Get home-delivered world-class food!

There’s a great start-up in the works called ”Munchery.” Check out Mashable.com’s overview – to read the full article, follow the link in the headline. Would you try this same-day delivery option?

Munchery Offers Same-Day Deliveries of Fresh Meals From Local Chefs

Name: Munchery

One-Liner Pitch: Home-delivered meals from world-class chefs.

Why It’s Taking Off: Munchery delivers fresh, affordable dinners prepared daily by professional chefs to the San Francisco Bay area.

---

Thinking about ordering pizza or Chinese food for dinner? For close to the same price, how about freshly-made pacific red snapper with artichoke hearts, instead?

Munchery offers fresh meals prepared daily by local, professional chefs that you can order and have delivered the same day for dinner. With a new menu each day, you can choose from delicious entrees like lemongrass fried chicken or churrasco steak with chimichurri, or from organic, vegetarian, low carb and gluten-free meals.

To make sure your meal it hot for dinner, Munchery’s chefs design and prepare each meal for you to reheat for up to five minutes in an oven or microwave when its delivered to your door. Once you choose an hourly time frame, Munchery will deliver your dinner during that time for a delivery fee of about $4. You can also choose to pick up your meal to waive the delivery charge.

In case you can’t be home during the delivery hours, you can leave a cooler in front of your door and Munchery will place your meal in the cooler. You can follow the chef’s reheating instructions once you get home so that your meal is hot and ready to eat.

Craving Italian food and Sushi? Now you can have your pasta and eat sushi too.

Celebrating 20 years in their Naples, FL community, Matt and Seth Benevento-Berman are excited about the impact their restaurant has on the community. Noodles Italian Cafe and Sushi Bar offers scrumptious Italian fare, as well as an exquisite array of sushi options. Diners are treated to live music, seasonal events, and an atmosphere that’s unparalleled.

Noodles’ website says it best:

” Over the past 19 years Noodles has evolved into the uniquely styled, highly energized Noodles Italian Café & Sushi Bar – distinctively defined by its superlative interpretation of innovative New Italian cuisine combined with intricately composed Japanese sushi. Our collaboration with authentically trained & talented sushi chefs has been a wonderful surprise. Tuna Tataki or Fried Calamari? Volcano Roll or Mussels Tuscany? Soy Sauce or Balsamic Vinegar? Who Knew?  “

If you’re ever in the neighborhood, you must try Noodles Cafe – you won’t be disappointed!

(Imgs courtesy of Noodlescafe.com)

This One’s For The Girls!

Although the world of professional chefs is still predominantly male, ladies are stepping up in greater numbers as time goes on. We love this article from Open Table – 12 female chefs making women’s history around the U.S.

Their stories are truly inspiring, and we can’t wait to see what the future holds for them, and other female chefs to come!

Read the full article here, and check out a sample of some of the top winners below.

12 Female Chefs Making Women’s History in Restaurant Kitchens Around the U.S.

Cheers to Kelly Liken and her fellow female culinary professionals. You've come a long way, chefs!

Atlanta: Anne Quatrano Along with husband and partner Chef Clifford Harrison, Chef Quatrano is owner of Abattoir, Bacchanalia, and Floataway Cafe, among others. At the forefront of the seed-to-stomach movement, her farm and philosophies have helped shape Atlanta’s dining dynamics for nearly two delicious decades.

Boston: Barbara Lynch Her hard-scrabble childhood is almost as legendary as her series of uber-successful restaurants, which include B&G Oysters, Menton, No. 9 Park, and Sportello. A James Beard Award winner, Chef Lynch is the only female in the United States to hold the title of Grand Chef Relais & Châteaux.

Chicago: Stephanie Izard Chef Izard has been on a roll since winning Top Chef. Her restaurant Girl & the Goat was named America’s Best New Restaurant by Saveur magazine in 2011, recently released a popular cookbook, and she is set to open Little Goat later this year.

Dallas: Tiffany Derry She didn’t win Top Chef, but she won kudos not just for her cooking but also for her cool confidence in the chaotic world of reality television. Chef Derry’s new restaurant, Private Social, has successfully married casual and upscale dining and was recently named one of the Top 100 Hot Spots in the U.S.

Denver: Kelly Liken Another Top Chef competitor, her eponymous restaurant in Vail, Colorado, has become as popular as the area’s posh ski resorts. Committed to serving the best of Colorado’s local bounty, Liken, a James Beard Award nominee, says, “ ”If I can’t find an ingredient or product from Colorado, I won’t buy it from someplace else.”

