. Great cooks don’t have to struggle. They’re just better at it. I ask them, “How the hell are you doing this?” There cooks who are so talented, they fall apart when they have to teach it. It’s frustrating when the person standing next to them doesn’t get it.

“I’ll take a team of scrappy cooks any day. They’re the ones who screw up and can’t sleep because they’re trying to figure out how to do it better.”

The best food comes from a team effort.

It used to be that cooks would stay 5 years at a restaurant. Now you’re lucky if they stay 1 ½ years. 2 ½ years is great.


Are you cooking on the line much?

I don’t cook in my restaurants anymore.

I have to learn how to dial it back. “I don’t know how to keep service from affecting my health and my mental space.”

“In the early years, I could work in a ‘focused rage’. I can’t do it now.”

“We built this open kitchen and I thought, ‘What am I doing? I hate talking with customers!’ I used to be rude.”

People would ask, “What’s this?”

“And I’d say, ‘Look buddy, I’ve got a full board [of orders]….’ I don’t want to talk to customers when I’m working.”

It’s difficult because “as a line cook—that’s how you measure a good day at work. You feel like you accomplish things: you do your mise en place, have a good service, go out for a couple beers, sleep, and go back and do it again. As a line cook, you know what a good day is.”

Now that my role has changed….”I don’t know how to quantify what a ‘good day’ is.”

***

Momofuku
By David Chang and Peter Mehan
Clarkson Potter, October 2009

The Worlds of Flavor Conference

Several years ago, I made a long list of dreams—no holds barred. Hopes, dreams, and “do I dare?” secret fantasies were compiled…but not forgotten. Cast among a stack of papers, I recently discovered The List. My initial reaction was somewhere between the angst of a high school reunion and an out of body experience (is this really me?)

I can hardly remember a time when I didn’t bake, but there it is: #23 Bake a cake, followed by #24 Take a cooking class. Not only did I take cooking classes, I became a guest chef booker for a cooking school and this year, I taught my first class!

We’ve come a long way, baby…..

Scanning The List, wedged between #42 Start a blog and #44 Travel abroad is #43 Attend the Worlds of Flavor Conference. This one definitely falls under the category “Do I dare?” Picture three decadent days in Napa Valley, surrounded by 900 of the world’s culinary luminaries. It’s a proverbial Who’s Who feast, open to the trade only.

In a crazy twist of fate…I scored a pass to this year’s conference! The theme is World Street Food and World Comfort Food. With a speaker's list that includes Rick Bayless, John T. Edge, Andrea Nguyen, Norman Van Aken, Paula Wolfert, and Naomi Duguid....I’m positively giddy!

****

Curious about what we'll be covering at the Worlds of Flavor Conference? Read on....

Presenter Bios


Agenda:

Thursday, November 12

4:00 PM Registration
Atrium

4:45 PM Welcome and Introduction
Ventura Foods Center for Menu Research & Development
Speakers: Mark Erickson, Charles Henning, Greg Drescher

Introduction of Lead Sponsors
Region of Apulia; Foods from Spain/Wines from Spain; Greek Mediterranean Gastronomy, Wonderful Olive Oil; Sodexo; United Soybean Board

5:05 PM General Session I
World Street Food, World Comfort Food: What We Want to Eat Now
Moderator/Presenter: Rick Bayless
Presenters: Roberto Santibañez, Bobby Chinn, Roy Choi

5:45 PM General Session II
Singapore’s Hawker Food: Into the Night, With Chopsticks!
Introduction: Andrea Nguyen
Moderator/Presenter: K.F. Seetoh
Presenters: Zulkifli Bin Packeer Bawa, Mohan Ismail

6:15 PM General Session III
Slow Flavors of the Mediterranean: Of Pasta Kitchens, Claypots, and Live Fire
Introduction: Ruth Reichl
Moderator: Paul Bartolotta

The Bakers of Apulia: Fresh Scents from the Wood-fired Ovens of Altamura
A live video feed from the outdoor bread oven to do a quick check-in with our bakers Vincenzo D’Ambrosio and Mark Furstenberg

Kitchens of Apulia: Southern Italy’s Grandmothers as Inspiration
Presenters: Domenico Maggi, Sabina Ficco, Luzian Palmieri

Deep, Melting Flavors of Turkey
Video Feed from the Outdoor Live Fire Kitchen
Presenters: Anissa Helou, Musa Dagdeviren, Necdet Kaygin, Burak Epir

Spice Routes of North Africa: By Way of Marrakech, San Francisco, and the
Island of Djerba
Presenters: Mourad Lahlou, Haouari Abderrazak, Paula Wolfert

7:00 PM Tasting and Dinner
World Marketplace
Historic Barrel Room
A festive walk-around event featuring wines and guest chefs preparing world street foods and comfort foods, with a chance to meet our conference faculty—chefs, authors, and other experts—as well as our Worlds of Flavor sponsors.
Sponsored by Region of Apulia; Foods from Spain/Wines from Spain; Greek Mediterranean Gastronomy, Wonderful Olive Oil; Sodexo; United Soybean Board

Guest Chef and Presenter Book Signings

8:30 PM Program Concludes for the Evening

Friday, November 13

7:45 AM A Light Napa Valley Breakfast
Ventura Foods Center for Menu Research & Development

8:30 AM General Session IV
Peru and Brazil: Translating Flavors, From the Streets and Markets to Restaurants
Moderators: Jessica Harris, Maricel Presilla
Presenters: Edinho “Edson” Engel, Ana Celia Batista Santos, Jorge Luis “Coque” Ossio, Pedro Miguel Schiaffino, Marilu Madueño

9:20 AM General Session V
Regional Mexico: Antojitos, From Tortas and Tacos to Tamales
Moderator: Rick Bayless
Presenters: Roberto Santibañez, Beatriz Ramírez Woolrich, Jorge Alvarez, Richard Sandoval

10:00 AM Coffee and Conversation Break
Sponsored by Unilever Foodsolutions

10:30 AM General Session VI
What’s Next in Spain: Fast, Slow, and Casual Flavors
Introduction: Jim Poris
Moderator: Gerry Dawes
Presenters: Paco Roncero, Albert Asin, Daniel Olivella, Seamus Mullen

With a live video feed from our outdoor live fire kitchen previewing lunch with Mai Pham and Suvir Saran

11:20 AM General Session VII
Tasting Greece: Of Hand Held Pitas, Savory Braises, and the World of Meze
Moderators: Aglaia Kremezi, Diane Kochilas
Presenters: Christoforos Peskias, Jim Botsacos

NOON Lunch
Flavors of Spice Routes: Street Foods, Comfort Foods from Turkey to India and Southeast Asia
Herb Terrace and First Floor
Guest Chefs and Experts from Australia, India, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Turkey and Vietnam
Sponsored by McCormick for Chefs

1:30 PM General Session VIII
Made in America I: From Roadside and Curbside Eats to Vernacular Flavors
Re-imagined
Ventura Foods Center for Menu Research & Development
Introduction: Jonathan Gold
Moderator/Presenter: John T. Edge
Presenters: Donald Link, Charles Phan

2:30 PM Coffee and Conversation Break
Sponsored by Bunge Oils

2:45 PM Concurrent Activities
Various campus locations

2:45 PM Seminar Series
(2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Also see Kitchen Demonstration Workshop Series starting at 2:45 PM.

