SOBEWFF Podcasts: Marcus Samuelsson, Scott Conant, Quality Meats MB

One of the highlights of ‪this year's South Beach Wine and Food Festival for me was hosting the inaugural Miami.com podcast whereby we taped six (!) back-to-back interviews with accomplished chefs. The roster was impressive: Scott Conant, Marcus Samuelsson and Craig Koketsu of Quality Meats Miami Beach. You can catch them all the link below but I suggest you start with Marcus Samuelsson, simply because I loved his outfit the most and want to steal his cardigan.
Listen here.

Matador Room @ The Miami Beach EDITION

Ever since Matador Room opened at The Miami Beach EDITION it seems everyone has been Instagraming a certain copper pineapple cocktail. This $30 elixir was all the rage when the swanky hotel opened its doors during the Art Basel crush this past December. Made with Absolut Elyx, Palo Cortado Sherry, salted caramel bitters, Bittermens Elemakule tiki bitters, house-made pineapple and rosemary syrup, and a torched sprig of rosemary that when the lid is removed, gives the guest a subtle puff of herby fragrance.
Yes, it's pricey, so while you're there you ought to stay for some avocado pizza, which is reason enough to make it to the gorgeous restaurant inside the restored Art Deco hotel.
Celeb chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten may no longer be at J & G Grill at the St. Regis Bal Harbour, but he has partnered with hotelier Ian Schrager at the Edition to create this spot, his ode to Latin cooking. Chef Jeremy Ford ( formerly of 15 Steps at the Eden Roc) heads up the kitchen.
"We knew we wanted to do something that reflects the area," says Vongerichten regarding the inspiration for the restaurant. "These are the flavors that belong in Miami. It's the Seville hotel and we kept the name Matador Room, so it's also inspired by that. Everything is family style, have some olives, tacos, a big bowl of arroz con pollo."

Seagrape at Thompson Miami Beach

Photo courtesy Thompson Miami Beach
Miami favorite Michelle Bernstein is back in a hotel setting, this time with Seagrape at Thompson Miami Beach. Chef Steven Rojas, known for earning a Michelin star at Saddle Peak Lodge in California and most recently at The Island Bistro on Brickell Key, is running things in the kitchen. I loved the space - a multi-level 267-seat dining room with retro furniture, a green marble bar and a tiled outdoor patio. The cushy semi-circular banquettes were buzzing with smartly-dressed locals and Thompson guests on two separate occasions when I dined there.

Photo courtesy Thompson Miami Beach

Expect locally sourced goods with regional influences. "Michelle wanted me to cook they way we do in California, by using local farms and purveyors," says Rojas. "It's great because now I can finally cook the way I want to." Prices reflect the immaculate sourcing with starters $10-$21 and mains $21-$39.
Dinner starts with fluffy Parker House rolls served with fish dip, pickled veggies and butter. From there it's on to rich homemade gougeres, or profiteroles stuffed with melted gouda and topped with sherry glaze and lardo. The Maine lobster ravioli are three delicate pasta pillows stuffed with lobster in a red curry emulsion along with fried ginger. The roasted beet salad comes with avocado hummus while delicate squash blossoms are stuffed with shrimp over creamy gits.
 The lamb chops served with chermoula yogurt and fried sweetbreads was a bit of a roller coaster, still trying to figure what I think of that one. Fish dishes include a halibut with grapes and swiss chard and a red snapper accompanied by a paella "cake."
Desserts include berry Angel food cake with frozen yogurt, guava and cheese-stuffed doughnuts and homemade ice creams in flavors like chai tea.
4041 Collins Ave
(786) 605-1043

