Wednesday, September 2, 2009

More Crappy Office Kitchens

Not all catering gigs are in beautiful vineyards or elegant townhouses. Here are two more summer cocktail parties where I worked out of crappy office kitchens.

Tuesday, July 28th: A cocktail party at The One Club, 21 E 26th St, a non-profit organization for the recognition and promotion of excellence in advertising.


On the menu
  • Artisanal Cheese Display with fresh and dried fruits, served with baguettes and assorted flatbreads
  • Mediterranean Sampler of Provencal Chicken, Moroccan Shrimp, Smoked White Bean Spread, Eggplant Caponata, and Focaccia
  • Skewers of Spanish Chorizo, Cheese, Roasted Zucchini, and Piquillo Peppers
  • Spicy Gazpacho
  • Chicken Shumai
  • Wild Mushroom Pizzettes
We were told 60 people but of course it turned out to be over 100. Food quickly ran out and we were desperately understaffed. The portable oven came in a box filled with rain water and the tiny office kitchen was a mess before I got there. Not an ideal situation, but we survived and the client left happy. Another disaster averted.

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Wednesday, July 29th: A cocktail party at Herman Miller, 1177 Ave of the Americas - another high-end office furniture designer. (Sorry no pics, it was around this time my camera broke...poo)


On the Indian-inspired menu:
  • Basmati Rice and Grilled Shrimp
  • Vegetable Samosas
  • Garam Masala-spiced Beef Skewers
  • Paneer Cheese and Roasted Tomato Pizzettes
  • Curry Chicken Salad on Potato Cakes
Working out of what looked more like a copy room was difficult enough for this 200 person cocktail party, what made it worse was that the room was still in heavy use by the employees. Random people coming and going to make copies, get coffee and steal food did not make us happy. We left annoyed and smelling of curry.

Friday, August 14, 2009

Winery Wedding Reception

Saturday, July 25th: Wedding reception at Wolffer Estate Vineyards, Sagg Harbor, East Hampton.


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On the menu
  • Crabmeat Salad in Pate Brisee Boats
  • Mini Salmon Crepes
  • Prosciutto Foie & Fig Canapes
  • Cured Beef with Cheese and Pistachios
  • Frisee Salad with Cranberries & Walnuts with a Lemon Viniagrette
  • Spinach Risotto with Asparagus & Peas
  • Baby Lambchops with Purple Potato Puree
  • Cheese-Herb Souffle
  • Filet of Sole with Butter Sauce served with Haricot Verts
  • Individual Vanilla Meringues with Raspberry Coulis

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It was the most perfect summer day. The indoor tasting room was set up elegantly for dancing and a long table for dinner was set up on the veranda overlooking the blooming vineyard.
A bride couldn't ask for a more gorgeous wedding reception...



...and
then there's the mother of the bride. Not only did she complain about every tiny detail of the setup and venue, but every course was problematic - not enough dressing on the salad, not enough salt on the fish, lamb was too cold. At one point, she actually stormed into the kitchen and started incoherently giving orders and yelling at the chefs. This has never happened to me before. Complaints usually go to the catering director on the floor, not to the frantically working cooks holding sharp knives and hot pots. Thankfully, the catering director put a stop to it all and asked the client never to contact the company again.

There are nice clients and not so nice clients, just as there are nice people and not so nice people. In a service industry where the customer is always supposed to be right, it is difficult to know how to react when things go sour. Unfortunately, it's something that can probably only be learned through experience.

As for my first trip to the Hamptons, it really was not all that it's cracked up to be. All the beautiful houses are hidden from public view by tall hedges and gates. With only one main road, traffic is intolerable. The beaches are overcrowded and only reachable through private grounds. Finally, in my limited experience, the people aren't so nice and live far from what most of us call reality. I'm much more agreeable to the nitty gritty city.

Monday, August 3, 2009

Food for Fashion & Furniture


On July 21st, I traveled down to 440 West 14th St. for another solo catering gig at the offices of Diane Von Furstenberg and for once I didn't mind prepping in the office kitchen. If there were a top ten list of office kitchens, Diane's would rate number one so far. It makes me think Diane appreciates food, or at least her office designer does.