Seminar I A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Ecolab Theater
The Vietnamese and Mexican Kitchens: Strategies for Slow, Craveable Flavors
Presenters: Mai Pham, Roberto Santibañez
Sponsored by National Peanut Board

Seminar II A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Ventura Foods Center for Menu R & D
Mexican Street Food and American Restaurants: Ready for Prime Time!
Moderator/Presenter: Iliana de la Vega
Presenters: Jorge Alvarez, Rick Bayless, Beatriz Ramírez Woolrich

Seminar III A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
DeBaun Theater
World Pasta Kitchen: Global Comfort Food
Moderator/Presenter: Aaron McCargo, Jr.
Presenters: Ida Shen, Bruno Wehren
Sponsored by Barilla America

Seminar IV A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Williams Center for Flavor Discovery
The Spanish Kitchen, 2010: Casual Menus—and Compelling Flavor Dynamics— from Madrid to New York
Moderator: Gerry Dawes
Presenters: Paco Roncero, Seamus Mullen
Sponsored by Foods from Spain

Seminar V A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies
Viking Range Corporation Tasting Theater (first floor)
The Great Tapas Wines of Spain and Inspired Flavors That Pair with Them
Session Leader: Doug Frost
Guest Chef/Discussant: Daniel Olivella
Sponsored by Wines from Spain

Seminar VI A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies
Napa Valley Vintners Association Tasting Theater (second floor)
A Peruvian Flavor Immersion: Tasting the Best of Lima and Cusco
Session Leader: Arturo Rubio
Panelists: Jorge Luis “Coque” Ossio, Pedro Miguel Schiaffino,
Marilu Madueño

2:45 PM Kitchen Demonstration Workshop Series
(2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Third Floor Teaching Kitchen, Outdoor Live Fire Kitchens

Kitchen Workshop #1 A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Hot Kitchen
Seafood, Pasta, and Tagines: Flavors from Southern Italy and North Africa
Moderator/Presenter: Paul Bartolotta
Presenters: Haouari Abderrazak, Paula Wolfert

Kitchen Workshop #2 A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Hot Kitchen
World Comfort Food: Seasonal Strategies for Farm-to-Table Cooking
Workshop Leaders: Matthew Weingarten, Charles Phan
Sponsored by Sodexo

Kitchen Workshop #3 A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Hot Kitchen
Of Brazilian Kitchens and African Traditions: Casual Flavors for American Menus
Workshop Leader: Jessica Harris
Presenters: Ana Celia Batista Santos, Edinho “Edson” Engel

Kitchen Workshop #4 A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Cold Kitchen
Japanese Street Food, Comfort Food: Savoring the Art and Craft
Workshop Leader: Hiroko Shimbo
Presenters: Masaharu Morimoto, Scott Whitman

Kitchen Workshop #5 A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Cold Kitchen
Korean Tacos and Other Savories to “Tweet” About from an LA Food Truck
Workshop Leader: Roy Choi

Kitchen Workshop #6 A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Outdoor Live Fire Kitchen (front of Greystone)
Malaysia and Indonesia: Big Flavors for Live Fires
Workshop Leader/Presenter: Robert Danhi
Presenters: Alexander Ong, William Wongso
Sponsored by California Raisin Marketing Board

Kitchen Workshop #7 A (2:45 PM—3:45 PM)
Outdoor Live Fire Kitchen (back of Greystone)
World Live Fire: Street Food and Small Plates from Thailand to Greece and Turkey
Moderator: Joyce Goldstein
Presenters: Musa Dagdeviren, Aglaia Kremezi, Chai Siriyarn

3:45 PM Break

4:15 PM Concurrent Activities
Various campus locations

4:15 PM Seminar Series
(4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Also see Kitchen Demonstration Workshop Series starting at 4:15 PM.

Seminar I B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Ecolab Theater
Apulia: Flavor Discovery and Comfort Food at the Heart of Southern Italy
Introduction: Mark Furstenberg
Moderator/Presenter: Domenico Maggi
Presenters: Antonio De Rosa, Riccardo Olanda , Vincenzo D'Ambrosio
Sponsored by Region of Apulia

Seminar II B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Ventura Foods Center for Menu R & D
Multi-Cultural Flavor Strategies for Contemporary American Menus
Moderator/Presenter: Norman Van Aken
Presenters: Jorge Luis “Coque” Ossio, Edinho “Edson” Engel
Sponsored by United Soybean Board

Seminar III B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
DeBaun Theater
Remarkable Flavors: Fast, Casual Mexican and the Wines of Rioja
Moderator/Presenter: Adrian Murcia
Presenter: Rick Bayless
Sponsored by Vibrant Rioja

Seminar IV B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Williams Center for Flavor Discovery
Hot, Sweet, Sour, Salty: Balancing Flavor in the South Asian Kitchen
Presenters: Alexander Ong, Neela Paniz
Sponsored by California Raisin Marketing Board

Seminar V B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies
Viking Range Corporation Tasting Theater (first floor)
Of Asian Spice Routes & Street Food: Discovering a World of Flavor
Introduction: Kevan Vetter
Session Leader: Christine Manfield
Guest Chefs/Discussants: Naomi Duguid, Burak Epir
Sponsored by McCormick for Chefs

Seminar VI B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies
Napa Valley Vintners Association Tasting Theater (second floor)
Catalonia: Great Wines with Small Bites to Match
Session Leaders: Karen MacNeil, Jesús Bernad
Guest Chef/Discussant: Albert Asin
Sponsored by Catalonia, the Gateway to the Mediterranean by Prodeca

4:15 PM Kitchen Demonstration Workshop Series
(4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Third Floor Teaching Kitchen, Outdoor Live Fire Kitchens