The Best Things I Ate in Israel

Just returned from another epic trip to the Holy Land. Been three years since I'd checked in and yes, things have changed. Jerusalem is still the chaotic-lovely-congested-quiet-filthy-picturesque bag of contrasts that I love. But it's definitely gotten a bit more posh in certain areas, like the revamped "Tachanah," or Old Train Station with its industrial-cool restaurants and artisanal food market. The once-seedy Mahane Yehuda produce market is now on its way to being a cosmopolitan nosh-nexus similar to Seattle's Pike Street Market and San Fran's Ferry Building. Now amidst the stalls hawking nuts, pickles and figs there are trendy pasta restaurants and even a fish and chips place. I tried Georgian food for the fist time and was impressed with the strong flavors and hints of Eastern spices and influences. And while this trip was by no means an exhaustive tour of all that is current and trending in Israeli cuisine (I was traveling with two toddlers, meaning, I drank about a gallon of wine every night and it was a miracle my iphone was not covered in hummus and phyllo grease by the end of the trip), I was able to taste some spectacular things.

Herewith, my culinary adventures in pictures.

The menu at Azura, a Slow Food-approved spot and the first stop on my Sephardic soul food pilgrimage. It's a no-frills spot hidden inside the Mahane Yehuda market..

Nanuchka, Tel Aviv, home to Georgian cooking and funky decor.

Fantastic Khinkali - meat dumplings at Nanuchka.

Lunch at Hamotzi restaurant - owned by Avi Levy, winner of Israel's Master Chef (like Top Chef in the US).

Fried battered fish in a spicy Moroccan sauce at Homotzi.

Oh, just a little feast our Aunt Shoshana whipped up (while recovering from knee surgery no less!) consisting of homemade techina, fried eggplant, tomato salad and kubbeh soup (semolina dumplings, beets, lemon)

Fresh-pressed pomegranate juice at Mahane Yehuda market.

A salad topped with fried haloumi cheese - this one needs to make it on to the next Saffron Supper Club menu!

The beer garden and food court at the revamped Old Train Station in Jerusalem.

Epic baklava selection at the Old Train Station.

Look! Paletas in Israel.

Gnocchi-Making With Fabio Viviani

Fabio Viviani gives good gnocchi.

Probably the only thing that could get me out and at Casa Tua at 9am the morning after the Burger Bash was the boisterous Italian chef Fabio Viviani. Along with a dozen other groggy food writers I settled in at the rustic communal table framing the open kitchen at Casa Tua to catch the former Top Chef star (and now Bertolli endorser) share some culinary wisdom and make gnochhi.

The finished product: pillowy dumplings.

First, there was lots of Italiano chit-chat: "I don't want to be an Iron Chef, I want to be your Italian grandmother," which sums up his approach to celebrity chef stardom and his choice to push homestyle cooking via Bertolli and his restaurants rather than shoot for more TV fame.
Then, some cooking tips. The first rule of gnocchi-making: "Buy the cheapest, nastiest potatoes you can find." Second, let's the dough sit overnight. "You need to be patient. Making gnocchi is like foreplay."
And he's still planning on opening a Miami spot, though he wouldn't divulge where or when. "It will be like my Chicago place Sienna Tavern but we're going to Miami Vice it," he explained.

And an added bonus: olive-oil poached sea bass with pesto and mango.

Casa Tua -- keeping it classy.

Burger Bash 2013

I don't have many photos from the Burger Bash, the annual burger-off put on by the South Beach Wine and Food Festival. That's because I was too busy double-fisting glasses of rosé and sliders and trying not to get grease all over my phone as I live-tweeted the event (for late-breaking burger news). But I did manage to taste at least seven (or possibly 12) burgers before I lapsed into a beef-induced coma and could only be revived by caramel truffles at the Godiva tent.
But onto the hard news: It was all about the crunchy burgers as Bobby Flay broke Michael Symon's three-time winning streak by taking home the People's Choice award at the 2013 Sobe Burger Bash. Flay’s signature green chile cheeseburger topped with potato chips bested Symon’s entry from B Spot Burgers, dethroning the Cleveland chef.

Flay's "crunchify" team.