I'm not typically one for high-end fashion, or more accurately I can't afford it, but the pretty print dresses and shiny silks made me wish Diane started a H&M line. But for those of you who are, I took a quick peek into their style room and it looks like Egyptian prints are in for the Fall.


I plated a couple cheese and charcuterie plates, filet mignon on a crostini, mushroom truffle pizzettes, and chive-chicken skewers in a mad rush and hauled ass out of there for another catering gig uptown.

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A 20 minute subway ride uptown on the A train and I was at 4 Columbus Circle in the offices of Steelcase, a high-end office furniture designer. Two other chefs were already frantically plating food out of a typical crappy tiny office kitchen/copy room. Mini lobster salads, shrimp skewers, roasted eggplant endive cups, duck canapes and chorizo on polenta cakes were among the menu items.


I thought working two gigs in one night would be exciting and challenging, but I really did not enjoy it. I like seeing an event run from beginning to end. To have to leave only 2 hours into one party and come into another party for only the last 3 hours left me feeling somewhat incomplete. It's nice to see a party come full circle, from setup to breakdown. Someday I'd also like to be involved in menu creation and client tasting and finally be able to see a menu go from vision to paper to plate.

In the meantime, back to paying my dues...

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

I am not a baker, part III



Two of my close friends came to NYC to celebrate their birthdays. Both are (or are aspiring) Opthamologists. Their frustration ensues when I confuse them with Optometrists. I think I should be excused because I have perfect vision.

Let's clear this up, shall we?
Optician: Adjusts glasses.
Optometrist: Tests vision, prescribes glasses/contacts.
Opthamologist: Detects and treats eye-related diseases/disorders.

Gotta love the running comments/questions though. Hilarious.

"Eye doctor school must be hard. How do you guys figure out which letters to put on that eye chart thingy? Why is the 'E' always on top? Who invented the purple contact? You must be really good at using those teeny tiny screwdrivers. Hey! I think the Lens Crafters by my apartment is hiring, I'll get you an application!"


The cake took me about a day and a half since I made my own fondant out of marshmallows, powdered sugar and water. The cake is mocha with mocha buttercream, an old family recipe.

My first fancy cake turned out pretty good, although now all my friends are expecting fancy cakes for their birthdays. I'll be sure to continue to use these cakes as delicious methods to make fun of them.

Monday, July 20, 2009

Stowaway Lobster, Whispering Argentinians, and Yuppy Art

Three catering events last week for three very different clients.

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July 14, 83rd & York: A lobster dinner for 12 guests celebrating their father's 80th birthday.

On the menu

Passed Hors d'œuvre
Mini Crab Cakes
Baked Clams
Shrimp Cocktail

Entree
Steamed Lobsters served with sweet corn, roasted beets, crispy potatoes, and tomato salad

Dessert
Individual peach cobblers and Bomboloni (Italian donuts)

Not only were we tipped nicely, the extra live lobster stowed away in my backpack and surprisingly survived the bus ride home. My husband and I had no choice but to cook it up and eat it with some beurre blanc and steamed rice at midnight.

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July 15, 53rd & 2nd: A cocktail party for 18 Argentinian government officials, all of whom were suspiciously whispering throughout the evening. I'm sure they were discussing how awesome the food was.

On the menu

Passed Hors d'œuvre
Grilled Saffron Shrimp with Guacamole
Endive Goat Cheese Petals
Lobster Empanadas
Filet Mignon on Toast Points
Wild Mushroom Pizzettes

Tipped even nicely-er and had a pleasant walk home - a whole seven blocks. I hope more gigs are held in my neighborhood.

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July 16, W 25th St & 10th Ave: An art gallery opening for about 200 yuppy art buyers and browsers.

