An Evening with Anthony Bourdain and Eric Ripert

Being a food fanatic, travel freak, and a cultural explorer, it is only natural that I am a big fan of Anthony Bourdain (ok, and maybe even a bit of a crush!) I watch his show "No Reservations" on the Travel Channel religiously, and never get sick of the re-runs. I love his no bullshit attitude, and his willingness to try everything. Great food isn't just about gourmet cooking. Sometimes, a street cart stand or a night market stand can dish out better cooking than 5 star hotels. And I completely agree with him when he says that sometimes the best cuisine is just a nice home cooked meal. Man do I get jealous when I see that he gets invited to families in Sardinia, Turkey, Vietname, etc. If I had access to home cooking like that, I would never even think about dining out!

When I saw that "Tony" was coming to the Warner Theatre here in Washington, DC, I got tickets without hesitation. However, after I septn my $50, I really had no idea what exactly he would be doing during this "evening" event. Will he be cooking? Is like like a stand up comedy show? Will it be a show down between Bourdain and Ripert?

The evening turned out to be kind of a interact with the audience type of event. Bourdain and Ripert were on the stage on a couch along with a host. The first hour consist of the host asking both of them a series of questions., and the second half was a Q and A sesion with the audience. I knew what to expect out of Tony, he's a guy who speaks his mind and isn't afraid of offending anybody. He is very opinionated and has a great sense of humor. Now before this, I am ashamed to admit, I had no idea who Eric Ripert was. "He's going to be a judge on Top Chef!" one of my friends told me. OK great, but who is he? Turns out he's a seafood master who has a cooking show on PBS. Throughout the show you get a sense that he is a very diplomatic guy who doesn't like to criticize other people in font of the audience. Which is kind of ironic given that you kind of have to be critical to be a judge on Top Chef!

Eric Ripert and Anthony Bourdain are like day and night, and maybe that's why they had the two of them on stage at the same time. I can't really imagine 2 Tony's up there.

One thing I do have to note that from all of the talks that I been to with famous chefs, there was always an emphasis on the American farming industry. Of all people, top chefs in the world knows what quality ingredients are. Whether they agree with the practice itself is another story, but the taste of the meat, produce or whatever will always speak for itself.

Was the night worth $50? Probably not, but I had my laugh, and learned a great deal.

I am now currently reading Bourdain's "Kitchen Confidential", which I highly recommend. It will change your perspective on dining out. A lot of stories I can actually relate to given that I currently work in a restaurant myself!

My first experiment with Rhubarb

A few months ago, I had no idea what Rhubarb is. I've never seen it and never even tasted it. At the very first market I went to in Macon, France, I came across a jar of jam that was labeled "Rhubarb", and I asked (in French) the vendor what rhubarb was. He tried to explain it, but at the very end, I still hadn't a clue what it was. When I came back to the States I started seeing it sold everywhere in the farmer's market. At first I didn't know what to expect out of this long-stemmed celery like items, so I didn't even think about buying it. Maybe it's the season for rhubarbs, I started seeing it getting mentioned everywhere, and my friend Rebecca started using it a lot. I had it in a pie that she made, and I also tried a compote that the restaurant I worked at made. It's kind of hard to describe the taste. I did some research on rhubarb, and apparently it is classified as a type of fruit in the United States, although it looks nothing like it. The leaves are toxic and the stems are too sour to eat on its own. Therefore, the most common way of preparing rhubarb is for desserts, a sugary compote, or jam.
I finally was brave enough to buy rhubarb the other day from the Lancaster market. I made a compote, that turned out to be delicious. I don't like things too sweet, so I went heavy on the lemon juice and less on the sugar, but experiment with the amount that you want!

Here's my recipe:
2 stems of rhubarb chopped into 1/2 inches
1/2 cup of red wine
juice of 1 whole lemon
1/4 cup of sugar

Put everything in a pot and simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the rhubarbs starts to peel off, and you'll definitely know when that is, cause it caught me by surprise. After that's all thickened up, let it set until it cools.
I served it on top of ice cream, which turned out to be a great combination. The sourness from the compote complemented greatly with the sweetness of the vanilla ice cream. It's also good on top of yogurt, bread, or as a dessert filling.

Experiment with this wonderful "fruit" while it's in season!

2 Amy's Pizza

Alright, I know there are probably a million other blog posts about 2 Amy's pizzas out there. We've heard it all; it's either the best Neapolitan pizza in the area (or the country), or it's an overrated, crowded and expensive pizza restaurant for yuppy people who live in the area.