Kitchen Workshop #1 B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Hot Kitchen
Peru: Cross Currents of Flavors from Spain to Asia
Workshop Leader: Pedro Miguel Schiaffino

Kitchen Workshop #2 B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Hot Kitchen
Feasts of Singapore: Of Screaming Hot Woks and the Scent of the Tropics
Workshop Leader: K.F. Seetoh
Presenters: Zulkifli Bin Packeer Bawa, Andi Ng

Kitchen Workshop #3 B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Hot Kitchen
Turkey: Regional Flavors, Casual Concepts and the Kitchens of Istanbul
Moderator: Anissa Helou
Presenters: Musa Dagdeviren, Necdet Kaygin

Kitchen Workshop #4 B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Cold Kitchen
Thai Sweets: Dessert Strategies from Bangkok, Chiang Mai and San Francisco
Moderator/Presenter: Emily Luchetti
Presenters: Chai Siriyarn, Kannika Siriyarn, Kobkaew Najpinij, Niphatchanok “Ning” Najpinij

Kitchen Workshop #5 B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Cold Kitchen
World Chickpea, Lentil, and Spices Smackdown: Irresistible Flavors from India to North Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean
Moderator/Presenter: Joyce Goldstein
Presenters: Suvir Saran, Haouari Abderrrazak, Paula Wolfert, Stephania Cambanis

Kitchen Workshop #6 B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Outdoor Live Fire Kitchen (front of Greystone)
Street Food, Comfort Food, and the Pig: From Vietnam to Cuba and New Orleans
Moderator: Jim Poris
Presenters: Bobby Chinn, Maricel Presilla, Donald Link

Kitchen Workshop #7 B (4:15 PM—5:15 PM)
Outdoor Live Fire Kitchen (back of Greystone)
From a Greek Village Kitchen: Live Fires and Ancient Flavors
Moderator: Diane Kochilas
Presenters: Christoforos Peskias, Jim Botsacos
Sponsored by Greek Mediterranean Gastronomy, Wonderful Olive Oil

5:15 PM Break

5:30 PM General Session IX
World Flavors and Value Strategies: The American Food Revolution Rolls On Ventura Foods Center for Menu Research & Development
Presenter: Dr. Tim Ryan

5:45 PM General Session X
Vietnam and Japan: Big Bites on the Run, From Street Corners to Train Stations
Moderator/Presenter: Mai Pham
Presenters: Ngoc Tinh, Bobby Chinn, Masaharu Morimoto, Hiroko Shimbo

6:40 PM General Session XI
Indonesia and India: Of Street Snacks, Sambals, and Savory Curries
Moderator: K.F. Seetoh
Moderator/Presenter: Suvir Saran
Presenters: William Wongso, Hemant Mathur, Neela Paniz

7:30 PM Tasting and Dinner
World Marketplace
Historic Barrel Room
A memorable immersion into the sights, smells, sounds, and flavors of more than a dozen food cultures around the world, featuring guest chefs, colorful market stalls, music and dance performances, comparative tastings, book signings, and more.

Guest Chef and Presenter Book Signings

9:30 PM Program Concludes for the Evening

Saturday, November 14

8:00 AM A Light Napa Valley Breakfast
Ventura Foods Center for Menu Research & Development

8:45 AM Concurrent Activities
Various campus locations

8:45 AM Seminar Series
(8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Also see Kitchen Demonstration Workshop Series starting at 8:45 AM.

Seminar I (8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Ecolab Theater
Spanish Casual, from Traditional to Modern: Tapas, Bocadillos, Cocas, and More
Moderator/Presenter: Gerry Dawes
Presenters: Paco Roncero, Seamus Mullen, Albert Asin
Sponsored by Foods from Spain

Seminar II (8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Ventura Foods Center for Menu R & D
East Asian Street Food: Fueling Concepts for American Menus
Moderator/Presenter: Andrew Hunter
Presenter: Roy Choi
Sponsored by Kikkoman Sales USA

Seminar III (8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
DeBaun Theater
World Comfort Food: Seasonal Strategies for Farm-to-Table Cooking
Moderator: Jim Poris
Presenters: Neela Paniz, Matthew Weingarten
Sponsored by Sodexo

Seminar IV (8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Williams Center for Flavor Discovery
Mediterranean Fresh: An Odyssey of Flavor Dynamics and Small Dishes
Moderator/Presenter: Joyce Goldstein
Presenters: John Csukor, Diane Kochilas, Stephania Cambanis
Sponsored by Almond Board of California

Seminar V (8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies
Viking Range Corporation Tasting Theater (first floor)
Albariño Wines of Rias Biaxas: Pairing with Asian Bites
Session Leader: Karen MacNeil
Guest Chefs/Discussants: Robert Lam, Scott Whitman
Sponsored by Rias Baixas, Exceptional Albariño from Spain

Seminar VI (8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies
Napa Valley Vintners Association Tasting Theater (second floor)
Apulia: Flavor Strategies, Techniques, the Foods of Southern Italy…and the Wines that Pair with Them
Session Leader: Domenico Maggi
Panelists: Sabina Ficco, Luzian Palmieri
Sponsored by Region of Apulia

8:45 AM Kitchen Demonstration Workshop Series
(8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Third Floor Teaching Kitchen, Outdoor Live Fire Kitchens

Kitchen Workshop #1 (8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Hot Kitchen
Signature Flavors: Asian and Latin Street Food as Inspiration
Workshop Leader: Norman Van Aken
Presenters: Christine Manfield, Jorge Alvarez
Sponsored by United Soybean Board

Kitchen Workshop #2 (8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Hot Kitchen
The Corn Kitchen: The Heart of Mexican Comfort Food
Moderator: Richard Sandoval
Presenters: Iliana de la Vega, Beatriz Ramírez Woolrich

Kitchen Workshop #3 (8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Hot Kitchen
Vietnam and Indonesia: A Heritage of Long, Slow, and Complex Flavors
Moderator/Presenter: Mai Pham
Presenters: Ngoc Tinh, Bobby Chinn, William Wongso

Kitchen Workshop #4 (8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Cold Kitchen
Mediterranean Bread-based Snacks and Street Foods
Moderator/Presenter: Anissa Helou
Presenters: Mark Furstenberg, Vincenzo D’Ambrosio, Riccardo Olanda,
Aglaia Kremezi, Daniel Olivella

Kitchen Workshop #5 (8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Outdoor Live Fire Kitchen (front of Greystone)
Turkey, from Istanbul and the Aegean to Gazientep: Of Street Foods and
Live Fires
Moderator: Burak Epir
Presenters: Musa Dagdeviren, Necdet Kaygin