Passed Hors d'œuvre
Mini Italian Pizzettes with Pesto and Tomato
Roasted Tomato and Olive Tapenade Canape Porcini Mushroom Soup served in Mini Puff Pastry Cups
Coconut Tuna Tartar on Fried Yuca Chips
Sesame Seared Tuna with Avocado Mousse on a Sweet Wonton Cracker

Passed Desserts
Chocolate Mousse filled Mini Ice Cream Cones

The pompous artsy music playing in the gallery was also piped into the kitchen. Attempts to dance and sing along to the tunes failed hilariously.

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An Argentinian government official, a yuppy Chelsea art dealer and a lobster walk into a bar...

Monday, July 13, 2009

Wedding at NYPL

I must brag that my wedding reception was gorgeous, despite some last minute drama - e.g. a change of venue due to the original reception hall SINKING INTO THE HUDSON (!?!). Since the change occurred only four days prior to the wedding date, the managing company promised they would make it up to us with a generously decorated reception hall, a few food extras and a discounted price. The new venue, Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers, turned out better than the first with amazing food, window walls overlooking the Hudson river, and fantastic interior decor. It remains the best day of my life thus far.


If I had to do it again, I think I'd stick with the river view reception hall, but wallet-permitting, a reception at the New York City Public Library isn't too shabby either. On Saturday, July 11th, I helped cater a wedding reception at the famous library and had a behind the scenes look at another version of the best day of someone else's life.

My day started at 4pm at 40th street and 5th avenue - the loading entrance of the library. I was given a special events pass and made my way into an area of the library off limits to most. For a building over 100 years old, the employee-only areas are surprisingly modern. I rode the service elevator to the third floor, met up with the others in the staff lounge and was given a short tour of the "kitchens". Now, when I say "kitchens", I mean the various random corners of the library in which we set up for service. There's the hors d'œuvre and dessert station in a narrow room off the first floor grand entrance hall, the cold kitchen in a corner hallway on the third floor landing, and the hot kitchen in the third floor spare coat room.



Working wonders in small spaces, indeed.

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On the menu

Passed Hors d'œuvre
Fried Sage Leaves and Lotus Root
Crunchy Cheese Spoons with Yellow Pepper Mousse
Thyme Tuile with Tomato, Goat cheese and Basil
Poppy Seed Boats with Crabmeat and Red Caviar
Mini Crepes with Smoked Salmon, Sour Cream and Chives
Lobster Salad in Corn Baskets
Sesame Tuna Tartar in Cucumber Daisy


Amuse Bouche
Cold Tomato-Watermelon Soup with Puff Pastry Square

Salad
Grilled Shrimp and Heirloom Tomato Salad, Balsamic Vinaigrette
Caprese Salad Tower, Balsamic Vinaigrette

Pasta Course
Spinach and Ricotta Gnocchi with Sage Butter

Main Course
Filet Mignon with Horseradish Sauce
Purple Potato puree, Sauteed Dragon Beans, Carpaccio of Heirloom Cauliflower
(cookies were just used for the demo plate)

Desserts
Cookie Tower
Macaroon Pyramid
Mini Lemon Bars
Fresh Fruit Skewers
Warm Bomboloni (Italian Donut) filled with Vanilla Cream, Chocolate Mousse or Apricot Jam
Gelato Station
Vanilla and Chocolate Mini Milk Shakes

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Upon entering the main lobby of the library, guests were greeted with cocktails, various food stations and a generously decorated seating area. They were then escorted to the third floor dining hall where two long tables seated 180 people. After dinner service, guests were asked to return to the cocktails area for desserts and aperitifs. Finally, those who felt the urge returned upstairs where the dining area was converted into a large dance hall.

Towards the end of the evening, I found out that the wedding was for the daughter of a certain executive producer of the Harry Potter movies who shares the same last name as the movies' leading actor. Although there's no blood relation, I was told Harry Potter himself was in attendance. I tried not to geek out in front of the other chefs, but as a HUGE fan of the books and movies, I could barely contain my glee. After various attempts, I did manage to steal a glimpse of the bride, her bridesmaids and the towering wedding cake, but unfortunately no Potter. I'll have to settle for the hopeful thought that he enjoyed the dinner I helped create. It's something I'll brag about to my fellow geeks at midnight on Wednesday.

