Category Archives: Food TV

A Peek at Palmetto Bluff’s Lowcountry Celebration in South Carolina with Tyler Florence

Posted on by 7 comments

Tyler Florence holding court on stage at the food festival.

Six hundred food fanatics turned out last weekend in Bluffton, S.C. for the third annual “Palmetto Bluff Lowcountry Celebration.”

Yours truly was among them, having been invited to partake in the feasting of all things Southern.

After all, who could pass up a chance to watch Food Network star Tyler Florence and a bevy of the South’s top chefs prepare oyster stew, shrimp and grits, fried green tomatoes, fried catfish, fried chicken, fried shrimp, tater tots fried in duck fat, pulled pork sandwiches, and a mountain of crawfish.

Um, did I mention a lot of the food was fried? Hey, it’s the South. Don’t even bat an eye.

The grand Inn at Palmetto Bluff.

This was the third year of the festival, which is held at the posh Inn at Palmetto Bluff, a residential and recreational community on 20,000 acres, about a third of that set aside in perpetuity to remain undeveloped. Once home to 21 grand plantations, the area, about 20 miles northeast of Savannah, Ga., now boasts an inn with 50 upscale cottages, as well as rental homes and permanent homes.

You might already know that Florence is from South Carolina. What you might not know is that he owns a home at Palmetto Bluff, got married here, and that his brother, Warren, is the tennis pro here.

The food festival tent, set among the ruins of a mansion on the property that burned down years ago.

Praline angel food cakes to sample.

Chef Tom Condron of the Liberty in Charlotte, NC prepares seared salmon with warm potato salad.

Sizzling salmon.

The festival included a day of cooking demos and tastings by chefs such as Donald Barickman and Donald Drake of Magnolias in Charleston; Chris and Idie Hastings of the Hot and Hot Fish Club in Birmingham, Ala.; Frank Lee of Maverick Southern Kitchens in Charleston; and Robert Stehling of Hominy Grill in Charleston.

Manning the fire pit full of oysters, mussels, shrimp and crawfish.

The highlight for me was the finale — a bonafide oyster roast in a very secluded, woodsy spot on the property, where an elaborate fire pit was constructed.

Read more

Take Five with “Top Chef” Contestant Kevin Gillespie, On the Impact of TV Fame

Posted on by 17 comments

Chef Kevin Gillespie of "Top Chef'' grills up succulent pork belly in South Carolina last weekend.

Only four remain.

As Season 6 of Bravo TV’s wildly popular “Top Chef” show winds to a close, Atlanta’s Kevin Gillespie still remains standing. Executive chef and partner of Woodfire Grill, the poised 27-year-old has held himself above the dramatics and hi-jinks exhibited by some of his other competitors. He makes no apologies for his food being simple. Indeed, his longevity just shows that food needn’t be fussy to be spectacular.

I caught up with Gillespie this weekend when I was invited to attend the third annual “Tyler Florence’s Palmetto Bluff Lowcountry Celebration” at the serene, sumptuous Inn at Palmetto Bluff in South Carolina.

Clearly a fan favorite, he was mobbed by well-wishers as he manned the grill, where he was turning out smoky pork belly served with pickled apples and a pureed peanut sauce. Talk about a succulent dish with true Southern twang.

Kevin's grilled pork belly with pickled apples and a zippy peanut sauce.

Everyone wanted to ask him if he ended up winning “Top Chef.” But he remained mum. You’ll just have to keep watching to find out how much farther he gets.

Q: Kevin, how did you get involved with “Top Chef”?

A: They came to me about it. I had to really think about it. I had not really watched the show before, and I feared TV would cheapen what I was doing, that it would add this novelty aspect to it.

Q: How has being on the show changed your life?

A: It’s made the restaurant significantly busier. We’ve had a 330 percent increase in revenue. We didn’t even think that was possible.

The celebrity part is crazy. I was surprised how much people like the show. People really care, and it’s nice to see how much they want to see someone who believes in food succeed. I think it’s also spurred a lot of people to be interested in something they had long forgotten. Television has given people like myself a vehicle to say what they think about food. You have to use it as a vehicle to help shape young people.

Q: Do you like the way you’ve been portrayed on TV?

A: I had a generous portrayal. They didn’t create a person who didn’t exist. I’m not a person who talks negative about others. I’m very purposeful. I think it’s given me credibility on the show.

Q: What surprised you most about doing the show?

Read more

Take Five With Masaharu Morimoto, On His New Svelte Figure and New Napa Restaurant

Posted on by 19 comments

A trim Chef Masaharu Morimoto. (Photo courtesy of the Food Network)

Masaharu Morimoto, the star of the original Japanese “Iron Chef” and the newer Food Network version, “Iron Chef America,” may be sporting a trimmer physique these days. But the celebrated chef, who was born in Hiroshima, Japan, is still one commanding presence.

