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Chinese New Year Dumpling Making Class at the Source

February 10th, 2013 • No Comments

I love dumplings..actually, I love any starch covered meat/seafood/vegetable whether it’s fried, boiled, steamed or sauteed! I attended a really unique and fun cooking class organized by AIWF’s DC Chapter with Executive Chef Scott Drewno at The Source in downtown DC on Saturday, February 9th, 2013. Here are the highlights and some photos – you WILL salivate when you see the dishes..and honestly, I just can’t forget the mouth-watering aromas of ginger, garlic and soy in so many wonderful combinations..in some ways you really need your sense of smell to appreciate this post!

The Event:

1)Layout – very unique and maybe a bit daunting at the beginning, but there were 3 separate seating areas with 3 individual cooking demonstration stations. It was sort of like theater in the round, with the main Chef Scott Drewno in the middle station (he’s on the far left in the photo above) with his “Madonna” headseat on and 2 separate chefs demonstrating on opposite/perpendicular sides of the stage – I guess you could call it a 3-Chef C-Stage Cooking Demonstration. Unusual, but it worked mainly because of the entertainment value and also because you could watch your own chef – a very creative use of a space that actually is difficult to layout for classroom style events!

2)The Menu – I usually have a pretty low expectation of a cooking class that is simple food like dumplings, but then again, I know chef Drewno notoriously is an impressive foodie and he couldn’t (wouldn’t) let us down. Here’s the menu and dish photos are below:

Yummy fall-off-the-bone Spare Ribs!

Sea Scallop Sui Mai

Chinese New Dumpling Class Menu

-Chinese Spare Ribs, Black Bean Glaze
-Sea Scallop Sui Mai, Curried Lobster Emulsion
-Pork Belly Pot Stickers, Black Vinegar, Chili Oil
-Szechuan Style Green Beans, Candied Walnuts
-Crystal Chive Dumpling, Kurobuta Pork, King Crab
-Chilled Cucumber Salad, Toasted Sesame, Togarashi
-Szechuan “Dan Dan” Dumpling, Organic Chicken, Peanut Sauce
-Millet Congee, Red Braised Pork Belly, Pickled Butternut Squash Relish

Dragon’s Fire Cocktail

 

3)The Process – we sat down at various dining room tables and actually got some hands-on hand-rolling of 2 kinds of pork dumplings, we each had 2 wrappers of each kind to roll. Now we got a complete explanation and demo of how to roll, and then we rolled up our sleeves, dipped our finger in the egg wash and wrapped up the mini-balls of meat into dumplings. Some people were good, some were ok, and some simply had falling apart dumplings, but hey, we weren’t going to eat these anyway – the meal was prepared for us. Primarily a demonstration cooking class, I found myself talking to my fellow Foodies more than actually listening to the class – I probably could have learned more, but honestly the vibe in the room and the amount of alcohol being served (sparkling wine and that tasty Dragon’s Fire Cocktail with Tequila!) kept the noise/buzz omni-present – if this had been my first cooking class, maybe a bad thing, but for experienced Foodies it was actually a really fun event.

4)The meal – served primarly family style (except for the Millet Congee and the dessert), it was fun to share with 3 other people at my table. My Foodie Buddie Bruce Miller (who has attended at least 200 TasteDC events or more in the past) was very experienced at these events. I actually prefer the family style method of serving – it helps create rapport and camaraderie. By sharing food, I learned more about my newfound fellow foodies than if everything had been individually plated. Some specific comments: the variety of dishes, proteins and vegetables was very thought out – from garlicky clams to

Millet Congee, Red Braised Pork Belly, Pickled Butternut Squash Relish

rich pork belly and braised pork belly, back to the Sea Scallops Sui Mai and then finally to the deliciously syrupy dessert (I forget the name!). Also the Chilled Cucumber Salad helped to cool my palate and acted sort of like an Amuse Bouche between dishes – actually the Cocktail did the same with it’s Tequila and grapefruit – a very smart way of using a drink to refresh the palate!

