Savory Cities: Bruce Sherman

Everybody’s a winner.

The Paupered Chef: Worth the wait

We just braved the gauntlet balcony, which is, yes, still sweltering. You can barely move out there; only Higgins’ dry-cure Berkshire ham is sweating more that the rest of us. We went out there for the cocktails, but we’re going to come back to talk about the food. We’re a little stunned. After waiting all night for some samples, we have feasted.

First off was the Osteria Mozza, the one that we tried to get a peak at earlier. They were in full swing slinging out big, pillowy mozzarella with a beautiful artichoke stuck on top. The artichoke was slightly sweet, and perfectly tender. It’s probably the best artichoke Nick had ever had.

We finally had a taste of that 43-ingredient, 6-chili, blackberry mole we were eyeing earlier. It lived up to expectations, deep, complex, and in possession of a beautiful bitterness. Jaime Martin Del Campo once again went into the passion he had for the dish, and it showed.

Nostrana from Portland, Maine, were serving olive oil-poached tuna with wood oven-baked Zofino beans. They were the best beans Blake has ever eaten–creamy as ever, the skins perfectly formed. Of everything we ate, this was the quiet, subtle star.

We did finally get our hands on that Back Forty cocktail: tequila, lime juice, and fresh strawberries. It’s like a fancy, slushy daquiri, and they mix in black pepper with the sugar for the rim. Definitely worth waiting for.

Savory Cities: Yosuke Suga

Yosuke Suga in Gucci.

Julie Powell: If it’s not a party ’til something gets broke…

Then I guess it’s a party.

Someone who’s managed to get drunker than me knocked down a spectacular pile of glasses. It was a miracle no one lost an eye. The poor waiter who instantly arrived to clean up was chastised by a guest with an orange tan for not instantly corralling every last sliver of glass with his bare hands.

I love that even surrounded by wonderful food people and wonderful pork products and Jacques Pépin, I can find at least on person to hate. Yay!

Savory Cities: Rick Bayless

Rick Bayless wishing for margaritas.

The Paupered Chef: Keeping it local

We just had a cool conversation with Melissa Kelly of Primo Maine restaurants, who is cooking squash blossoms with handmade sheep’s milk ricotta and pesto pantesca. Her restaurant in Rockland, Maine has its own produce farm, pigs, and soon-to-be-installed windmill. “I don’t know if you can ever be totally off the grid,” she said, “but we’re pretty close.”

We were interested to learn, though, that Primo Maine has expanded to Florida, and now Arizona. How did the philosophy of a self-supporting system keep its integrity. How did they keep it local?

“It went hand-in-hand,” she explained, referring to the restaurants and their devoted produce farms for ingredients. In other words, Melissa is so enthusiastic about absolute freshness that she wouldn’t even open a restaurant until it had its own farm nearby.

But why expand at all and leave the pastoral coast of Maine? “To support the restaurant itself,” she explained. Maine has a very short tourist season and they’re at least an hour and a half from Portland, where chefs like Sam Hayward of Fore Street run award-winning kitchens (he’s also here tonight). To make sure she stayed afloat, the other locations were opened. But Melissa has stayed in Maine to run the original kitchen. Local places like Chase’s Daily, another restaurant/farm, share their values, and create what seems to be a Maine ethos.

Dr. Vino: David Wondrich

Imbibe!, by David Wondrich (pictured), beat out two wine books to claim the award for best book in wine & spirits. Mixologists of the world rejoice!

Savory Cities: Wylie Dufresne & David Chang

Who’s going to win?

Julie Powell: Dodging elbows

I can hold my egg-topped scrapple or my martini or my iPhone, not all three.

(Also, damn but these people have some sharp elbows.)

Snack: From Paris to Lincoln Center

I am thrilled that Gramercy won. Well of course I’m thrilled for all the winners. But Mike Anthony and I go way back. It was maybe 15 years ago. Yes am still old lady at the party.

We were both working as line cooks at a one Michelin star place in Paris called Le Toit de Passy. Young Americans in Paris. No money and working hard, six days a week. I recall his French was better than mine. And here we are. We clean up nice no?