Kitchen Workshop #6 (8:45 AM—9:45 AM)
Outdoor Live Fire Kitchen (back of Greystone)
Mastering the Indian Tandoor: Techniques for Memorable Flavors
Moderator: Suvir Saran
Presenter: Hemant Mathur

9:45 AM Coffee and Conversation Break
Sponsored by United States Potato Board

10:00 AM General Session XII
Italian Comfort Food: Inspiration from the Sea, and from Apulia in the South
Moderator/Presenter: Paul Bartolotta
Presenters: Corrado De Virgilio, Antonio De Rosa, Riccardo Olanda

With a live feed from the outdoor, wood-fired bread oven with Mark Furstenberg and Vincenzo D’Ambrosio

10:40 AM General Session XIII
Chasing Flavors, Dodging Traffic: On the Streets of Thailand and Malaysia
Moderator: Robert Danhi
Presenters: Chai Siriyarn, Kobkaew Najpinij, Niphatchanok “Ning” Najpinij, Alexander Ong

11:20 AM General Session XIV
Flavors in Migration I: Asian Street Foods without Borders
Moderator: Suvir Saran
Presenters: Christine Manfield, Naomi Duguid

NOON Lunch
World Marketplace
Historic Barrel Room
A memorable immersion into the sights, smells, sounds, and flavors of more than a dozen food cultures around the world, featuring guest chefs, colorful market stalls, music and dance performances, comparative tastings, book signings, and more.

Guest Chef and Presenter Book Signings

1:15 PM General Session XV
Ventura Foods Center for Menu Research & Development
Of Hot Fires and Aromatics: Modern Takes on Ancient Flavors, from Turkey to Morocco
Moderator: Anissa Helou
Presenters: Musa Dagdeviren, Necdet Kaygin, Mourad Lahlou

2:00 PM General Session XVI
Made in America II: World Street Food Goes Upscale, Circa 2010
Presenters: Ruth Reichl, Susan Feniger

2:40PM General Session XVII
Flavors in Migration II: African, Spanish, and Latin Exchanges
Presenters: Jessica Harris, Maricel Presilla

3:20 PM Break

3:30 PM Concurrent Activities
Various campus locations

3:30 PM Seminar Series
(3:30 PM—4:30 PM)
Also see Kitchen Demonstration Workshop Series starting at 3:30 PM.

Seminar I (3:30 PM—4:30 PM)
Ecolab Theater
Fresh from Barcelona: Tapas, Cava, and the Flavors of Catalonia
Moderator: Gerry Dawes
Presenters: Albert Asin, Jesús Bernad, Daniel Olivella
Sponsored by Catalonia, the Gateway to the Mediterranean by Prodeca

Seminar II (3:30 PM—4:30 PM)
Ventura Center for Menu R & D
Athens to the Islands: Modern Greek Comfort Food
Introduction: Cat Cora
Moderators/Presenters: Diane Kochilas, Aglaia Kremezi
Presenters: Christoforos Peskias, Jim Botsacos
Sponsored by Greek Mediterranean Gastronomy, Wonderful Olive Oil

Seminar III (3:30 PM—4:30 PM)
DeBaun Theater
Singapore: Secrets of the Hawker Kitchen
Moderator: Violet Oon
Presenter: Mohan Ismail

Seminar IV (3:30 PM—4:30 PM)
Williams Center
Street Food, Comfort Food Along the World Spice Routes: The Brazilian Kitchen
Introduction: Kevan Vetter
Moderator/Presenter: Almir DaFonseca
Presenters/Panelists: Edinho “Edson” Engel, Ana Celia Batista Santos
Sponsored by McCormick for Chefs

Seminar V (3:30 PM—4:30 PM)
Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies
Viking Range Corporation Tasting Theater (first floor)
The Albariño Wines of Rias Biaxas: Pairing with Asian Bites
Session Leader: Karen MacNeil
Guest Chefs/Discussants: Robert Lam, Scott Whitman
Sponsored by Rias Baixas, Exceptional Albariño from Spain

Seminar VI (3:30 PM—4:30 PM)
Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies
Napa Valley Vintners Association Tasting Theater (second floor)
The Great Tapas Wines of Spain and Inspired Flavors that Pair with Them
Session Leader: Doug Frost
Guest Chef/Discussant: Seamus Mullen
Sponsored by Wines from Spain

3:30 PM Kitchen Demonstration Workshop Series
(3:30 PM—4:30 PM)
Third Floor Teaching Kitchen

Kitchen Workshop #1 (3:30 PM—4:30 PM)
Hot Kitchen
Kitchens of Apulia: Slow Flavors of Southern Italy
Workshop Leader: Domenico Maggi
Presenters: Antonio De Rosa, Corrado De Virgilio, Luzian Palmieri, Sabina Ficco
Sponsored by Region of Apulia

Kitchen Workshop #2 (3:30 PM—4:30 PM)
Hot Kitchen
Peru, from Ceviche to Anticuchos: Taking Street Food into Casual and Fine Dining
Workshop Leader: Arturo Rubio
Presenters: Jorge Luis “Coque” Ossio, Pedro Miguel Schiaffino, Marilu Madueño

Kitchen Workshop #3 (3:30 PM—4:30 PM)
Hot Kitchen
Of Chili Jam and Pad Thai: Building Thai Flavors through Sauce-making
and the Wok
Moderator/Presenter: Chai Siriyarn
Presenters: Kobkaew Najpinij, Niphatchanok “Ning” Najpinij

4:30 PM Break

4:45 PM General Session XVIII: Town Hall
World Flavors…On a Stick, In a Bowl, On the Run…A Game Changer?
Moderator: Greg Drescher
Presenter: Jonathan Gold
Panelists: Rick Bayless, Roy Choi, Gerry Dawes, John T. Edge, Susan Feniger,
Mark Furstenberg, Jonathan Gold, Jessica Harris, Anissa Helou, Diane Kochilas, Maricel Presilla, Jim Poris, Ruth Reichl, K.F. Seetoh, Suvir Saran

6:00 PM Concluding Remarks
Speakers: Rick Bayless, Greg Drescher

The James Beard Celebrity Chef Dinner

Back in the day...and between restaurant gigs, I took a job with a temp agency that specialized in catering personnel. I'd ring them up in the morning, "Any work for me?"

A long pause was inevitably followed by the rustling of papers. Bored and exhausted, a voice responded with my marching orders, "I gotta a country club dinner with a hosted bar. Be there by 3:00." She droned on, "Expect to be there eight hours, maybe longer. Staff meal will be provided." Without ceremonly, the line would die abruptly. No questions, no good bye. Just be there.