Los Angeles: Nancy Silverton. Founder of the famed La Brea Bakery and Campanile restaurant, Chef Silverton has bounced back from personal hardship to become one of the nation’s most buzzed-about chefs. Putting the simple pleasures of artisanal cheese and pizzas at the forefront of her menus at the Michelin-starred Osteria Mozza and Pizzeria Mozza, Silverton is proof that there are, indeed, second acts in America.

Minneapolis: Tanya Siebenaler Sapor Cafe and Bar is in its 12th year of business and has proven a boon to Twin Cities foodies seeking an arm-chair destination dining experience. Marrying flavors from around the world with local, seasonal ingredients, Chef Siebenaler has reinvented the art of global street food.

 

Gayot’s Restaurant Review Issue Predicts Top 10 in 2012

Gayot.com

Gayot has recently published their list of “Top 10 New Restaurants in THE U.S. In 2012.” Each restaurant has a written review and an accompanying gallery of images, and several restaurants also have videos.
.
Below is the article’s introduction, as well as the compiled list of top restaurants with corresponding links. Find the full article by following this link to Gayot’s website.

2012 Top 10 New Restaurants in the U.S.

It’s no surprise that some of the country’s best new restaurants are run by big name chefs. In the West, we see molecular artistry displayed from the likes of Dominique Crenn, while star chefs Michel Richard and Wolfgang Puck bring their polished magic to top hotels. To the East, David Bouley has teamed up with a chef from the Far East — Yoshiki Tsuji of the Tsuji Cooking Institute in Osaka — to open a rarified Japanese spot in TriBeCa. Despite challenging financial times, or perhaps because of them, we can look to these ten exceptional new restaurants to help stimulate our imaginations, our appetites and our gastronomic passions.

View top 10

1. a.kitchen
Bryan Sikora
Philadelphia, PA

2. Atelier Crenn
Dominique Crenn

San Francisco, CA

3. Blue Morel Restaurant & Wine Bar

Thomas Ciszak

Morristown, NJ

4. Brushstroke

David Bouley

New York, NY

5. Central Michel Richard

Michel Richard

Las Vegas, NV

6. Fiola

Fabio Trabocchi

Washington, DC

7. GT Fish & Oyster

Giuseppe Tentori

Chicago, IL

8. Makoto

Makoto Okuwa

Bal Harbour, FL

9. Sorrel Urban Bistro

Soren Pedersen

Houston, TX

10. Wolfgang Puck at Hotel Bel-Air

Wolfgang puck

Los Angeles, LA

Wine and Dine Me, S’il vous plait!

The Pittsburgh Edition

July 19 2011
Meghan Ingram

We all thrive on a little romance, and there’s no better place to kindle it than in that particular local restaurant with just the right ambiance and your favorite kind of food and drinks. And what better cuisine than French to add that special touch to your evening?

Whether you’re single and looking for a more upscale place to take your next date, in a relationship and searching for a new restaurant to try, or married and anticipating a quiet night out for two away from the kids, the following list has a place for you.

Since we can’t all go to Paris this summer, here are three local Pittsburgh restaurants that bring Paris to you.

Isabela on Grandview

isabelaongrandview.com

1318 Grandview Avenue | Mount Washington | Pgh, PA 15211

Phone: 412.431.5882 | Monday – Saturday  5 pm – 10 pm

Voted “Best Overall and Most Romantic Restaurant in Pittsburgh” for two years running, Isabela on Grandview boasts a stunning view of Pittsburgh from high atop Mount Washington, a warm and classy decor, and a knowledgeable staff dedicated to making your experience memorable.

The restaurant offers a seasonally changing wine list and an extensive line of appetizers, entrees, and desserts. The experience can be pricey (their ‘prix fix’ is $70) but natives who rave about Isabela deem it worth the price.

Online reservations available through opentable.com

Paris 66 Bistro

paris66bistro.com

6018 Penn Circle South | Pgh, PA 15206

Monday-Thursday 11am-10pm | 412-404-8166

Voted Best French Restaurant in Pittsburgh by Pittsburgh Magazine, Paris66 is deserving of its French title. Daily specials include crépes, fresh soups and quiches, salads and croques, housemade pastries and desserts, and a variety of French wine, beer, and cocktails.