Up Next: This week I have three dinners at private residences in Manhattan and next week I have two cocktail parties in the city and a full day of catering in the Hamptons. I'm looking forward to seeing some really swanky apartments and homes. Plus, the closest I've ever been to the Hamptons was getting hit by the Hampton Jitney bus while crossing the street near Grand Central. Let's hope that's not some sort of bad omen...

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Italian Catering

Last week I started at an ultra high-end Italian catering company recommended by a chef friend. On Monday, June 22nd, I went in for a quick interview and was greeted with a mix of surprise and confusion.

"Legaspi?" the owner asked with her Italian inflection.
"Yes," I replied.
"Where are you from?"
"I was born here but my parents are from the Philippines."
"Ahhh....." she responded, her voice trailing off with concern.

So I surmised that they believed me to be of Italian descent from my last name (Say it with me in your best Italian accent, hand gestures and all, "Le-GAS-pi!") Thankfully, they agreed to try me out at two of their events last week. Both went so well that they've asked me back for five more gigs in the month of July. I'll have to thank my chef friend as well as my husband for the foot in the door.

Italian gig #1
:
Tuesday, June 23rd. A private home on Gramercy Park South. 50 person hors d'oeuvre
and buffet for the Italian elite to accompany their private Italian opera concert (Really...we could hear it from the kitchen).

Italian gig #2: Saturday, June 27th. A spr
awling mansion located somewhere in the Hudson Valley. 80 person hors d'oeuvre and waiter-served Italian wedding reception in a ridiculous house with a crazy amazing kitchen (the pictures speak for themselves... and the dog's name is Gnocco).


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Some items from both menus
  • Napoleoni al Timo con Pomodoro, Basilico e Caprino (thyme tuile Napoleon with tomato and goat cheese)
  • Ovetti di Quaglia all'Occhio di Bue (canapes with fried quail egg and paprika)
  • Cucchiai Croccanti di Formaggio con Spuma di Peperoni Gialli e Pinoli (crunchy cheese spoons with yellow pepper foam and toasted pine nuts)
  • Creppine di Salmone Affumicato ed Aneto (smoked salmon crepes with sour cream and dill)
  • Rotolini di Vitello con Mousse Tonnata (poached veal small cigars with tuna and caper mousse)
  • Risotto con Crema di Basilico e Scorza di Limone (basil reduction and lemon zest risotto)
  • Gnocchi Verdi di Spinaci e Ricotta (gnocchi with spinach and ricotta)
  • Polpettine con Salsa de Carciofi e Scorze di Limone (mini veal meatballs with artichokes and lemon zest)
as well as,
  • Potato puree with caviar and lemon gelee
  • Prosciutto wrapped mascarpone cheese with ground pistachio nuts
  • Gorgonzola souffle canape with celery and toasted almond
  • Polenta with wild mushrooms
  • Mini-steak tartar with capers and lemon zest
  • Truffle and walnut pastry puff
  • Prosciutto, foie gras and fig jam canape with black sesame seeds
  • Fried lotus root and sage leaves
  • Mini-lobster salad
  • Cold zucchini soup
  • Baby lamb chops with mustard sauce and sauteed potatoes
  • Assorted bite-sized pastries, cookies and chocolates
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One thing that is a bit daunting about this new company, and maybe you have already gathered, is that everyone is Italian. The owners, the admin, the chefs, the waitstaff, the clients....everyone, but me. Italian and Spanish are the only two languages used in the kitchen and I quickly had to dust off my crappy kitchen Spanish to keep up. I am also now known as "CHIN-TIA," which took a lot of getting used to. But I do feel so blessed to have been accepted into this company. Not only is the clientele, for lack of a better phrase, super duper fancy pants, but the food is tremendous and the plating is a work of art.