As a temp-for-hire, our standard uniform comprised of a tuxedo shirt (oh-so-sexy for women--they never fit over breasts, waists or hips), a hook-in-the-front bow tie and to add insult to injury...a Rat Pack-era cummerbund. In that ill-fitting shirt/cummerbund ensemble, my breasts jutted out like torpedoes! Thankfully, from the waist down, we could wear anything...as long as it was black.

Wherever we worked, temp help were low men in the pecking order...and this was made abundantly clear. Relegated to all the shitty tasks, we'd haul cases of plates, racks of stemware, and wheel bulky 10' round tables from room to room. Wearing through my deodorant long before dinner, I learned to pack an extra supply.

I was lost in this memory when the elevator discretely announced our arrival. An automated voice cooed in a slight British accent "Seventy-fifth floor." The doors slid open, soundlessly. Crowned by a country club on the uppermost floors, the tallest building in Seattle is distinguished by wrap around windows and jaw-dropping views from every angle.

Ten years ago I worked here as a temp for Easter brunch.

Tonight?

I am dining on a media pass, courtesy of the James Beard Foundation.


My former client is tonight's Celebrity Chef. He and the in-house chef will alternate courses on a menu laden with the finest delicacies -- foie gras, king crab, and trout from Tasmania.

We may be in the midst of a recession, but tonight we honor The James Beard Foundation and the wine is flowing!





The James Beard Celebrity Chef Dinner: May, 2009
Seattle, WA






Pre-dinner views & appetizers, served with:

Kendall-Jackson 2007 Vintner’s Reserve Riesling

Chef James Hassell's Balsamic Fig with Cana de Oveja on Rosemary Shortbread




I stepped in the kitchen to say hello....

Tyler and Celebrity Chef Ethan Stowell, preparing:
Geoduck Salad with Radish, Celery and Trampetti Olive Oil

Detail: Geoduck Salad with Radish, Celery and Trampetti Olive Oil

Chef James Hassell's Shrimp Escabeche, White Bean Mascarpone

Detail: Shrimp Escabeche, White Bean Mascarpone

Chef Ethan Stowell, plating Hudson Valley Foie Gras with Red Wine Jelly and Candied Orange

Detail: Hudson Valley Foie Gras with Red Wine Jelly and Candied Orange







Ethan's station: (clockwise) Trampetti Olive Oil, Foie Gras Mousse, Sea Salt, Minced Chives, Red Wine Jelly

Columbia Tower Club cooks, on their home turf.






Dish pit...with a view!

Through the window, that's Lake Washington and the 520 bridge.

Set up in the private dining room, Ethan and Ryan prepare for the 1st course.






Hamachi crudo, sliced and ready to go. They fan four slices of hamachi, and before laying it out on the plate, dust the underside with sea salt.

On the homestretch...






1st Course, by Chef Ethan:

Hamachi Crudo with Avocado, Chilies, Lime, Arugula

Kendall-Jackson 2007 Vintner’s Reserve Sauvignon Blanc

2nd Course by Chef James:

Dungeness & King Crab Parfait
Shaved Foie Gras & Cured King Salmon, Tomato, Meyer Lemon & Cucumber Gelees

Kendall-Jackson 2006 Late Harvest Chardonnay








3rd Course, by Chef Ethan:


Ocean Trout with English Peas, Wild Ramps, Morel Mushrooms

Kendall-Jackson 2006 Highland Estates Pinot Noir

4th Course by Chef James:

Beef Tenderloin & Short Rib Roulade
Heirloom Tomato Espagnole, Olive & Roasted Shallot Bread Pudding

Kendall-Jackson 2005 Grand Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon







5th Course, by Chef Ethan:

Sour Cream Panna Cotta with Rhubarb Compote, Rhubarb Sorbet and Pistachio Crumble*

Kendall-Jackson Piner Hills Grand Reserve Port

Sunset over Puget Sound




********

* After dinner I had a moment to chat with Ethan. Like an athlete rehashing the game, he asked, "Did you see the Solo Cup lettering came through on the panna cotta?"

"What?"

We both begin to laugh.

"Look!" He grabs a half-eaten plate of dessert, scrapes away the remaining crumble and sure enough, I read: SOLO. To conceal the unfortunate logo, they added the crumble.....

Interview with New Orleans Chef John Besh

Chef John Besh

Over the past few months, I’ve had the opportunity to spend quality time with famed New Orleans Chef, John Besh. Warm and engaging with an infectious smile, John is a James Beard Award-winning chef with a soulful culinary style.

An undercurrent of adverse challenges shaped the man John is today. At the age of nine, his father was paralyzed by an accident with a drunk driver. Then, just before graduating from culinary school, he was called to fight the war in Iraq (Desert Storm). He opened his first restaurant…the week of 9/11. And like the rest of New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina left an indelible mark.

Conversations with John reveal a man with a deep sense of history and an earnest desire to preserve the culture of New Orleans. Within the context of food, John is an entrepreneur who leverages his passion for sustainability. He is a dedicated mentor who is guided by the desire to leave an impact on the world of food.


Interview:

John Besh: I was with Alice Waters the other day. They’re doing farm-to-table in the Northwest & San Francisco…and I can do that in my own back yard. That gives me inspiration.



Traca Savadogo: Tell me about your farm.

John: We started the farm in an effort to be more self-sufficient, to recycle, use what we have…and try to be more responsible. We started with a pig pen and a chicken coop. Then we began composting all the organic matter from our restaurants. Next, we composted everything from the chicken coop. So after the chicken coops are raked once a week, and composted every two weeks, we have new soil.

We created these raised beds because it’s in a swampy area. Years ago when I worked here, I lost a few gardens (from flooding.) So what I decided to do was build these raised beds and all this beautiful, organic composted soil then goes into the raised beds. That’s where we grow specialty vegetables, herbs, and lettuces.

We enlarged the garden even further by planting fig and citrus trees. We brought one of our bee keepers out here and he’ll start the honey process for us. We started doing that and before we knew it, we have a little room here, a little room there that we can enlarge by adding a small strawberry patch and some other things.

It’s evolved into this well-rounded little biodiverse backyard farm.



Traca: (I had the opportunity to meet Erick Loos, John’s Chef de Cuisine, here in Seattle.) What's Erick’s roll on the farm?

