Tag Archives: Chef Kevin Gin

The Time Is Ripe For Braised Lamb Shanks with Sweet-and-Sour Kumquats

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Fall-off-the-bone tender lamb shanks get garnished with wine-simmered, sweet-tangy kumquats.
Fall-off-the-bone tender lamb shanks get garnished with wine-simmered, sweet-tangy kumquats.

Admittedly, I often hem and haw, even dodge, duck, and deflect, when people invariably ask me what my favorite recipe is in my cookbook, “East Bay Cooks” (Figure 1, 2019).

It’s like choosing a favorite child — or in my case, only one dessert to eat for the rest of my life.

It just can’t be done.

However, I will concede this: At this time of year especially, I will eagerly flip the pages of my cookbook until I stop longingly at “Braised Lamb Shanks with Sweet-and-Sour Kumquats.”

This comforting dish is from Chef Kevin Gin of Bridges in Danville. It’s one of those fabulous dishes in which your oven really does all the work — turning lamb shanks, cooked with an entire bottle of red wine and aromatics like thyme and rosemary, into fall-off-the-bone lusciousness.

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The Story of Danville’s Bridges Goes Beyond the Food

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Tuna stacked atop avocado and sticky rice at Bridges.

Tuna stacked atop avocado and sticky rice at Bridges.

 

On any given weekend at Bridges in downtown Danville, you’ll find smartly dressed couples, families, and wedding parties. It’s the place to be not only for a casual dinner but a celebratory occasion.

It’s also the place to enjoy a bit of cinematic history. Its dining room and kitchen were the setting for the big reveal scene in the beloved movie, “Mrs. Doubtfire.” On a wall leading to the restrooms, there’s even a framed movie poster signed by the late-great Robin Williams, the star of the film.

The success of the movie really put the restaurant on the map. It’s been wildly popular ever since.

When Chef Kevin Gin's mom told him at age 12 that he was getting old and needed to figure out what he wanted to be, he immediately said "a chef.''

When Chef Kevin Gin’s mom told him at age 12 that he was getting old and needed to figure out what he wanted to be, he immediately said “a chef.”

Built in 1989, the restaurant’s name refers to building connections between East and West, according to Chef-Partner Kevin Gin. The former Chinese restaurant there was torn down after the land was purchased by a wealthy Japanese businessman, who spared no expense in creating Bridges. Five types of Japanese wood were used, as well as imported Italian marble, European tiles, and even 24 karat gold painted onto the walls.

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