The inside is friendly and feels European in style and decor. Locals comment most frequently on the wonderful service, delicious crépes and soups (a house specialty), healthy dining options, and reasonable prices. With a menu that changes constantly, and an ambiance that invites you to sit and enjoy your evening, it’s no wonder Paris66 is a favorite among Pittsburgh natives and visitors!

Nine On Nine

nineonninepgh.com

900 penn avenue : Pgh pA

Dinner hours: Tuesday – Saturday 5:00pm – 10:00pm | 412.338.6463

Though not strictly French, Nine on Nine Nine retains the atmosphere of a European restaurant, and locals recommend it as an excellent option for a refined dining experience for the romantic-minded. Located in the heart of the Cultural District, close to music and performance venues, this restaurant offers a variety of old and new world wines and a scrumptious selection of regionally inspired cuisine, with a modern American theme in mind.

The decor is a match for the restaurant’s description of its cuisine: it focuses on simplicity and flavor. Warm floors, unique wall patterns, and white table cloths complete an elegant ambiance, and those who eat at Nine on Nine generally agree that prices are moderate, and appreciate the wait staff and Chef Richard DeShantz’s unique creations.

——–

Now it’s your turn – what French cuisine inspires the romantic in you? Let us know in the comments!

Chefs Recall Lessons From Their Fathers

With Father’s Day just a few days away, we all have dads on the brain. So with that in mind, we wanted to share this heartwarming (and insightful) article from eater.com. The author interviewed some wonderful chefs, whose fathers were also in the business, and collected their responses into one post. We shared the first one here – from Cedric Vongerichten – and the rest are available by following this link to the original article.

What lessons have you learned from your father?

The Second Generation: Bocuse, Vongerichten, Forgione and More on Lessons From Their Fathers

Friday, June 17, 2011, by Gabe Ulla

Marc and Larry Forgione [Photo: Melissa Horn]

In honor of Father’s Day, we thought it would be neat to ask folks in the restaurant world with notable fathers also in the business to share a memorable anecdote about their dads. What follows are the stories of the daughter of Ray Vega, as well as the sons of Paul Bocuse, Larry Forgione, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and Chris Canlis.

Cedric Vongerichten

Restaurant: Chef de Cuisine at Perry Street, NYC

I remember being at work in the kitchen at Jean Georges Restaurant, and my father clapped his hands and told us all to quiet down. I was annoyed because I didn’t think we were being noisy at all, so I turned to him and said, “You didn’t have to do that, we weren’t making any noise!” He replied, “You weren’t yet, but you were about to.” I’ll never forget that, because it really marked a lesson that Jean-Georges has taught me throughout the years. He has always stressed the importance of working in a quiet kitchen, especially when it’s an open kitchen, since you never want to disturb your guests.

(READ THE REST OF THE ARTICLE HERE).

Dickens Tavern: Home of the Smoked Pork and Pickled Pepper Sandwich

We love this review from seriouseats.com – the site has promised to try a sandwich a day, and this creation sounds particularly delectable! Are any of our readers from this area of Colorado?

If you want to see the article in its original location, and read more about its other sandwich reviews, click here. It’s a fun site!

Here’s their review of the Smoked Pork Sandwich!

A Sandwich a Day: Smoked Pork at the Dickens Tavern in Longmont, CO

Posted by dbcurrie, April 27, 2011 at 11:30 AM

In this great country of ours, one could eat a different sandwich every day of the year—so that’s what we’ll do. Here’s A Sandwich a Day, our daily look at sandwiches around the country. Got a sandwich we should check out? Let us know. —The Mgmt.

The Smoked Pork & Pickled Pepper Sandwich at Dickens Tavern

The building that houses the Dickens Tavern in Longmont, Colorado, was built in 1881 by William Henry Dickens, a relative of the writer Charles Dickens. Upstairs from the Tavern is the Dickens Opera House, a music venue. Inside the walls (allegedly) are ghosts. But enough history.

The smoked pork and pickled pepper sandwich ($9) at the Dickens Tavern isn’t the prettiest girl at the dance, but looks are deceiving. The menu describes it as “smoked pork, pickles, hot peppers, melted cheese, all grilled on super toast with chipotle aioli,” but it looks a lot plainer than that.

In fact, it looks like shredded meat with cheese sauce on a large slice of bread. One bite, though, tells a different tale. There’s the smokiness of barbecue followed by the heat of peppers, the creaminess of cheese and aioli, and more smokiness from the chipotle.

