After a long work day, we sat down in the airy, open bar area to the right of the restaurant's entrance. Starting with a beer and then working our way through the menu, we tried the following items:
Escargot - A classically prepared version of this dish was a most welcome way to start things off. Resting in shallot, parsley-butter sauce, the escargot was an incredibly decadent prelude to our meal. The escargot was tender and not chewy or fishy tasting, which can sometimes plague this specialty. After we gobbled up the main parts of this dish, we continued to dip the freshly made French baguettes into the sauce. Pure yumminess!
Goat Cheese Croquette and Salad - Our second appetizer was a must, as we both have a love affair with goat cheese. The croquette was warm and crispy on the outside, yet perfectly soft and melty on the inside. Its tanginess was offset by slightly bitter leafy greens, roasted Bermuda onions and sweet beets. I love beets in anything and a combination with the goat cheese was a match made in heaven.
Moules Frites - What better way to enjoy timeless French cuisine than with an order of mussels and frites? I liked that L'Ecole's version was uncomplicated and familiar, the mussels floating in a traditional garlic, white wine, shallots and parsley sauce. The mussels themselves were meaty and flavored by this fragrant sauce. It goes without saying that we lunged for the frites and kept dipping them in the concoction even after the mussels were demolished.
Gruyere Bacon Burger - Appreciating a nice, hearty burger, this one came on a beautifully grilled brioche bun. The meat was cooked to a perfect medium texture, leaving you with one juicy bite after another. Further dressed with thick-cut bacon that had a nice smoky essence and some tangy gruyere cheese, it was yet another item that hit the spot. Since the burger was substantial in size, Leann and I split it, creating the perfect portion.
Dessert - Even though we were running out of room, we just couldn't ignore dessert and ordered the two things on the menu - a creme brulee and chocolate bread pudding. Both were delicious and very rich - the creme brulee was actually on the lighter side with a nicely solidified sugar crust that was fun to break. The interior custard was light and clean on the palate with a distinct vanilla aftertaste.
The chocolate bread pudding was a heavier dish, but given that Leann and I are both chocoholics, we didn't have a problem with it. Topped with a crunchy almond cookie and a scoop of simple, vanilla ice cream that added a nice juxtaposition in texture, this dessert presented a dramatic finish to the meal.
Drinks - As I mentioned, Leann and I paired our food with beer. I chose the Rogue Mocha Porter that had a lot of body and a bittersweet malty flavor - it was a great winter beer - while Leann went with the Fire Island Frozen Tail that was also on the darker, richer side.
Service and Cost:
Dutifully served by our bartender, we didn't feel neglected at all and our food was brought out in good time. We liked the casual feel of the bar, and loved observing the goings-on of the restaurant in between.
Bar menu prices are very affordable and include the following:
Starters - $8 - $11
Entrees - $12 - $15
Sides - $5
Desserts - $8
Also, remember that you have another week to take advantage of a free cocktail deal, when you mention "The Foodista" at the bar with any order. This offer expires on March 15th.
3 Mmmms
L'Ecole - 462 Broadway, New York NY 10013
212.219.3300
6 Train to Spring Street
www.frenchculinary.com/lecole
I'm delighted to announce a special promotion for you, loyal readers, which comes from one of my Manhattan culinary favorites, French Culinary Institute's, L'Ecole. For those of you who haven't yet been, I strongly encourage it, as it's a student-run French restaurant, supervised by the school's master chefs. The two parties work hand-in-hand to create an elegant, sophisticated and delicious experience. I've dined there on several occasions and have always been more than satisfied.So....here's the deal - in honor of L'Ecoles new bar menu, which rolled out yesterday, Foodista readers will get a complimentary cocktail during their first visit when they order any bar menu selection through March 15th. All you have to do is mention "Foodista" when you place your order.
I hope you take advantage of this fun special. Just to whet your appetite a bit, here are examples of the mouth-watering dishes you can expect on the new bar menu:
- L'Ecole's charcuterie plate
- Cavatelli with rock shrimp- Fava beans and ricotta salata
- Gruyere bacon burger on a brioche bun served with French fries with bone marrow bernaise
- Chocolate bread pudding with caramel sauce and chestnut ice cream
L'Ecole - 462 Broadway, New York NY 10013
212.219.3300
6 Train to Spring Streetwww.frenchculinary.com/lecole
Here's the event low-down...
Locale:
Held on the 4th floor dining area of the French Culinary Institute, (actually in the same room where I judged the student final), it was nice to bring the awards back to the place where all the magic happened, so to speak.
The long, rectangular room was set up for cocktail hour with a couple of tall tables and a bar as well, where wine and champagne was served. What I love about this room is the prime-time view you get of the kitchen where students worked, busy as bees, making delicious hors d'oeuvres for guests.