I could not have asked for a more appropriate next step for me as a chef. With my previous French and Japanese experience, Italian was a major cuisine missing from my cv. This year has been tough work-wise, as I'm sure it has been for many, but lately I've also found myself lacking in energy and motivation. My venture into this new cuisine has awoken the sleepy chef within me and I feel like I'm back at school, full of drive and focus and curiosity, wanting to absorb everything. It feels good...it feels great!


Up Next: 180 person wedding at the New York City Public Library (Sex and the City stylez!)

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

My First Solo Gig

3:45pm, Thursday, June 25.

I arrive at 350 Park Ave, 8th flr, a bit early for my first solo gig. The admin in charge meets me at reception and shows me to the kitchen. It's an office kitchen not unlike the kitchen in The Office. Equipped with a toaster oven, microwave, coffee machine and fridge, this will be my kitchen for the evening and in it I am to make a 3 course plated dinner for 12 executives.

The Captain arrives 15 minutes later and chats cheerfully with the admin. When she leaves, he whispers (not so cheerfully), "We're in trouble." Turns out this particular catering company had four other gigs the same evening, all occurring simultaneously in Manhattan, and hired only one driver. So the equipment and food are still en route ... or not, no one seems to know. We wait an hour and a half for the driver. It isn't until 6pm that my kitchen is finally set up and I'm able to start cooking. With a 7pm service time, we're seriously cutting it close.

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On the menu


First Course
Mixed Field Greens, Pomegranate Seeds, Toasted Pine Nuts and Asiago Cheese with an Aged Balsamic Dressing served with Fire Grilled Shrimp with Three Sauces - Wasabi Aioli, Thai-Basil and Chipotle Garlic

Second Course, choice of

Polenta Crusted Sea Bass with Corn and Tomatillo Salsa

or

Pepper Crusted Filet of Beef with Mushroom Demi Glace

both served with
Grilled Asparagus and Scallion Mashed Red Bliss Potatoes

Third Course
Assortment of Fruit Tarts, Petit Fours and After Dinner Cookies

Rasberry Daquoise and Lemon Tart

Fresh Berries with Whipped Cream


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Food goes out hot and plates come back empty, which is a good sign. Once in a while an office worker, smelling the air, would wander into the kitchen. We make a nice plate of leftovers for the hard working non-executives still hanging around after 9pm.


As we clean and pack up, the Captain tells me he's worked with this client in the past and his team had previously been tipped $400! I'll have to wait for next week's paycheck to find out, but let's hope the current economic climate does not dampen their generosity.

Monday, June 15, 2009

Nobu ND Station Three - Wok: Hot Food Foxhole

Wok was my first hot station in the line of four - Wok, Grill, Tempura (Fry) and Omakase (Chef's Tasting). It easily became my favorite because of the fast turn over of these quickly sauteed dishes. Food meets ticket almost instantaneously.

Wok Station
Miso Soup
Aka Miso Soup
Clear Soup
Spicy Seafood Soup
Sea Bass Black Bean
Sea Bass Enoki
Sea Bass Dry Miso

Artic Char Inaniwa
Squid Pasta
Mushroom Salad
Shrimp & Lobster Salad
Lobster Wasabi Pepper
Lobster Black Bean
Creamy Spicy Crab
Whole Fish Special

A typical day on Wok starts by boiling several large bains of water for all the dashi-based soups and sauces. While these bubble away, the station is prepped - proteins fabricated, vegetables cut, and oils, sake, mirin, and soy sauce bottles refilled. Service on Wok requires a lot of movement and juggling of multiple tickets. There's no time to idle when you have two saute pans on the fire, a whole fish in the steamer, crab in the sally, and six miso soups about to boil over. But it's all in good fun and helps make the night go by quickly.

Another reason why I favored this station was due to the close kitchen camaraderie that was formed. Most stations are performed alone with little help or input from anyone else.
The Wok and the Omakase stations work closely together to get food out. When Wok is slammed with a dozen different dishes, Omakase will pick up half the load. In return, when Omakase is rushing to plate for ten, Wok will jump right in. A good duo requires few words and performs what looks like a choreographed dance around each other to attend to the various foods. It's a relationship born of sweat, blood, stress and fire and is as close to a war buddy as I'll ever have.