Morimoto visited the Napa Valley last weekend for the 12th annual “Worlds of Flavor” conference at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena, the theme of which this year was “World Street Food, World Comfort Food.” The chef, who was there to do cooking demonstrations, drew crowds wherever he went, especially at the marketplace, where his crew cooked up okonomiyaki (a Japanese savory pancake layered with noodles, pork and a fried egg) and takoyaki (a Japanese octopus donut hole).

During a break, I had a chance to talk with the 54-year-old chef about his sixth restaurant that will open next summer in the Wine Country — Morimoto Napa.

Q: What made you choose Napa as opposed to San Francisco for your restaurant?

A: Two years ago, I came here for the “Worlds of Flavor” conference. It was my first time in Napa. I liked it. It is a special place. It’s a culinary place.

Q: What will Morimoto Napa be like?

A: Thomas Schoos, who did Tao in Las Vegas, is the designer. There will be three components — a fine-dining room with a sushi bar and omakase, a late-night lounge, and a retail store. People will be able to buy fish and Wagyu beef from Japan to take home to cook. We may sell bento box lunches and do catering for parties, too.

Q: Will the restaurant look like a piece of Japan? Or a piece of Napa?

A: It will look like a piece of Morimoto.

Morimoto supervises his crew at the "Worlds of Flavor'' conference.

Cooking up a Japanese savory pancake.

Tender octopus donuts get flipped so they're golden all around.

Q: With so many restaurants already, how often will people expect to see you actually in the Napa restaurant?

A: I will be there as much as I can.

Q: Will we be buying a place to live here? Perhaps a house with its own vineyard to make Morimoto wine?

Read more

Take Five with Chef Charles Phan, On His “Iron Chef America” Battle

Posted on by 18 comments

Charles Phan battles on "Iron Chef America'' this Sunday. (Photo courtesy of the Food Network)

With his outrageously popular Slanted Door restaurant, three Out the Door eateries, Heaven’s Dog, and the Academy of Sciences cafe — all of them in San Francisco — it’s hard to believe Chef Charles Phan has time to do much of anything else.

But somehow the 47-year-old chef, who’s ethnically Chinese and a native of Vietnam, found time to go mano-a-mano and burner-to-burner with Cat Cora on “Iron Chef America.”

Filmed in July 2008, that episode finally will air 10 p.m. Nov. 8.

I had a chance to talk with Phan yesterday about his surprising appearance on the show, given his aversion to doing TV.

Q: Ahem. So, I was witness to you saying on a panel in San Francisco earlier this year that you hate being photographed and you hate being on TV. So what gives?

A: Yeah, I do hate it. (laughs) But I kind of have to do it, because it’s my work. The Food Network approached me about doing it. It’s a national show and a chance to show off Vietnamese cooking.

Q: How did it go?

A: It was fine. I didn’t get too stressed out about it. I did the show with my chefs from Slanted Door. Getting the food plated was a challenge. We usually don’t plate individually like that. We normally serve family-style. So we were out of our realm a little bit. But it was OK.

Q: What surprised you most?

Read more

Feel the Love — When It Comes to Sardines

Posted on by 21 comments

Are you a sardine lover or hater?

Sardines suffer from a bad rep for the most part.

So many of us have stinky memories of those tiny, pungent fish lurking inside pull-tab tins that our parents or grand-parents forced upon us.

But I’m here to plead with you to give sardines a chance.

At a time when so many other seafood species are on the verge of extinction, sardines are one of the most sustainable fish around. They’re super cheap, and loaded with good-for-you omega-3s, too.

That’s why a local group, whimsically named the “Sardinistas,” is waging a campaign to get you and me to better appreciate this much-maligned fish. Find out more about this group by reading my story in the November issue of San Francisco magazine.

Bay Area chefs already have courted a love affair with sardines. Find fresh ones grilled on many a menu here, their flesh silky and smoky tasting.

Fresh sardines aren’t always easy to come by at local fish markets, though, because the majority caught in Monterey Bay are exported elsewhere.

But canned ones are easily found at any supermarket.

Not only are there sardines in this dish, but anchovies, too.

And even die-hard sardine haters are sure to love them in “Fish Cakes with Caper-Parsley Sauce.”

The recipe, adapted from one published in Gourmet magazine seven years ago, actually has three types of fish in it. And two of them are despised by a good number of folks. Yes, one is the sardine. The other? Anchovy.

But hear me out before you pass judgment.

Read more

« Older Entries Recent Entries »