Honorees:The caliber of honorees was motivating and humbling at the same time. It was amazing to see the excellence each alumni brought to the table over the years with their unique accomplishments - from producing hit Food Network shows to creating cereal infused milk, the variety of achievements was just astounding. And here they are:
Zak Pelaccio, Executive Chef/Partner, Fatty Crab & Cue
Winner of the Outstanding Culinary Award
Zak's acceptance speech
Mark Dissin, Vice President of Production, Food Network
Winner of the Outstanding Professional Achievement Award
Mark's acceptance speech
Laura Pensiero, Owner/Manager, Gigi Trattoria
Winner of the Outstanding Restaurant Management Award
Laura's acceptance speech
Christina Tosi, Pastry Chef, Momofuku Milk Bar
Winner of the Outstanding Pastry Award - I agree, her compost cookie and the blueberry & cream cookie rocks!
Christina's acceptance speech
Roger Gural, Baker/Consultant, Payard Bread
Winner of the Outstanding Bread AwardRoger's acceptance speech
Congratulations to all the winners!
If you've been inspired by their stories, check out the French Culinary Institute, where you can learn more about the culinary world (and making it your career perhaps). And if you need to be inspired further, here's a short video from FCI Dean, Alain Sailhac.
This past weekend, I had the immense honor of being part of the 3rd Annual New York Culinary Experience, organized by New York Magazine and the French Culinary Institute. I respect both institutions and had high hopes for the event, which proved to be a wonderfully interactive learning experience that entailed lots of interaction with top culinary talent and a great opportunity for networking with peers. The roster of cooking classes was impressive and the the caliber of chef talent teaching these was the cherry on this already rich sundae. Each person got to participate in 4 interactive classes (2 per day) as well as 2 Q&A luncheons with renowned culinary leaders from all walks of life.
In addition to learning a lot valuable cooking and baking skills, I was also intrigued to have prime access to the chefs, which we foodies consider to be highly revered celebrities. Though truly fascinating and respectable, I saw a common thread that connected us all at the core - our immense and intense love of food.
Day 1:
I arrived eagerly and slightly unsure of what to expect, rushing off to my first class, Autumn in Italy taught by Babbo Pastry Chef, Gina DePalma. I've read quite a lot about Chef Gina and felt as if I already knew her through the vivid description I read in the book, Heat by Bill Buford. Here's what I got out of the class:
Autumn in Italy by Chef, Gina DePalma - Chef Gina's class was invigorating and highly ambitious. She introduced us to three new rustic Italian desserts that I've never tried making or eating for that matter. She demoed everything before we got to it and it was fun watching her in action, as she offered tons of vivacious commentary infused with her sarcastic humor. People were really into it and interacted with her by asking questions and her personal opinion on various baking matters.
We made 3 desserts including a rustic apple, fig and almond cream crostata, a spicy chestnut cake called Castagnaccio and finally, Mostarda, a very unique pear syrup reduced in mustard seed oil that's delicious when served on top of cheese. I'll post the recipes for all these goodies at a later time.
Hearth Classics by Chef, Marco Canora - I found the afternoon class taught by Chef, Marco Canora of Hearth and Terroir even more enlightening. Before meeting Chef Marco, I have to admit that I was unfamiliar with him and his cuisine. But it didn't take long for his electric personality to make a lasting impression. Besides being a talented Chef, Marco has a knack for teaching. If you ever have the opportunity to take a class with him, I'd highly suggest it because he's clear in his instruction, breaks down complex skills into easier tasks and engages with his audience on a deep level. I think it's safe to say that by the end of the class, we were all Marco converts and have probably made our Open Table reservations for one of his restaurants.
The two things we made with Chef Marco were homemade gnocchi and a braised rabbit stew. I personally benefited from both dishes because I'm a huge gnocchi lover and have been meaning to make them from scratch. And in terms of the rabbit...well learning how to break down this delicious animal was a good skill to learn and knowing how to cook it appropriately was useful too. The sauce we made with the rabbit stew can be done with any other protein too, making the recipe very adaptable. Again...I'll post the recipe specifics at a later time.
Here are 3 videos of Chef Marco prepping the dough for the gnocchi:
Video 1
Video 2
Video 3
Day 2:
After a successful first day, I couldn't wait to see what day 2 had in store. I was taking an Australian Cuisine class in the morning with Chef, Shaun Hergatt of SHO Shaun Hergatt and then a pastry class focusing on the uses of brown butter with Le Bernadin's pastry Chef, Michael Laiskonis. Experimenting with brown butter in desserts...need I say more?
Australian Cuisine with Chef, Shaun Hergatt - Even though I'm not a complete novice when it comes to Australian food, I've been more exposed to comfort pub food rather than sophisticated cuisine. Chef Shaun's class was the perfect outlet for learning more about Australian fruit and spices that elevate an ordinary dish to the next level.