Here's my take: 2 Amy's is definitely my type of pizza. If you're looking for an all-American huge ass pizza with a million toppings on it, well this is definitely not the place for you. But if you're in the mood for a pizza that is simple, this is the place. I find that a lot of times, it is harder to make something that seems easy taste good. Let's take their famous margherita pizza for example. It consist of the following ingredients: tomato sauce, buffalo mozzarella cheese, basil, and olive oil. Not one ingredient should be overwhelming. Since the ingredients are so simple, it means that it must be of great quality. This is what 2 Amys does well. For people who aren't used to a Neapolitan pizza, when the pizza first comes out, it might be a bit surprising to see how few toppings there are. But the crust is baked just right, and the sauce and the ingredients complement each other. It's better to cut the pizza as you eat it rather than precutting it, since it does get a bit watery in the middle.

We started off the meal with an order of bruschetta and potato frittata. The frittata wasn't as good as I hoped since it was served cold, however the tomato on the side did make up for the lack of taste in the frittata.
We also ordered a stuffed pizza with ricotta and Mozzarella cheese, a Caprese pizza with olives, anchovies and mozzarella cheese, and a pizza with salami and bell peppers.
The stuffed pizza was to die for. The pizza came and it looked like the cheese was about to burst, and once you cut into it, all of the yummy ricotta comes oozing out. It was excellent! My favorite pizza of the night was the Caprese! The Olives and anchovies went really well together!
I didn't feel like the prices at 2 Amy's were that over-priced. At the last restaurant I worked at, they charged $14 for a Margherita pizza, and let's just say the taste does NOT even compare!
But again, 2 Amy's pizza probably isn't for everybody. Some people like the New York Style, others like the deep dish Chicago pizza. I'm definitely more of a Neapolitan fan!!

Sonoma Restaurant and Wine Bar

I discovered Sonoma Restaurant and Wine Bar through the Groupon program online. I don't know how a foodie like me discovered Groupon so late, but this was actually my first Groupon experience. I paid $15 for a $30 Groupon to Sonoma. I had searched the restaurant online, and was thrilled to find that they sourced their meats and other ingredients locally and sustainably.
The restaurant is located on Capitol Hill, and to my surprise was packed on a random Wednesday at lunch time, good thing I made my reservation! It was definitely a place frequented by a lot of lobbyists, and I felt severely underdressed when I walked in. The menu was extensive and has a great selection of salads, pizzas, pasta, fish and meat dishes. I started out with a glass of Sangiovese. I had already skimmed through the menu before I went and decided to try the Amish Chicken, which is served with fingerling potatoes, leeks and a grainy mustard seed. I have to say, while the chicken tasted delicious, and actually taste like a chicken, I was a bigger fan of the supporting ingredients in this dish. The potatoes were tender and cooked just right, as well as the leeks, and the mustard seed sauce added the perfect touch to them. I also found the chicken to be a little bit overcooked. The dish definitely isn't enough to fill you up, so make sure you order an appetizer! It's definitely a place I'd go back again!

Oh and just to add another twist, I currently work at Blue Ridge Restaurant, which is owned by the same people as Sonoma!

Local food and gardening

One of the things that I've discovered from my trip to France was the accessibility to fresh and local ingredients at morning markets. Within 20 minutes of any town, one can buy fresh vegetables, fruits, meat, seafood, bread, cheese, anything (!) at prices either cheaper or comparable to those at a super market. The experience really mad me appreciate the flavor of the food. When the ingredients are fresh, you don't really need to add that much more flavors to it. The more simply you prepare the dish, the more natural flavor you will taste.
Yes, farmers markets are all over DC and its suburbs, but you have to admit, these places attract only a certain crowd. And more often than not, the prices aren't exactly cheap, especially for someone on a budget (ahem, like me!) However, if you pick and choose your way, it can still be affordable. I'm only buying for one after all.
I've decided to make it a goal ths spring, summer, and fall season to use as much locally grown food as I can. That means I will have to forgo the yummy blackberries I see at Trader Joe's that are imported from South America, and the red and orange bell peppers that come from Israel.
How will I do this? First I've signed up for a Community Supported Agriculture program, also known as CSA from a local far market. The program works like this: you pay a certain amount of money up front (for mine, it's $120 of a half share, which is for about 2 people, for 8 weeks). It averages out to be $15 a week fruits, vegetables, and legumes, which isn't too bad.
I also have a garden plot at my apartment complex in which I've planted, bell peppers, banana peppers, okra, tomatoes, zucchini, butternut squash, and red cabbage. I also have my herbs indoors including basil, cilantro, rosemary and parsley. And those herbs just kicks everything up a big notch!
Lastly, of course there is the farmer's market, where I'll need to go to buy various meat, dairy, eggs, etc. There are 2 that are easily accessible to me: Silver Spring on Saturdays, and Takoma Park on Sundays.

