SOBE WFF 2016-Croquette & Champagne - Taste Curator

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SOBE WFF 2016-Croquette & Champagne

Jun 09. 2016

TC2016 Lan

fare0120@live.com

Miami Swim Show 2016

WFF 2016 -Croquette & Champagne – Miami, FL

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I have a complicated love affair with Saigon. Throughout all the good & bad, even after injuring myself twice just from walking on Saigon’s super crowded & uneven pavements; even after being cat called by Grab bikers (like Uber but on motorbikes); even after a scary encounter with a gangsta tailor when I complained about his shoddy alteration; and even with sleepless nights due to loud karaoke singing from my Airbnb neighbors- Saigon always has a special place in my heart, because for each of these incidents, dozens of other beautiful, unforgettable memories were formed. Saigon is a place where I learned more about myself each time I returned, and a place that has come full circle now that I could share it with my daughter. Personally, I prefer the slow pace and quietness of DaNang and Hoi An, of their beautiful beaches and sincere, genuine people. But I also appreciate the energy of Saigon, of its possibilities and open minded-ness. So it depends on whether you’re a New York kind of person or a small town one. Food wise, Saigon has more options, creativity, and inspirations. But other smaller cities have their own specialties & authentic cuisines that don’t taste as good when chains try to duplicate and franchise in Saigon. Most of all, Saigon still retains its charm & authenticity, although more advanced and touristy now. The majority of Restaurants and shop owners are still Vietnamese, not foreigners taking over. So what if some places still lack the conveniences of western cultures? But perhaps it’s the inconveniences, the unpolishness, the little annoying things that we tourists are not used to... that contribute to Vietnam’s charm. I’ve come to realize that it’s me that needs to change, to be less of a clumsy tourist, to be less of a diva and go more with the flow. Because one day if I return to Vietnam and all I see are fancy hotels, high rises, white napkin restaurants, and the streets are cleaned up because the government bans street food vendors, I would be really sad. “(Vietnam) seemed like another planet; a delicious one that sort of sucked me in and never let go,” the late Anthony Bourdain said it best. Yes I’m still sucked in after all these years.

Testing out some rice crackers as garnishes for my upcoming popup dinner

The search is over (at least for me) for the best “banh cuon” (steamed paper thin rice roll stuffed with minced pork & mushroom) in Saigon, Vietnam- a dish I have always loved as a kid and still do, although is so hard to find in the US, especially when made the authentic, old fashioned way of steaming over a cloth stretched around a round metal frame. See last video of how this dish is made. The winner is banh cuon at Dì Lý on Đồng Khởi Street in D1; 2nd place is at Hải Nam on Cao Thắng Street in D 1; 3rd place is at Wrap & Roll, a chain with multiple locations; and 4th place is at Tây Hồ, a famous banh cuon place that’s been around for over 57 years, but I was disappointed at its taste & quality. They put a lot of filling, but mostly fillers, with very little pork and lots of chopped jicama and pork floss (which is made of left over meat used to make broth. All flavors are gone into the broth so you’re left with left over meat with no nutritional value or flavor, but instead of discarding them, people season them and dry pan roast them until the moisture is gone and you’re left with pork floss that lasts for a long time). Pork floss is very cheap food in Vietnam. When I eat banh cuon, I want it done right, filled with minced pork, wood ear mushroom, and sautéed onion, not pork floss and jicama. I’m only putting this place on my list out of respect for it for being around for so long. I don’t know how their banh cuon used to be cooked back then but it can’t keep up with the demand of Vietnamese tourists nowadays who don’t mind paying a little more for better quality ingredients. Di Ly restaurant makes it right, with delicious quality ingredients and tissue paper thin rice roll, so thin that their filling is seen through. Banh cuon at Hai Nam is good too, although the rice roll is a bit thick, but I like their filling, which has minced pork, wood ear, and dry shrimp #banhcuon #banhcuonnong #vietnamesefood #authenticvietnamesefood

Some of my fave desserts in Vietnam 1) matcha jelly & palm of coconut dessert at @humvegetarian 2) Ginger tofu dessert at @nenrestaurant 3) Technically this is a boba drink but they put so many yummy toppings that it’s like a dessert: flan, mochi, jelly, boba, what more do you want? 4 & 5) Matcha ice cream and mochi dessert, and sesame ice cream in waffle at @moricocafe 6) Sticky rice mango dessert at @humvegetarian 7) Palms of coconut & ginger at @humvegetarian 8) chè ba màu dessert at #ngonrestaurant 9) matcha Creme brûlée at #4ppizza 10) Tofu with all kinds of jelly & mochi toppings at #dauhuxelam #dessert #vietnamdessert #vietnamsweets #asiandessert #asiandesserts #vietnamesedessert #desserts #exoticdessert #exoticdesserts #gourmetdesserts #gourmetdessert #tastecurator #thetastecurator