John: Erick is the Chef de Cuisine at La Provence. And he’s in charge primarily of the kitchen. We also have this farm on the property, so he’s taken up the role of organizing who does what. By that I mean, all of our sous chefs and chefs are required to spend a couple days a month out on the farm. As you can imagine, there’s a lot of weeding to be done. There are a lot of little things that have to take place in order to: 1. Keep it looking good and 2. To keep it productive. So Erick is in charge of making sure all these things happen. But there are probably six major players—six different chefs & sous chefs that have really taken the leadership roles in this…it’s too big for just Erick.

That’s what we’ve been doing. It’s been a lot of fun…and enlightening for all of us cooks, given all the different ex-terns and in-terns that come through one culinary school or another. They all come here and end up walking away from this experience building a much needed, much better relationship with the land. It fosters a certain philosophy among the cooks. You respect the food and you take more care with what’s on the place…because it’s right there! You’re seeing the end result of it. By doing that, what happens is there seems to be this esprit de corps. All the cooks really start to take care of it, and become more active in the farmer’s markets that we have here in the area. And one thing leads to another….

Before you know it, we’re using this as basically an experimental place. We just shipped about 20 pigs off to another farm. We’ll ship 10 more in a couple months. Other farmers are starting to do the same thing. It’s really starting to spread well and take off.



Traca: Are you sending off piglets or fully-raised pigs?

John: Pigletts. Raising larger pigs out here behind the restaurant just makes a mess of things. We can’t let the pigs roam free because we only have a few acres. To have fenced-in large pigs, that’s not why we started doing this. We’re moving pigs to another farm where they have room to graze the land. Essentially, they’re grass-fed for their adult lives.



Traca: How many acres do you have, total at La Provence?

John: Four acres. It’s not a big place.



Traca: Has growing your own herbs and raising produce had a positive financial impact?

John: For some things, totally. Overall, it’s still very costly. We can save lots of money by growing things like herbs. But when you look at the overall cost of upkeep, maintenance...the cost to build the pens, coops, and all the raised beds—we’re a long way away from making money at it.

There’s no real financial benefit to it as long as we can still buy crappy mass-farmed produce out of the West and Southwest, harvested by migrant workers. As far as I’m concerned, the whole use of slave labor just to save a few dollars on produce…it’s a sin.

What I wanted to do is really nothing more than to become as self-sufficient as possible and maybe…to wave the banner of self-sufficiency in saying “We can do better than this. We MUST do better than this.”

This region has sustained the food culture that we have. We need to act now to work with local farmers—not to just buy from them occasionally, but to contract farm with the people before we lose all of the few farms that we still have left.

I’m hoping that the impact [of our farm] is more psychological. We can’t conquer the world. We can’t grow enough vegetables to feed the world. We can’t do enough ourselves to make the difference that we really need to make. But we can do other things.

We can start to foster a whole different mindset with the young cooks and chefs—people like Erick, who were raised without any sort of food culture…without any sense of understanding where food comes from. Now minds are open to “Oh yeah. Look at what we’re doing!” And you hear him talk about it and he’s so, so excited! So that excitement and that enthusiasm and passion are just pills of fire. I think of the many cooks like him that are just being awakened to all these possibilities.

The great thing is…like what I’m doing today. We have the Edible Schoolyard over here. Green Middle School in New Orleans was the first school outside the state of California that adopted Alice Water’s Edible Schoolyard curriculum. At the end of every semester we have the students come out to La Provence. We let the kids harvest the strawberry patch, so we’re making strawberry dessert with them right now. And then we have them pick over a bunch of our lettuces, and we pulled a bunch of beets for a big salad. Then we harvested all these fava beans to make a fava bean risotto with some locally raised chicken.

See? The impact is affecting more than just my cooks…more than just my little world. It’s affecting people that have never imagined my world before. Seeing students from the inner city come out here to the country…we work with them for a few hours on the farm, cook with them, and cook for them. I think we’ll open their eyes and perhaps change the way they look at food. That, coupled with their curriculum at school, I think that may spark this new awareness that we need so badly.



Traca: Sustainability is gaining traction, but we’ve discussed the notion that perhaps people don’t really practice it at home. Can you expand on that?

John: I think sustainability is much easier to talk about. It’s much easier to play the role of activist, but not actually practice it. I think that’s just human nature. It’s a lot easier to sit on the sidelines, but really? I think I could do more than what I do. We all just need to do what we can.

The catastrophe that followed Hurricane Katrina made me realize how vulnerable life is…how vulnerable a region can be, how vulnerable a city can be. I don’t care what politics you subscribe to. If you’re waiting for the government to have your answers for you…I’ve seen the government in action. I’ve seen Democrats and I’ve seen Republicans. I don’t think there’s really all that much difference.

I think when it comes down to it, we need take charge of our fate—what we eat, how we harvest food. Where does the food come from? Ask questions.

I went to several grocery stores this week…picking up a few things for the house for Mother’s Day. Sunday night I cooked a little dinner for all the mothers in my life and I was amazed walking through these national chain stores. They’re all playing the “Eat Whole, Local” card, which is good. I hope they really are. But at least they’re talking about it…and at least we’re moving in that direction.

I still have personal problems with activists for sustainable anything who live in places like Las Vegas and have everything shipped in from around the world. We’re trying to appeal to people and market ourselves as being sustainable when we’re anything but. That’s just one of my little pet peeves.

When you and I were talking about this, it was right after the Sustainable Seafood Conference where I met with a bunch of industry leaders talking about sustainability. Of course you’ve got the fishing industry trying to use sustainable as a marketing ploy. You have them painting the picture that every fisherman out there is essentially Alice Waters, which is NOT the case. It’s not the case at all. The fisherman is just trying to make a living. I know some people that are particularly safe about the way they harvest their seafood, and there are others who aren’t.

At this point we need to buckle down because we know we’re having an effect on the climate. We are making an impact on our environment and we now have to start thinking, “Okay, what can we do? Maybe I don’t need to throw all the fertilizers in my yard because there are some other effects to that we don’t need.”

I think if we can just do a little something here to make a small impact at La Provence, I think the ramifications of what we do today will be felt twenty years from now when the young cooks are starting into the business, they are the big chefs of tomorrow. Hopefully, what they’ve seen and what they’ve come across here…this will be just commonplace. We’ll have many communities buying up their green space and preserving some of their agricultural land and servicing the urban areas. Hopefully that’s the impact we will make by doing what we’re doing here.



Traca: How do you go about conveying that message to your dining patrons? For example, here we have the Herbfarm and before dinner, guests take a tour of the gardens. Do you do something similar at La Provence?