5)Service – I was really impressed by the Source’s staff and presentation and service – they cared..something that you don’t always get with service nowadays, but each server was focused and putting in effort. There were many parts too – the hot hand towels which came out twice, the initial layout of the wrappers on a small granite plate with a moist towel on top to protect the integrity of the dumpling wrappers, the pouring of sparkling wine, the making and serving of the cocktail, and the actual serving of the food which was primarily family style. There was one obliteration of glassware episode – and I mean ExPloDing glass – but luckily it was to the side, and the server quickly cleaned it up – no harm, no foul..in fact, maybe an extra plus for handling a delicate situation so well!

Superb Service at the Source!

6)Overall Impression – very professional presentation and staff, but not stiff – I felt like things were being taken care of without pretense. This event was very much theater in the round and in fact, there were two un-affiliated groups of people present – the AIWF DC Chapter and a list of Chef Scott Drewno’s contacts/Foodies. I thought the cooking layout of 3 chef demonstration stations although unusual, it created some theater and a chance for more discussion – and it was the best use of the available space which is awkwardly broken up by an atrium/stairwell. The space is actually quite visually pleasing with the extensive windows and the wine wall next to the stairwell. Chef Drewno is also a very good presenter and entertaining and answered questions clearly from the audience – Scott knows his Asian ingredients – oh, and this WaPo article will give you some background on that. Really curious about ethnic food? Then Check Out Tyler Cowen’s Ethnic Dining Guide

Cheers!

Charlie “I Drink on the Job” Adler

A Multi-Chef Event with Star Power in DC

October 15th, 2012 • No Comments

Great Shindig at the Ron Reagan Building!

Capital Food Fight on Monday, October 8th, 2012 was a culinary party for DC’s Foodie Elite! This impressive event had a Sold-Out Turnout of around 1,500 people tasting, imbibing and nibbling on 2 Levels of the Ronald Reagan Building. What makes this event so different from many multi-chef events in DC was the Star Power draw of some big name Chefs and Foodie Stars: Anthony Bourdain, Padma Lakshmi, Carla Hall (DC’s own!), Andrew Zimmern and of course DC’s own infamous Jose Andres put on a show for the crowd around the cooking competition between 4 Battling DC Chefs:

Chef Jeffrey Buben -Vidalia, Bistro Bis
Chef Enzo Fargione – Elisir
Chef Guillermo – Pernot – Cuba Libre Restaurant and Rum Bar
Chef Adam Sobel – Bourbon Steak

And the Winner is..Chef Buben!

I have to admit – I was so focused on tasting many of the 60 Restaurant’s dishes at the event, that I barely paid attention to the cooking competition – I’m a professional taster, and that’s what I do at these events – Taste! the list of restaurants was quite impressive, here’s the list of about 60 – Capital Food Fight Restaurants .

Ohh, and here are the dishes served:

1789  • House-made ricotta with fresh figs & Wildflower Honey

Adour • Lobster salad with cauliflower & céleri rémoulade, assorted macaroons & al tiramisu

American Tap Room • Bourbon barrel stout braised wild boar with pumpkin butter & pickled   vegetables

Argia’s Italian • Duck confit, bean ragout with crostini

Art and Soul  • Louisiana crawfish étouffée, preserved lemon, brown jasmine rice & scallions

Bandolero • Red snapper tostada – really woke up my tastebuds and refreshing with a good dose of salt to bring out the fish and other flavors!

Bar Pilar/Café St. Ex  • Wagyu brisket chili with farmhouse cheddar cheese & scallions – Wagyu is so wonderfully soft fat on the palate and really made this comfort food dish work.

Belga  • Celery waffle with orange duck in cotton candy – I didn’t feel like waiting in line – the cotton candy just got so much attention – food as entertainment I guess!

BLT Steak • Tuna tartar

Blue Duck Tavern  • Mushroom tart

Boqueria  • Roasted market carrots with yogurt, marcona almonds, citrus vinaigrette & cilantro

Boundary Road • House-made sausage & pretzel rolls

Carmine’s • Meatballs & eggplant parmigiana – funny how the most basic foods get oohs and aahs at this event.

