Wednesday evening I was delighted to attend the first James Beard Celebrity
Chef Tour in DC this year hosted by Chef Victor Albisu at his Del Campo (777 I
St,NW) where he was joined by a cadre of chefs from all over to serve another
awesome mea. Jeff Black, who organizes these events said it was the 3rd time in
DC in a year, which makes us a hot destination! YAY!
As always, the event started with a cocktail hour and I tried a Lady
Marmalade (don't you just love the name) from Pepita Cantina which had Avua
Cahaca, Blood Orange Marmalade, Calvados & Lime. I had another yummy drink
from Del Campo, but forgot to jot down the ingredients.
Many yummy hor's d'oevres were passed around and local Chef Scott Drewno
from The Source was at the counter frying up yummy dumplings as well. Spicy
Potatoes with a creme fraiche dip, uni on a chip with caviar, deep-fried rice
with hot sauce and my favorite the monkfish liver all abounded.
We sat down and I had a nice table of folks making it an excellent evening
company-wise.
Yummy pupusa-like bread came with il and sea salt; I stopped at one
piece.
The first wine was poured, a Casa Silva Sauvignon Blanc "Cool Coast" from
Colchagua Valley in Chile 2011, as all the wines were from South America with
the Latin themed dinner (subdued Latin music played all night). Our glasses were
always full all night and we could not have asked for better service at every
moment. Chef Anthony Lamas of Seviche Restaurant in Louisville was at bat first
with Tuna Tiradito, Aji, Peanut & Sweet Potato. He said that in Kentucky
they do spell Seviche that way, so it was okay....and also told us the awesome
peanuts were Tennessee Reds and Carolina Blacks (who knew you could be a peanut
afficianado?). I got my grapefruit fix from the wine and the the first course
was a huge success across the board.
The second course was prepared by Chef Michael Schlow of Tico Rstaurant
from Boston which is now also open in DC (gotta get there soon). His "Spicy
Catalan Stew" with Crispy Rice & Crushed Almonds was the hit of the night
for everyone. There was indeed spice, shrimp, chorizo, escargot, clams and more
with a paprika aioli that had the most awesome texture due to the rice. Flavors
abounded and burst out all over in the "stew" which really was not stewlike at
all as the "sauce" was thick and not runny.
I never did get to ask the chef what the spicy strands of leaf were atop
the dish.
A Catena Zapata Chardonnay "Catena Alta" 2011 from Mendoza, Argentina was a
nice wine, and while I know this was a fish-based stew, I think a lighter red
would have even been better.As the wine warmed up, the Chardonnay developed and
did fight the spice much better.
Third was Chef Jamie Bissonnette of Coppa in Boston and Toro in both Boston
& NYC with a Cuttlefish, Crab, Black Chili & Iberico Ham. This was an
orzo based "chili" with a little goat cheese and the entire thing was another
thick stew-like dish that really had lots of flavor, but did pale a bit next to
the Catalan-style dish. Vitivinicola Lafken Pinot Noir, Cuncumen from Leyda,
Chile 2011 was a nice unfiltered wine that was on the lighter side; give me
Oregon, please.
Fourth was a Asado Trio of Rolled Creekstone Prime Skirt Steak with
Parmesan, Sunchoke & Smoked Yolk that had awesome flavor and was one of the
stars of the trio. The second star was the Fermin Iberico Pork with Crema &
a Smoked Caviar Chimichurri which was the biggest hit at our table (save for the
lady next to me who did not eat shellfish or meat--WHY WAS SHE HERE?). The Olive
Smoked Rack of Lamb with Tapenade, Roasted Garlic and a Goat Dulce de Leche
(which we never did seem to discover) was a very nice lamb chop, but just that.
The three meats were paired with an awesomely smooth and delicate but gutsy
Malbec Blend from Bressia called "Profundo" 2009 also from Mendoza, as well as a
Los Vascos de Rothschild Lafite Cabernet Sauvignon "Le Dix" from Colchagua
Valley in Chile that was overly gutsy and just so big I really did not care for
it.
The main course was of course prepared by host Chef Victor Albisu (also
owns Taco Bamba in Falls Church) who was joined by Chef Antonio Soriano of Astor
Bistro in Buenos Aires who came in for this event!
Dessert was an awesome Salted Flan with Meringue, Pistachio & Dulce de
Leche Crepe (more of a rolled pancake) prepared by Chef Chris Ford who hails
from Bouchon in California and is Corporate Pastry Chef for Bryan Voltaggio
Restaurants in DC & Maryland.
It was a hit of a night for all and I am right now in NYC preparing to head
out to dinner at James Beard House itself where Chef Alejandro Ayala of
Meadowood Resort in Napa will be cooking up a storm!