I had to peek inside the sandwich to see where all the flavor was coming from, but no, there was nothing hiding, It looked like shredded meat with a melty cheesy sauce and bits of green that must have been the pickled peppers.

Sandwiches at the Dickens Tavern are served with skinny fries; this one came with a pickle spear, too. You can substitute salad for the fries for no extra charge, or opt for soup or onion rings for a buck, or sweet potato wedges for an extra $2.

Dickens Tavern
300 Main Street, Longmont CO (map); 303-834-9384

About the author: Donna Currie has been cooking for fun and writing for pay since the days when typewritten articles traveled by snail mail. When she combined those talents in a food column for a newspaper in her area, she realized that writing about food is almost as much fun as eating. You can find her on her blog, Cookistry or follow her on Twitter at @dbcurrie.

Women Are Owning the Restaurant Industry!

Did you know that Nearly half of all Americans have worked in the restaurant industry at some point in their lives? Or that one in four adults had their first job experience in a restaurant? How about the fact that nearly 50% of restaurants are now owned by women?

The restaurant industry has historically had a very important social and economic role -within communities, and also worldwide – and new research is bringing some fascinating findings to light. Check out the National Restaurant Association’s detailed stats below…

New Research Report Shows Nearly 50% of Restaurants are Women Owned

Number of Minority Managers in Restaurants on the Increase

New research from the National Restaurant Association shows that nearly 50 percent of restaurants are now owned by women.
The research also shows that restaurants employ more minority managers than any other industry, and that Hispanic restaurant ownership has increased 42 percent in the past five years.

“As the second largest private sector employer in the country, the restaurant industry continues to provide opportunity for millions of individuals from all backgrounds who strive to achieve the American dream,” said Scott DeFife, Executive Vice President for Policy and Government Affairs at the National Restaurant Association. “The numbers are impressive – more women and individuals of diverse backgrounds are becoming restaurant entrepreneurs, or are pursuing lifelong, successful careers in the industry.”

The National Restaurant Association recently launched its “America Works Here” campaign, a year-long advertising campaign that will highlight some of the industry’s most impactful statistics and tell “chapters” in the restaurant industry’s story. The first ad, launched in January, highlights the 13 million jobs created by restaurants, and the more than $1.7 trillion the industry added to the economy.

Nearly half of all Americans have worked in the restaurant industry at some point in their lives, and more than one in four adults had their first job experience in a restaurant. Eighty percent of restaurant managers got their start as front-line employees. Restaurants are primarily small businesses – 93 percent have fewer than 50 employees.

“Many lawmakers may not know that America’s restaurants run on an average profit margin of three to four percent,” said DeFife. “It is critical that there is a commitment in Congress and in state capitols to a pro-business climate that helps America’s restaurants continue to be an engine of economic and job growth.”

How To Attract Culinary Tourists To Your Restaurant

In this edition of The Advice Guy, Jonathan Deutsch, Ph.D., associate professor of culinary arts at Kingsborough Community College, CUNY and public health at the CUNY Graduate Center, answers a question about culinary tourism. Follow the link at the bottom of the article to learn more about culinary tourism, and drop us a comment at the bottom of this page with your own thoughts on attracting tourists to your restaurant!

[See original article at Monkeydish.com]

“We are known as an ethnic neighborhood restaurant. What can I do to attract culinary tourists?”

-Liliana Ramos, Owner, Los Mariachis, Brooklyn, NY

“Culinary tourism” can mean a variety of things. Lucy Long, editor of the book Culinary Tourism gives examples ranging from going on a food and wine tour of a region, to sampling a cuisine from far away in a local restaurant, to structuring a vacation around a cooking class.  What these experiences have in common is a quest for an authentic interaction with another culture through food, a unique and memorable experience.

Long suggests several ways of presenting the restaurant experience in ways that will “stir curiosity and attract customers.  First, if the food is a type that is unfamiliar to the targeted clientele, it needs to be presented as both edible and palatable.  That can be done by using several strategies: framing it as tasty food; describing it in a tasty way; juxtaposing it with familiar foods; explaining what it is; changing ingredients to be more familiar to those customers. These strategies help customers feel ‘safe’ trying new foods. Also, though, if the food is a type that’s already familiar, it can be ‘exoticized’ in similar ways—explaining or describing the history behind it, its meanings and uses within its own culture; [and] presenting it in an artistic way.”