Everyone seemed to really enjoy Chef Shaun's class and although he started off very serious, he warmed up quickly. I loved all the personal attention he gave to each student by walking around, critiquing, tasting and in some cases (like ours) correcting. His manner was friendly and easy going but at the same time, you knew he meant business. I appreciated his devotion to his art and I learned a lot of useful techniques.
The two things we made in Chef Shaun's class were Ocean Trout in Kalamansi dressing and Wattleseed ice-cream. Both use unusual ingredients that we're unfamiliar with in the States, but it was fun to try new flavor combinations that awoke our senses. The Ocean Trout was actually a tartare, which I've never made before. It was challenging and precise and by the end of the class, I felt like a pro, with my beautifully formed tartare round with bright orange roe on top. I was proud of myself to work up such a complex dish and might even try it at home.
The Allure of Brown Butter with Pastry Chef, Michael Laiskonis - Naturally loving all food with butter, the topic of this class spoke to me. I was excited to meet Chef Laiskonis, who was very organized and methodical. A very thorough individual, he had a map of everything that we'd cover in class on PowerPoint slides. I had to giggle to myself when I saw this because I sort of felt like I was at work, only covering a way more interesting topic. My only criticism of Chef Laiskonis' class is that he wasn't as interactive with the students as the other chefs had been. He relied more on the French Culinary Institute volunteers and chefs to help us, which was fine, but a bit less exciting.
Chef Michael's agenda was also ambitious, as we made 4 desserts including two types of Financier cookies (my favorite of the day and pictured above) including brown butter and pistachio. I just loved the color of the pistachio cookies and we all agreed that they had more flavor. The other two items we practiced was making a brown butter ice cream base and also roasted white chocolate that we made from scratch. Very cool and super indulgent - almost like dulce de leche.
Overall, the New York Culinary Experience was a memorable weekend that taught me to further appreciate the simplicity and craftsmanship of great food and the amazing culinary geniuses that make it happen.
To view pictures from this year's event, check out NYCE's FB page.
I'm so excited to tell you about a serious foodie weekend that's coming to New York, which I'll be attending. The New York Culinary Experience, sponsored by New York Magazine and the French Culinary Institute, (which I love) will be an amalgamation of acclaimed chefs and the serious foodies who want to learn from them. I was truly impressed by the high caliber of chef talent and the variety of classes offered during this weekend.
Some of the wonderful cooking topics you'll explore include:
Cooking strozzapreti with sausage and grapes and other dishes inspired by the Italian grape harvest alongside Andrew Carmellini
Mastering Portuguese and Spanish shellfish preparations with George Mendes
Brushing up on knife skills while learning the secrets to Morimoto’s hometown dishes from Hiroshima
Creating Italian crostatas and autumn-inspired confections with Gina DePalma
Using every part of a duck with Anita Lo
Making French Alsatian onion tarts and charcuterie with Andre Soltner
And so much more...
When and where else are you going to get the chance to interact with such top-notch talent? Personally, I'm amazed and can't wait for this weekend to come.
Here are the details if you'd like to be a part of it and buy tickets. Proceeds benefit the Future Chefs Scholarship Fund.
The New York Culinary Experience
Image by frenchculinary.comI'm so excited about tomorrow, I can hardly contain myself, for it is the day that I'll be judging the French Culinary Institute student final. Besides being extremely honored and humbled by my invitation to judge these talented students who've spent 600 hours learning, preparing and cooking mind-blowing French cuisine, I'm also delighted to mix with the incredible talent of chefs who will be my comrades in judging.
How I Scored This Gig
Well that's a good question, as I often want to pinch myself to make sure this is really happening. The truth is, my lovely friends from Conundrum marketing chose me to be a media judge, as each panel of judges (there are 2) consists of 5 chefs and 1 media person (like me).
About the Judging Process
Just to give you a preview, the judging process will take place over the course of four hours, during which we'll be sampling a plethora of dishes including an appetizer course, a meat/poultry/fish course and a dessert course. We'll be judging each student on his/her primary, secondary and garnish cooking techniques.
Critique will be given on a number scale as well as through live commentary. I'm especially sensitive to the latter, as I know how hard these students have been working, so I will do my absolute best to be candid and just. I can't wait to see their diligence pay off and I'll surely document the experience for you.
How You Can Get Involved
In the meantime, if you're not in the market for a professional culinary education but you love to cook, I'd highly recommend the recreational courses at the International Culinary Center (located in the same building as the French Culinary Institute). I was lucky enough to take a bread class there last year and absolutely loved it. Check out my experience here and also check out their list of courses here.Wish me luck tomorrow and I'll report back with full details.