Some fun and exciting stuff that I've made recently with local ingredients in season are nettle soup. Nettle is this prickly planet that has a nice and flagrant flavor to it. You simply boil it and all of the prickly stuff comes off. Cut off the stems and make sure you really trim off the stuff that's going to be rough. Brown some onions and potatoes for about 15 minutes. Add stock and the boiled nettles to the mix and let it cook for another half an hour. Puree it and voila you have nettle soup!!

My 3 and a half week Dream

So, I lied... I thought I was going to be able to blog while I was in France, and I obviously failed miserably. But after cooking dinner for two hours and eating and drinking good wine for another two, it's hard to get motivated to write.
To sum up real quickly though, let's just say that I have never in my life had so much wine (and oh my were they tasty), cheese, bread, and jam. The thought of it all is still giving me cravings. I sure dined well, and I mean real well. And honestly, I was not disappointed with a single meal that I've had in France. A lot of days did also consist of going to the grocery store, picking up random stuff and picknicking. That includes eating lettuce out of a bag, sitting on cement and cutting cheese and bread on a piece of wax paper. But it didn't make the experince any less satisfying. I got to also cook with fresh ingredients from markets that we frequented in the mornings. I experienced with meats like rabbit, and it sure was yummy!
We stayed in a variety of settings while we were there, including a castle (really!) that almost seemed surreal; 2 cottages, one high in the mountains of Provence where we were all alone, the other, a stone house built in the 16th century in a cute small village; a stone house in the middle of a vineyard; and lastly a small bed and breakfast inn right by the Gironde river.
We tasted wine in Burgundy, Chateauneuf du Pape, Gigondas, Cote du Rohne, Cote du Luberon, Languedoc-Rouissillon, and Bordeaux. Our wine spurlges reined from 4 Euros a bottle to 85 Euros a bottle (and yes that bottle was worth every penny). There was not a single bottle of wine that I didn't like. We drank at least a bottle of wine every single day. What can I say it was really living the dream of a foodie!
We visited gorgeous small villages and well as big cities, drank coffee in sunny squares, hiked up to castles, etc. I have never met more friendlier people who were just willing to chat with me for a long time.
There were definitely uneventful stuff that happened, but looking back, those three and a half weeks were definitely some of the best times of my life, and I was happy to spend it with my mom and dad.
I'll be writing more, but this is just a quick summary to start off after slacking for all this time!

A random dream trip to France

I have to admit, after having graduated since May 2009 and still working as a server at a restaurant, January and February were two very down months for me. The weather, in particular, did not ameliorate the situation at all. I all of a sudden just felt like I needed to get out, to get away from Washington, DC, and disappear!
I had just finished reading two books, one was "A Year in Provence" by Peter Mayle, and the other was "Under the Tuscan Sun" by Frances Mayes. Well needless to say after reading those 2 books just made me want to buy a house in rural France and spend the rest of my life there. But as we all know, that probably isn't the most plausible thing that I could be doing right now. However, it did gave me a sudden idea of taking a trip to somewhere rural, where I could just enjoy nature by myself. No big cities, no annoying tourists, just the countryside to myself. Yet, that was still just a thought, I still didn't think it was likely to happen. Then my friend Dorothy, who had done a similar one month trip to France in the past told me why not? "Go travel while you still have the time." Well, then I started doing my research. It turns out that one can rent cottages in rural France for quite cheaply. Originally I was planning on doing it on my own, but I decided to pass along the idea to my parents who are currently living in Taiwan. They have never been to France. It's one of those places that they are unlikely to go on their own.
Since renting a car and a cottage to myself would be the same for 3 people, I invited them along.
It didn't take the long to say yes. My parents and I share the same interest in gastronomy, so the idea of being able to go to French markets and cook with fresh ingredients everyday is almost irresistable.
So after weeks and weeks of planning here is my tentative itinerary and plans.
We would arrive in Paris on March 4 2010.
From there we head down to Dijon via TGV where I have a rental car waiting for me at the train station. From Dijon, we will cruise one of the most famous Burgundy wine roads, the Cote de Nuits. After a day of wine tasting and fine dining, we will stay in a small locally owned hotel close to Beaune. The next day we will continue our wine journey down the Cote de Beaune by doing a bike tour. Wine tasting and biking just sounds like such a perfect combination. We will spend the night in Macon.
The next day we will head to our cottage in Provence. The cottage, or gite in French that we have rented is located in Saignon, in the Luberon region, which just happens to be the area where author Peter Mayle lives. There we will spend a week where I plan on just relaxing, cooking, biking, hiking, and of course drinking wine (the most essential!)
The next week we will be at our other cottage in Caunes-Minervois located in the Languedoc-Roussillon region.
Then it's 3 days in Bordeaux, and then we will finish up with 4 days in Paris. After all, a trip to France won't be complete without being in the "most romantic city in the world."

So look for my blogs in the coming weeks regarding my daily adventures in France, because, this trip is really a dream that is about to come true!