Often culinary tourists just “discover” your place—someone happens upon you, has a phenomenal experience, and blogs, tweets, posts, and just plain talks about their experience. That’s great!

Even if that discovery does not happen naturally, you can plant the seeds for culinary tourists to find you and fall in love with your restaurant:

• Go online. Culinary tourists hang out on the web sharing their finds and debating the virtues of one another’s favorites. Try forums on chow.com, seriouseats.com and local sites like citysearch.com. Let readers know about you and encourage your regulars to post reviews.
• Emphasize a high margin signature item. Culinary tourists often focus on finding “the best” example of a favorite food.  Promote positive reviews of a signature item and highlight it on the menu. A trek in search of “the best taco ever” may resonatewith culinary tourists more than a trip to a good Mexican restaurant.
• Market to tour operators and partner with competitors. In terms of formal culinary tourism, hold a tasting for tour guides and collaborate with other operations to form ready-to-market experiences like a dine around, crawl, or series of short talks and tastings.

More on culinary tourism here.

Working Late? Cook Like a Star Chef!

Clarissa Cruz gives us the scoop on what star chefs make for themselves at the end of a long work day, when all they want is a meal ASAP.  What’s your favorite late-night food?

Working late? Some chefs share their favorite late-night, post-work menus.

Posted by Clarissa Cruz @clarissanyc1

Originally published in Inc.com.

.They helm the kitchens at some of the finest restaurants in the world and have a gaggle of Michelin stars among them. But what do chefs make when they come home late, tired, and starving, and they simply want to get a meal on the table in 10 minutes or less? Hint: Foam is not involved.

.

Alain Ducasse, Chef at Mix, W Hotel, Viecques. “Pasta with olive oil, tomato paste, olive paste, and pesto. The three are a classic combination of Mediterranean tastes: olive, tomato and basil. No cheese.”

Nate Appleman, Menu development Chef, Chipotle, New York City. “Eggs of some sort. Generally just scrambled eggs, sea salt, and olive oil—that’s my favorite. It’s so quick and easy.”

Francois Payard, Owner, FPB, New York City. “We made beautiful vegetables in the oven just simple like that, with a little rice. A pumpkin, a zucchini, a little olive oil, a little spice and we bake them in the oven. Food doesn’t always have to be complicated.”

Joel Robuchon, Chef, L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, Paris.”Spaghetti al dente—six minutes and it’s ready. With a little cheese a little bit of olive oil.”

Brandon Sharp, Executive Chef, Solbar, Calistoga, California. “If you asked me this question 10 years ago, it would be fried bologna, American cheese, barbecue sauce and potato chips wrapped in a tortilla. But now, rice, vegetables and gravy is something that’s really soothing to me whether it’s Thai coconut curry, chili verde or ratatouille.”

Ben Pollinger, Executive Chef, Oceana, New York City. “Grilled cheese. Maybe if I have some kind of leftovers like steak or chicken that my wife and kids ate I might slice them up and put it in there too.”

James Botsacos, Partner/Chef, Molyvos, New York City. “Two eggs over easy seasoned lightly with oregano, granulated garlic, salt and pepper, topped with melted provolone cheese, drizzled with Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce, (a condiment I always have) on either crusty Italian bread or Potato Bread (lightly toasted). Served with an ice cold beer!”

And, saving the best for last—from someone who apparently has a lot of late nights:

Josh Blakely, Chef, Macao Trading Co., New York City. “Lots of sandwiches.  Pastrami and cheese or sardine and mayo are my two favorites.  All four of those things are always in my fridge.

“Egg salad for one: hard boil two eggs, smash, [mix in] mayo, dijon, capers, cornichons, smoked paprika. Ten minutes, and all of those jars are in the door of my fridge all the time. Usually eaten with potato chips.

“Waffles, every conceivable kind.  The classic, but also sweet potato with beef stew, parmesan with chicken salad, corn meal with black beans and Mexican cheese. I’ve made maybe 20-25 different late-night waffles over the years.
“Sausage gravy on biscuits.

“Hot steel-cut oats with fruit, yogurt or milk.

“Soft scrambled eggs with cheese and sausage or bacon or pork chops or chorizo or…whatever leftover cooked meat is in the fridge. Always a winner.

“A quick saute of sliced potato, stinky cheese, and slices of speck or country ham, all in the same little cast iron pan.”