Amid predictably-long lines for popular spots like Burger and Beer Joint (I skipped that), The Forge (with a great truffle burger) and Shake Shack were TV personalities Iron Chef Morimoto and Guy Fieri churning out beefy goodness for the Amstel Light-swilling crowds that swarmed the tents on the beach.
New contenders in this year’s competition included Tampa-based Burger 21 headed by Chef Shane Schaibly with a Tex-Mex burger. Chef Paul Malvone, co-founder of Boston Burger Co., served up his "Hot Mess Burger," topped with bacon, jalapenos, sweet potato fries and dripping American cheese between two Thousand Island dressed buns.
But the buzz on the sand was for the double-patty on a toasted bun courtesy of Atlanta-based Holeman and Finch restaurant. Guy Fieri’s tent was doling out Jell-o shots (yes, I will admit I consumed one in the gluttonous frenzy) while Tim Love’s Fort Worth-based Love Shack topped their patties with crispy lamb bacon (loved it).
Best side dish goes to Ft. Lauderdale Rok Brgr for their mini-lobster corn dogs. New York chef Michael Whitel previewed a delectable burger from his soon-to-open The Butterfly, a Wisconsin-inspired cocktail bar and restaurant he's opening in Tribeca.
Local chef Hedy Goldsmith had an impressive pavilion piled high with her overstuffed “Nutter Butter” dessert sliders stuffed with peanut butter cream in a cookie sandwich.

Rocco's Med Style

One of the more compelling Top Chef episodes this past season involved Rocco DiSpirito guest-judging the cheftestants ability to approximate Bertolli frozen meals. Interestingly, creating delicious, non-mushy frozen pasta dishes proved to be quite a challenge as some of the talented toques struck out with the mission. I was recently granted some marketing love from the folks at Bertolli and asked to sample the frozen meals (look for that post soon).
Here Rocco devotes one of his webisodes to the virtues of the Bertolli products.

Top Chef 3 Chicago Finale

Top Chef 3 Finale Preview

After seeing this clip all I want to do is to go to Aspen! Hello mountains, snow, trees that are anything but palm...Lucky chefs!

Top Chef 3 Miami Goes to NYC

The gang is getting a bit cocky. Dale and Casey watch the gloating will ya?

Top Chef 3 Miami Clip o' the Week

This week we see that Howie learns to compromise.
Guest judge is local talent Michael Schwartz from Michael's Genuine Food and Drink.

Top Chef 3 Miami Episode Preview

...In which we learn a little bit too much about CJ...

Top Chef 3 Miami Clippity-Clip

The gang looks PISSED at Howie. No amount of truffle butter can smooth this one over.
PS - Chef Daniel Boulud as guest judge!

Top Chef 3 Miami Clip of the Week

This clip reminds me of those episodes of The Real World when the gang would get dolled up and go out drinking together sorority-girl style. Remember that Hawaii season when that girl always got wasted and scared the house into thinking she was going to die in the funky communal bathroom? Something tells me the Top Chef gang is going to be a bit more responsible on their South Beach outing...
PS - Guest host Govind Armstrong!

Top Chef 3 Miami

Here's a clip from Wednesday night's episode. The gang goes shopping and Howie criticizes tricolore pasta. C'mon, Howie, everybody likes a good multi-colored pasta every now and then.
PS - Rocco Dispirito as guest judge!

Top Chef 3 Miami Mia

Top Chef 3 is putting Miami on the culinary map. But maybe Miami was already there...in any case, it's still an entertaining jaunt in the world of foodie competition. Here's a clip from tonight's new episode. In this episode the chefs must tackle a palate challenge - combining food and cocktails.

Top Chef 3 Miami Gossip

Top Chef 3 Miami premieres Wednesday, June 13 at 10:00 p.m. Looks like there's plenty of chopping, shouting and food eatin' galore. According to this Herald article it appears that Food Gang chef Howard Kleinberg is no longer the chef there because of his participation in the show, (they weren't so keen on his taking a month off to compete). Hmmm. Does that mean he won? Hmmm...
Watch the trailer here. And another clip from the show here.

Top Chef Miami FREE Tasting