Ya, these @iriefungi mushrooms really look this gorgeous pink. Testing recipes with these beauties #pinkmushroom #pinkmushrooms #exoticmushrooms #exoticingredients #gourmetingredients #pinkfood #pinkfoods #mushrooms

It’s been a while since we ate at @dinematthews, where we recently celebrated our anniversary. Our tasting menu was off the chart, starting with wianno oysters, compressed watermelon & cucumber water. Super refreshing. Our 2nd course was to die for, Maine diver scallop seared to perfection with shoyu broth and seabeans, even more delicious with sweet & creamy corn. The next dish was a familiar pasta, pardadelle cacio e pepe, but somehow chef Alex’s housemade pasta with just right amount of pepper and pecorino sauce made this dish better most restaurants’. The 5th dish was OMG melt-in-your-mouth duck breast with smoked bacon cassoulet and charred asparagus. As if they weren’t enough, chef Alex brought out a couple more dishes on the house, which at first I thought there was no way we could finish them, but our stomach magically found room to accommodate: fois gras fried rice (just the sound of it makes me salivate right now). I mean, come on, how can you go wrong with fois gras and fried rice together? Brilliant! Then came the pasta dish that was too pretty to eat. Just look at it: red & yellow striped candy wrapped pasta stuffed with ricotta, garnished with fiddleheads. How inventive is that? Mental note: gotta play around with fiddleheads in my own cooking. May I also add that we also enjoyed the wine pairings from their sommelier? Ok, dessert was another reason to gush. Just like the French, we ended the meal with cheese, a Pierre Robert mixed berry composte and crostini. Then came silky white chocolate panna cotta with champagne mango and puffed black rice. If that wasn’t enough, Chef Nella brought us an extra something: lemon semifreddo with toasted coconut and blueberries. We were stuffed- but very happy. See, this is why we have always chosen Matthew’s to celebrate special occasions- because of the excellent food (and the inspirations now that I’m a chef), the exceptional wine selections, the elegant setting, and how the team always made us feel: like royalty. Thank you chefs Alex and Nella and the whole team of Matthews for a special evening. #jaxgourmet #jacksonvillefoodie #jacksonvillefoodies #foodiesofjacksonville
#gourmetjax #jaxdining

Is there anything more satisfying than a delicious plate of pasta? And who says Bolognese spaghetti can’t be served with Chinese yard long beans? The best east meets west comfort food. Y.u.m.m.y #instachef #chefsofinstagram #homechef #popupchef #asianchef #asianchefs #jaxchef #jaxchefs #jacksonvillechefs #jacksonvillechef #gourmetchef #gourmetchefs #asianchef #asianchefs #highendchefs #discoveringchef #chefsofinstagram #chefstime #chefselection #fusionchef #bolognese #bolognesepasta #pastabolognese #bolognesespaghetti #yardlongbeans #chineselongbean #bestcomfortfood #thetastecurator

Chef Alex at @dinematthews and I have been friends for a while now. So to be working side by side with him and his sous chef Nella for my upcoming VIGLO (Vietnamese with global influences) popup dinner is like a dream comes true. Since 1999, Matthew’s has been honored with the prestigious AAA Four Diamond Award for impeccable service and excellent cuisine & wine selections, among many other accolades. They are also actively involved in fundraisers to support programs that enrich the lives of community members. I’m honored to be working with Jacksonville’s most upscale and our go-to restaurant for special occasions. SAVE THE DATE! Details will be released via email to my VIGLO VIP list first, then to our distribution list. If you are not already on our list, DM me with your email
#jaxgourmet #jacksonvillefoodie #jacksonvillefoodies #foodiesofjacksonville
#gourmetjax #jaxdining #eatjax #nomnomjax #natedoesfood #annaeatzjax #folioweekly #eatdrinkjax #ilovejax #jacksonvillemag #jackaboutjax #edibleneflorida
#jaxchef #jaxchefs #jacksonvillechefs #jacksonvillechef

While I was prepping for my last popup dinner at @bbsrestaurant, I got to see how busy it was every single day of the week. So as soon as my work with bb’s was over, I booked a table for my family. I must say I understand why bb’s has been Jacksonville’s dining institution for over 20 years. The food was solid, fresh, and delicious. The atmosphere was cozy and elegant. The service? Unbeatable. @jonasvloh and chef @titoq4 made us feel so pampered and special. No wonder the place was consistently voted as one of the best restaurants in Northeast Florida #jacksonvillefoodie #jacksonvillefoodies #popupdinner #popupdinners #foodiesofjacksonville
#jaxgourmet #gourmetjax
#jaxdining #eatjax #folioweekly #eatdrinkjax #eatjax #ilovejax #jacksonville #jackaboutjax