John: I aspire to be what they are. But I also don’t want to turn La Provence into Disney World. The farm is here and it’s not really for amusement. Come and look. Come be a part of it. People do. They get it. When they park their cars, they’re looking out over the farm. They hear chickens. Occasionally we get complaints roosters are chasing some of the customers, so then we’ll have to go and kill a couple of the roosters….and eat ‘em!

The people that come here, get it.

We try to list as many of the products as we can on the menu. If it’s La Provence country ham than we list it as such. So essentially we don’t buy any prosciutto, ham, sorrano…any of the specs or anything like that because we make our own now. That’s what we try to convey through our servers. “This is special, and this is why.”



Traca: So you’re doing in-house charcuterie?

John: Oh yeah.



Traca: Are you having any issues with the USDA requiring HACCP plans?

John: That all begins the moment you try to sell it on a retail level…or sell it across state lines, which gets even more complicated. What we produce, we can sell within our restaurant.



Traca: I was at a Chef’s Collaborative event a couple months ago and there was some discussion that it’s being “suggested” that they have a HACCP (Hazard Analysis of Critical Control Pts) plan—even for restaurants.

John: That I’m sure is probably well-founded. I’m all about…get out there and do it and say you’re sorry later. If I asked for permission for everything I do, I doubt very seriously that I’d even have a farm back here. But I don’t. I just do it. Everything is natural, and there’s nothing dirty about it. This is beautiful. The whole thing works really well.

We haven’t had any issues but I think you have to be careful. There are a lot of chefs that are experimenting with things just in their coolers, for instance, or in their offices, having salamis hanging here and there. If the board of health comes by and it’s not at the right temperature, and you’re caught in the danger zone, you will have issues. You can’t get around that without investing the resources and the plant that you need to do it right. I don’t know…it’s finally raising its head here with the USDA and the FDA.

Now chefs are demanding in-house charcuterie. We don’t want to just buy ham from a country we don’t know anything about. We want to do some things ourselves again. Frankly, in-house charcuterie hasn’t happened in years—except for a small group of people. As it becomes more wide-spread, you’re going to have more issues like that. The government is going to say, “Okay, now how do we control it?”



Traca: I’m intrigued by the fact that we’ve seen artisan processes come to the brink of dying out, and like in-house charcuterie, now we’re seeing a revival in the craft of food. That’s just one more element in raising the experience, or the quality.

John: I don’t know if in-house charcuterie is really the answer. I do it because I can control what the pigs eat, and I want to control that end product…the end flavor. Ultimately what I’d love to see happen is the butcher shops come back. I think we’re making so much headway in some areas, and in other areas, we’re totally missing the point. Things could be interesting.

Over the long haul, I don’t know. You’ve got so many people dependent on processed—or over-processed foods handled by just a handful of companies that also control all the feeds. They control everything! You see artisans popping up because people concerned about hand-crafted food and good stuff like that. On the other hand…not that I’m against corporate America, but you see just a handful of people dictate the policies of government. People who have control over the ConAgras and the like—both producing and processing, and packaging food in this country, leave small margins for the little guy.



Traca: I want to track back to this question that came up at dinner, “What does food mean to you?” and how you got involved in the business. Can you touch on that?

John: Things really took off for me…I grew up in a culture where men really enjoyed cooking and carried on a lot of the traditions. I think that was very important because much of this country…the way that we’ve treated food throughout the industrial era was that food was a woman’s thing. So frankly, in all these years of “progress”, we lost a lot of our food culture. A lot of that had to do with many different things…prohibition, for one.

Our country lost a lot of its food culture, but I grew up in a place that never really lost it. Isolation was the key to our success. So I had this relationship with food a young age, and what I really enjoyed doing the most was cooking. I could make people happy through food…and I had a father that really encouraged that. He encouraged us to pursue our passion—not to think in terms of careers. “Do what you love to do and do it the best that you can. Great things will follow.” Consequently, I did that. In my family we have teachers, doctors, lawyers, and we have a former ballet dancer. We all pursued these different passions.

[My passion for cooking] really came to a head about the age of nine. My father was hit by a drunk driver and paralyzed for life. Over several years of a convalescence, I just started cooking. I’d make him breakfast—pain perdu, and learned how to make poached eggs. Then I’d make my own Hollandaise sauce so I could serve it over the poached eggs…

At the time that I started cooking, I looked up to the great chefs of New Orleans. I thought, “This is great. I want to try that!”

My father encouraged me to stay with it.

Over the years as he grew stronger and got a little bit better, I just cooked for him. That’s probably the reason why I’m a chef today.



Traca: Then what happened?

John: Before I went off to culinary school, I decided that I wanted to do something wild and crazy. I had this wild hair to join the French Foreign Legion or something. I decided to give the Marine Corps a try! I knew I didn’t want to make a career out of it. I guess I wanted the challenge…and to see if I was up to the challenge. So I pursued the Marines for a few years and then switched into the Reserves. I stayed in the Reserves, which helped pay for culinary school.

Just before graduating culinary school, they invited me back to active duty—to serve in the Marines for Desert Storm. So I did that and came back.

In between, I fell in love with my wife. We started writing to each other—we were pen pals and childhood friends…and married her when I came home. You can’t marry a woman from New Orleans and ever really leave New Orleans. I wanted to be closer to my parents because they need my help and my wife always wanted to be by her parents. So that’s what we did. That’s why I became a cook…and why I returned here.



Traca: At what point did you work abroad? You worked in France and Germany, correct?

John: In the Black Forest, I made my apprenticeship at a place called the Romantik Hotel Speilweg, which is in the mountains of southern Germany. My wife had just graduated law school. After she passed all of her classes and passed the bar exam, we left. We left the day she was sworn into the bar.

We were in Germany for a year and a half and then made our way down to France. The chef I worked for in Germany had a friend who was the chef at the Chateau de Montcaud in Bagnols-sur-Ceze, France.

I fell in love with France and saw so many correlations between the way I learned about food in Louisiana and Southern France. It was all just very, very natural. After that, we came back here and I started working at La Provence out here in the country. Fifteen years later, I’d come back to buy the place.

In between La Provence and August, I had a place that I was the chef at called Artesia. I worked there for a few years in a little town called Abita Springs, Louisiana.

The week of September 11, 2001, I opened up my first restaurant, August.

Traca: And how was that?

John: Everything in my life has always been a struggle. (Laughing.) It’s pretty much along the same lines.

We opened this big, beautiful, gorgeous restaurant right before the worst tourist crunch ever came to New Orleans—and to the country, for that matter. We were dependent upon our convention business and tourism when September 11th came. That just shot everything down.

So it was hard.

