September 2009

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Uchi, a well-known Japanese restaurant, staple of Austin, and a good friend of the Wine & Food Foundation has given us some new and exciting recipes to share with you!  The Uchi family of chefs, including Executive Chef Tyson Cole, Chef de Cuisine Paul Qui, and Pastry Chef Philip Speer, have shared some of their personal favorites with the Plate & Vine Interactive Cookbook for you to recreate in your own home.  With signature plates from their menu and their top selling dessert, you can’t go wrong. Also, to keep you up to date on the progress of the highly anticipated Uchiko (Uchi Restaurant the sequel), follow Chef Tyson Cole at www.uchikoaustin.blogspot.com.

Uchiviche is a seafood dish with refreshing texture and flavor and a top seller at Uchi.

Uchiviche

Uchiviche

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Posted by Chef David Bull

Hmmm…what do you do when your neighbor comes home with 10 pounds of mackerel and offers you half if you’ll cook all of it and share with his family in return? Jamison, my daughter, and I wondered the same thing – what could we do with this bounty? As you may or may not know, Jamison is my #1 sous-chef (don’t tell anyone in the kitchen at Bolla, they might be jealous), infinitely wise and talented at the ripe old age of 4. She can chop and prep like a pro not only from my lessons but from the knife skills she inherited from me!

Chef Jamison in the Kitchen

Chef Jamison in the Kitchen


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Paris or Vegas? Paris or Vegas?  This time the Keeper Team chose to eat dinner at Restaurant Guy Savoy at Caesar’s Palace. The decision was largely influenced by a recommendation from a good friend, June Rodil, whose culinary input we trust and is the Beverage Director at one of our favorite Austin restaurants, UCHI. After recently enjoying lunch in Paris (blog post soon to come) at the French 2 star Michelin restaurant, Arpege, we wondered how this American 2 star Michelin Savoy restaurant would compare. Would our French dining experience be overshadowed by the Vegas culture or could Guy Savoy sustain his bona fide French flair?

In typical Vegas Style, the restaurant’s entrance was grandiose. We were greeted warmly, and our table was ready for us to begin our culinary adventure. We were happy to see that almost all of the staff were French. We were told that none of the staff had ever worked at any of Savoy’s Paris restaurants. Although they all worked in Las Vegas before the restaurant opened, they said they chose to apply for jobs at this “special” French restaurant.

From the start, the staff made us feel as if we were dining at a fine Paris restaurant. We selected the “Prestige Menu”, which are the chef’s special selections of the night. The menu listed ten delicious courses in both English and French. Overall, each dish was superb, although the desserts were not as strong as the savory dishes. That is the only “critique” we can make, as we were extremely impressed with the meal, so please read on!

Colorful Guy Savoy Prestige Menu

Colorful Guy Savoy Prestige Menu

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Posted by Keeper Collection

The next leg of Keeper’s Italian excursion took place in the Liguria/Italian Riviera region.  Although we regularly day-tripped throughout the area, we resided in the city of Recco, which is in fact the gastronomic capital of Liguria.  Recco is especially famous for its signature Focaccia col Formaggio, or cheese filled Focaccia bread.  I know it sounds too simple to be a renowned dish, but take my word for it – it’s messy, gooey, cheesy, rich, and far too good to turn down!  Recco even holds an annual Focaccia Festival, which just happened to commence on the very day that we arrived in Recco.  Needless to say, I took it as a positive sign of the feasting to come during our stay.

focacciaconformaggio

Focaccia Col Formaggio

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