Friday, June 12, 2009

Midtown Catering

It was a busy catering week for me. I had three gigs all in Midtown West, which is admittedly my least favorite section of Manhattan. This aversion most likely originates from previous employment in Times Square, where trying to get a quick lunch is a 45 minute ordeal - meandering through constant street congestion, standing in tourist and angry banker-filled lines, and paying twice as much as one would pay 20 blocks down. But I digress...

The first was a private cocktail party at a nightclub called Touch. Picture, if you will, a Times Square club with an hour-long wait in a line filled with loud B&Ts, doors guarded by list-wielding heavy-set bouncers, and an 18 year old hostess demanding $25 at the door and a mandatory $5 coat check. Inside you'll find stained velvet couches, 'reserved' signs on all empty tables, and $17 beers. As you might have surmised, I do not visit such clubs and could not help but laugh at the angry line as I entered quickly through the nearby employee entrance.

The party itself was pretty easy, although it still amazes me that we are expected to produce all the food out of
what looks like an old office, with only one portable grill, two toaster ovens and one working sink. But we pulled it off once again and pushed out passed hors d'œuvres of lobster mac & cheese, mushroom risotto, chicken empanadas, and smoked duck breast, along with platters of cheese, sandwiches, and chicken satay. I left the club past midnight with the line still miles long...Did I mention this was a Tuesday night?

The next gig was a two-day CEA conference at an event space on W. 34th St, across the street from the Empire State Building. We were set up in the far back corner hidden from view by a black curtain. With a microwave and three toaster ovens, we made 2000 passed appetizers over two days, including mini-cheeseburgers, mini-mushroom pizzas, cheese puffs, shaomai, spring rolls, and lobster empanadas. Thankfully, two great chefs were with me at this event and we were able to turn over the food at lightning speed.

Next up is a very large sit-down dinner. These tend to be more interesting and exciting to work. Details to come!

Side Note: I must make business cards asap. I feel like such a novice when a client or fellow chef asks for my information and I have to scribble it down on a scrap of paper. Any suggestions on where I can order unique business cards (cheap!) are greatly appreciated!

Kosher Grilling

This past Tuesday, chef friend Shaya and I battled an early call time, relentless rain and thick fog (in June?!?) to teach another kosher cooking class at the JCC Greater Five Towns, Long Island. It was a summer grilling class, which we did on an indoor grill due to said inclement weather.

On the menu
(sorry, no pics this time)
  1. Rosemary and Garlic Grilled Chicken Breast with a Grilled Corn and Radish Salad
  2. Spice-Rubbed Grilled Skirt Steak with a Tehina and Tofu Noodle Salad
  3. Bulgar Wheat Grilled Burger with a Grilled Watermelon and Arugula Salad

The feedback was so great that they've asked us to come back for two more classes this Fall. One will be on Egyptian/Middle Eastern cuisine (Shaya's background) and the other on Japanese, for which Shaya will help me kosher-fy some of the recipes I learned from working at Nobu.

Although it does pay less, I'm really liking these culinary instructor gigs, more so than the catering. Being a back-of-the-house type, I'm surprised that I'm actually enjoying the heavy client interaction. Also, having some input on the menu is creatively more satisfying than churning out, say, 100 goat cheese-stuffed endive cups. Now if I could find a place to teach that doesn't require me to wake up at 5am...

Side Note: On my days off, I bake...