But then I read a couple articles that said some of the strongest companies in American history were founded during the depression—or right before the depression. You learned how to do with less. And there are a lot of good lessons to learn there.

Traca: I would say that experience has continued to shape your philosophy, is that correct?

John: Yeah. It’s kind of like this Marine Corps philosophy: Get it Done. Let’s just make it happen.

After Hurricane Katrina that [mindset] really paid off because you couldn’t just wait for things. I mean, I felt deceived by so many people, and everything you think is real, is turned on its head. You think, “The city will surely evacuate. We won’t close our business until the city evacuates.” And the city doesn’t evacuate….and then you have to make these calls.

I’ve been tested off and on throughout the whole Katrina debacle. When I walked away afterwards, I said, “You know what? I’m tired of playing by the rules. What you need to do is go out there and make things happen.” I’m trying to open a restaurant and I wasn’t going to wait until we had the proper document, we just opened for business. That’s pretty much the way we’ve handled everything.

With the other restaurants I’ve opened….I’ve got great people—very passionate people that have stood by me over the years. If they want to open a restaurant, then I want to help them. I want to give them the tools that they need to be successful. That’s why I have a chef partner in each of the restaurants--because I know what it’s like trying to scrape a few pennies together and not get the financing. Banks aren’t going to loan you anything—especially these days.

That’s why we’ve pooled resources and managed to do things the way we’ve done them. We’ve grown by doing it ourselves. That philosophy of making due with less…you know, maybe I don’t need a huge salary. I’m not going to take it. I want to 1: share it with others and 2: let’s pay our debt down so that we don’t have a lot of debt. If another Katrina comes along, we’re not out millions of dollars.

That still shapes the way I operate today and the philosophy that I’ve taken on…by remaining skeptical…and cautious, but yet moving forward.

Traca: So what is ‘moving forward?’ What does the future look like for you? Pie in the sky…what would be the ideal situation?

John: You know, my ideal changes every day. I evolve as a person, every day. I’d love to be able to get to the point one day where I retired to the little place in the country…and just cook.

Maybe if I could do well enough financially, I would create a restaurant that did nothing but fund a food bank. Somehow…I want to see myself feeding people who need to be fed, and making an impact that way. My partner Octavio [Mantilla] just laughs every time he hears it, but I think the greatest way for me to go out would be to create this one little restaurant that operates not-for-profit. It goes into something greater, something bigger that perpetuates itself.

I think that’s something I’ve learned too is that it’s not all about the [media] reviews. I’ve got all those, but that doesn’t make you happy. It’s never good enough. And I’ve noticed one thing with money is that you never make enough of it. Even after you make enough of it…and you do have some good years, you’re always paying too much of it…to people who spend it way too freely.

I don’t want to think about retiring, but after the storm, we fed people that were truly hungry. That was the most exhilarating thing ever! The pay off for that was tremendous—making people happy through food, bringing a smile to somebody because they know you care about them.

Long term, I’ll keep building as long as our chefs want to keep growing. Then, ultimately, when it’s time…each restaurant project is designed so that….for example, Steve McHugh my chef and partner of Luke, could buy Luke from me someday. Then he’s got something that the debt’s already paid down, he’s got a great asset with years under his belt, and then he’s capable of just taking it and running it forever. Same thing with all the other restaurants. We’ve set it up so that I’ve enabled them to pursue their dreams. Now it’s their turn to move on.

I often talk about…I think being a chef in some ways—especially down here where there’s a culture of food—you have to go into it with stewardship in mind. Because it’s much too big…it’s much too important. It’s not about fads and trends. They won’t last down here. What you do has to be rooted and steeped in something real.

It’s my job now to pass it on to the next generation so that we all continue to grow and perpetuate this culture. So guys like Erick can pursue their dreams. He knows that I care about what’s best for him and that I’ll expose him to things that are truly unbelievable. It makes him a better chef.



Traca: I’m curious to know, how many restaurants do you have…and how many covers are you doing?

John: Let’s see…I have four restaurants right now [August, Luke, La Provence and Besh Steak]. In another month, I’ll have five. And by November, we’ll have six.

August will serve 150 every night downstairs and then we have private dining with potentially another 250. We’ll do on average, about 100 a night at La Provence. And about 500 a day at Luke. We’ll do another 300 a day at the steakhouse.



Traca: Wow! So the two restaurants you’ve got on the horizon, can you shed some light on those projects?

John: One is Dominica. It’s an Italian restaurant, which will open up at the Roosevelt Hotel. It’s an old historic New Orleans hotel, run by the Waldorf Astoria Corporation. And we’ll have a 200 seat Italian tratoria there. The focus is on salumi and salumis in particular that come from the farm.

And then in November, we’ll have a 200 seat café that is being opened and run for the National WWII Museum.

Traca: What’s the name of the new café?

John: That one we’re calling the American Sector. That’s the original name to the warehouse district in New Orleans after the United States bought Louisiana. The Americans had a small presence. Really, up until the first World War, the Americans had a small presence in New Orleans. So it’s called the American Sector, based on this one little area that the Americans lived in.



Traca: What’s the menu look like for the American Sector? Are you doing revival food?

John: The design is post-modern industrial to tie in with the aircraft theme of the museum. I wanted the menu to mimic a 1940’s style diner here in New Orleans. So you’ll have a few things that really scream the South, but primarily we’re talking about great American classics—classic diner food that we’ll do in a fun, whimsical style. We’ll have lots of sandwiches, a soda fountain…that sort of thing.



Traca: Can you give me an idea of what dishes would ‘scream the south’?

John: Local products. So we’ll have a little rabbit pot pie, and we’ll do different things with fried chicken. Then we’ll have a lot of our oysters, shrimp and crab that you just have to have. When people come to New Orleans, they want a taste of New Orleans, you know?



Traca: What kind of crab do you have in New Orleans?

John: The blue crab. Compared to your crab, there’s more meat. I’d say for the size of crab, they yield more meat. That’s what we favor down here.



Traca: John, you’ve got a ton of things on your plate! When’s the last time you’ve been on the line?

John: On the line? It’s been a long time!

***

Stats:

Chef John Besh

New Orleans, LA

Restaurants:

August

La Provence

Luke

Besh Steak

Accolades:

* James Beard Award: Best Chef Southeast, 2006

* Gourmet Top 50 Restaurants

* Food & Wine Best New Chef, 1999

* Food Network: Iron Chef America vs. Mario Batali, winner, 2006

* Food Network: The Next Iron Chef Series, 2007


In addition to two new restaurants on the horizon, John’s first book, My New Orleans, will be released in October 2009.