Cava Mezze • Short rib stifado with roasted pearl onions & sunchoke puree

Central Michel Richard • Salmon croquet monsieur

Cuba Libre • Scallop tiradito with compressed strawberry, roasted corn, salpicon/sweet potate & micro celery – interesting how a fruit like strawberry brings out other flavors so well – this worked.

Dolcezza Artisanal Gelato • Lemon ricotta cardamom & cementine sorbetto

Elisir • Gorgonzola panna cotta eggshells with candied celery – great presentation and creamy, delicious dish.

Equinox  • Truffled fontina & slow cooked cabbage with roasted chanterelles

Et Voila • Endive soup with hazelnut oil & roasted hazelnuts

Evening Star • Pumpkin soup

Good Stuff Eatery • Toasted marshmallow shake

Graffiato • Cured sardines & broccolini with preserved lemon & aged balsamic – sardines definitely wake up the senses at a crowded event like this.

iCi Urban Bistro •  Rosemary duck confit rillettes with pickles on toasted baguettes

Indique • Crab papad roll

Jackson 20 • South Texas antelope carpaccio, mole de Colorado, local radishes & pickled tomatoes

Kaz Sushi Bistro • Mini temaki (sushi hand rolls)

Lebanese Taverna • Sliced lamb loin with pastry & lebneh

Lincoln  • Braised short rib with bone marrow jam, pickled shallots & black pepper truffle biscuits

Masa 14  • Fried steam buns with Korean lamb barbeque

Mie N Yu • House-made pho with duck breast

Oyamel • Salpicon de reshilled, shredded beef, pickled onions, tomatoes & chipotle chiles

PJ Clarke’s • P.J’s mini burgers

Policy • Brisket sliders with oven roasted tomatoes, sunny side up quail egg, caramelized onions & black truffle mayo

Rappahannock River Oysters • Rappahannock River oysters & Olde Salt oysters

Ripple • House-made Lamb mortadella, squash mustard & beet juice – yep, it looked like mortadella!

Santa Lucia Coffee • Coffee

Taberna del Alabardero  • Tomato surprise stuffed with anchovies

Taco Bamba  • Pork tenderloin burrito, grilled avocado, white beans & picked jalapeno pistachio vinaigrette

The Federalist Duck • Sausage with mustard pickled cabbage

The Majestic • Sashimi, rockfish with soy-yuzu vinaigrette, daikon, ginger, cilantro & sesame seeds

Westend Bistro • Fennel smoked trout with apple cranberry chutney, saffron aioli & angel hair potato crisps

Hank’s Oyster • Oysters on the half shell with saki ginger mignonette

Gristmill • Shrimp & grits

Jackie’s • Local lamb stuffed nora pepper with smoked tomato

Shake Shack • Frozen custard

Taylor Gourmet • Hoagies & salads

And of Course lot’s of Media Coverage:
Article by Washington Business Journal’s Miss Frederick

Washington Post Coverage

Article by Examiner

Jessica Sidman for City Paper – 4 Memorable Moments from Capital Food Fight (Note: she mentions the man who paid $1,000 to eat Iberico ham off Padma Lakshmi’s collar bone!)

“Where Did That Iguana Come From?” in the City Paper

Ben Giliberti Post Chablis Tasting

June 16th, 2010 • No Comments

I’ve always enjoyed talking with Ben Giliberti – even when he was the Washington Post wine critic (which lasted for 22 years, he followed the venerable Robert Parker!), he was always accessible in person and frankly, quite humorous! We were walking away from a Chablis tasting in Washington, D.C. and we were discussing his new role as Director of Wine Education at Calvert Woodley when I posed to him the question “how would he use Social Media and the internet to promote wine education?” We went back and forth for a few moments talking about how things had changed in wine over the last few years and then I pulled out the mini HD video camera and filmed him for about 3 minutes or so, see how he did: