July 21, 2010

Last weeks was a little crazy. We started with the MOST Gala on Tuesday night and I was in and out of the doctors office all week. Then on Friday Pook and I hopped on a plane and flew to Chicago for the weekend. We went to visit our daughter and recharge my inspiration battery. I ran out of juice with all the work I have been doing and I bet that my fans can tell too.

The greatest thing was going to the Chicago Farmer's Market. It was all certified organic foods and products. If you want to open the box and sell them in Syracuse the answer is no. The next morning I just walked around the neighborhood where there were a lot more smaller farm stands. I saw Rick Bayless, the grand master chef from TV. He was shopping next to me! I bought Fraises du Bois (baby wild strawberries) which you would never see in Syracuse. So I took some home and whipped some cream... so delicious!

Fraise du bois

Farmer’s Market

Now I can't wait to go to the Syracuse Farmer's Market. I really want to see again what Syracuse will offer my customers.

Oh, I forgot to tell you about my Peking Duck! The restaurant called and told us that they did not have the duck so we canceled our reservations and went to the "Black Bird" instead.  The chef is Paul Kahan, he is a recipient of the James Beard Foundation Award and has been named as one of the best chefs of the year. Their pastry chef, Patrick Fahy worked with Thomas Keller before at French Laundry. The dessert was amazing... better than our meal!

Now lets go back to the MOST Gala... actually I was not impressed with my kitchens' performance. Don't get me wrong they did just fine but I wanted more. The food was ok to very good but not at the level that I wanted it to be. Maybe my menu was too simple. My front staff did a great job. Thanks to all of them.

I still want to write a lot more but  this blog is getting too long.

Your Chef,

Max