Sour Cream Apple Pie and Buttermilk Biscuits



Monday, June 1, 2009

Fish Course

Seven Course Tasting of Philippine Fruits and Vegetables prepared in Classic French Technique
FCI Final Project
April 10, 2007

Atlantic Cod in Coconut-Ginger Sauce with Upo and Star Fruit

Ingredients (4 servings)
200g Atlantic cod
1 upo (winter melon)
100ml fish stock
200ml coconut milk
1 tblsp grated ginger
1 jalapeno, remove seeds and emincee
patis (fish sauce), to taste
pepper
1 star fruit
peanut oil for deep frying
cilantro sprig

Procedure

Fish
  1. Clean, skin and debone cod. Portion into 50g per serving.
Upo
  1. Peel upo and spoon out the spongy center. Cut into 7in. x 2in. rectangles, and cut those across to form two right angle triangles (3 per serving). Poach in fish stock until tender and set aside. Keep warm.
Coconut-ginger sauce
  1. Reduce fish stock by half.
  2. Add coconut milk, ginger and jalapenos. Simmer until lightly nappant. Taste and adjust seasoning with fish sauce and pepper. Strain and keep warm.
Garnish
  1. Thinly slice star fruit (1 per serving) and deep fry in oil 350F-375F until golden. Remove and drain on paper.
  2. Pick fresh cilantro sprig and prepare very thin slices of jalapeno (4 per serving).
Finish
  1. Season and steam cod in a little fish stock.
  2. Arrange upo triangles on the bottom of a shallow bowl. Spoon on sauce.
  3. Place cod on top and spoon additional sauce.
  4. Garnish cod with fried start fruit and cilantro sprig. Garnish sauce with jalapeno slices.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

E. 88th St. & 5th Ave.

is another address of the rich and richer. It is located on the upper eastside, across the street from the Guggenheim Museum and overlooks Central Park.

Upon entering, I was immediately interrogated by the doorman. I guess my hoodie, sneakers, jeans and backpack just screamed "I don't belong here!" I was shown to the service elevator (maybe there's a dress code for the regular elevator?) and was taken to the sixth floor. The doors opened directly into the client's kitchen and I felt like I was transported to a scene from Gosford Park.

Although I only saw the kitchen and dining room, the apartment looked, felt, and smelled like an old 1930s English country house. Without looking out the window, I would have never guessed I was in the middle of New York City. The kitchen was pretty standard, but for the ten china cabinets dedicated to several different patterns of china and hundreds of pieces of silver and crystal.



The dining room had a long mahogany table, yellowing floral wallpaper, and museum-sized portraits in heavy, gold-trimmed frames. The owners were an elderly couple celebrating their nephew's 50th birthday.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sit-down dinner (20 guests)

On the menu
Passed Hors d'œuvres
  • Bite-sized Maryland crab cakes with red pepper aioli and capers
  • Braised short ribs with caramelized onions on potato latkes
  • Chinese shaomai dumplings served with a orange-soy dipping sauce
  • Endive with herbed goat cheese, tomato and olives
Entree
  • Mixed green salad with cranberries, pumpkin seeds and Asiago cheese, served with a balsamic vinaigrette
  • Filet mignon with a red wine demi-glaze, served with celery root fingerling potato puree, sauteed mushrooms and sugarsnap peas
Dessert
  • Individual chocolate molten lava cakes with caramel sauce and raspberries
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Catering, especially for these types of private parties, requires a lot of compromising and problem solving. There's always going to be something missing (an ingredient, a pot or pan, a utensil) and there's always going to be a change (in this instance, the last minute omission of raw onions and garlic). Thankfully, the crew was flexible, calm and experienced at 'handling' the client, which makes events like these a breeze.

On a side note, I'm fascinated that there are people who live like this. I mean, this was a family get together at a grandparents' house and everyone was dressed to the nines. There was butler service, seating arrangements and a strict agenda for the guests (drinks in the foyer, then to the dining room, and finally to the living room to enjoy aperitifs, cigars and a hired jazz quartet). This old-rich is so different from the new-rich I had just experienced at 25 Bond St. It's stuffy, rigid, and overly scheduled.

There is one old-rich tradition I favor that the new-rich do not often participate in - tipping. In restaurants, only front of the house and customer-facing chefs receive tips. So after years in the food service industry, this was my very first tip. It was an unexpected, greatly appreciated bonus!

Next up: A full day catering Cooper Union's commencement.