Check out my summer roll recipe in Jacksonville magazine this month. The beautiful photo was taken by @agneslopezphoto. It was such an interesting & educational experience to see the steps she took before taking these pix. When we look at a food image, what we don’t see is how the image is the set up, the background, the lighting, etc. she said nothing beats natural lighting, so she took my summer roll plate and placed on her porch, over some mat and napkin. The result looks just like it’s taken from a dining table. Brilliant! I will never look at a food dish image the same way again. Let me know how you like the recipe.
Link in bio.

Ever since I saw a pic of these buco pandan with #ube filling cookies on @daniwandersjax’s IG by chef @moomellie, I knew I had to get my hands on some. Pandan & ube? It’s a match made in heaven. We eat with our eyes, so that pic was all it took for me to reach out to chef Melanie and place my order. Her cookies are so soft, chewy, melt in your mouth #delicious. The flavors are subtle and light. And I love the pandan aroma. Thanks @daniwandersjax for that post, and thanks chef @moomellie for these super #yummy #cookies #pandancookies #ubecookies #bestcookies #bestcookiesever #uniquecookies #bucopandan

I just watched chef @jayfaibangkok on Netflix’s Street Food and remember how much we enjoyed her food as well as watching her cook. We have eaten at many #michelinstarredrestaurant around the world, but that was the first time we had to wait 2.5 hours for our food, even with a reservation. Only for chef Jay Fai, a Michelin Star street food stall turned brick & mortar in Bangkok. My husband and daughter would beg to differ if I said it was worth the wait, because they were giving me the evil eye, and acting very #hangry while waiting (swipe to see their hangry faces). But here’s a trick if you’re lucky enough to have a chance to eat there. First, you make reservation (otherwise, you’ll wait at least another hour). Once you get to sit down at your table, one person from your party should go next door to get some bites to tie you over (the best pad Thai in Bangkok is literally next door, but don’t eat too much to enjoy JayFai’s food). I can’t even describe how good her crab omelette was. Despite using a lot of oil in her wok but because she cooked it in very high heat, her omelette came out light, and not greasy at all, perfectly crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and full of the freshest #jumbocrab. Her #drunkennoodles was excellent too. What amazed me was the strength in her little body. It was one of the very few times in my life where I looked like a giant standing next to someone else in picture, although I’m barely 5’2”. Yet chef Jay Fai cranks out every single dish herself, every night. I hope one day chef Jay Fai will have at least 1 assistant to cook with her (there were three burners there and Jay Fai was the only one using them all to cook all her dishes all night). I don’t think we diners would mind if she doesn’t personally cook every dish, as long as they taste just as good as hers. Most Michelin starred chefs rarely cook anymore but have other chefs to cook for them so they could have time to grow their restaurant(s) or have a life. Chef Jay Fai’s strength is impressive, but I want her legacy to continue for many years to come. Most of all, I want chef Jay Fai to enjoy the fruits of her success since she has worked so hard all her life.

Every chef should do a popup dinner once- at someone else’s kitchen, with a different team, creating a totally different menu- as a chance to grow. I’m grateful to be able to do this, but it comes with a whole other level of challenges that other chefs don’t experience, when they work in a familiar environment with the same people doing the same things everyday. As a guest chef, you do your best to be respectful of everyone in the kitchen, while translating your own passion and knowledge of your dishes onto a new kitchen team, which I have to do for each of my popup dinners. If you’re lucky, you work with a team who cares, who are hungry to learn & exchange ways to better our crafts. But you may not be so lucky everytime, and find yourself frustrated over a team’s lack of enthusiasm or interest, or lack of understanding of your intensity. And vice versa, they may be annoyed by your need for perfection. It’s a marriage that takes a lot of understanding & hard work on both sides. If the team is not fully in your corner, every molehill turns into a mountain. Fortunately, most of my popup marriages were super pleasant. It can be the most amazing experience with the right attitude, and makes whatever shortcomings seem less significant. And trust me, no popup dinner is free of mistakes & lessons learned. But I believe it starts from the top, when the decision makers set the right tone for the rest of their team and make it a pleasant experience for all. So thank you bb’s DREAM TEAM: Barbara, @Jonas, and chef @titoq4 for creating such a positive experience for my last VIGLO popup dinner, even with unavoidable stressful moments at crunch time. You are all a CLASS ACT whose friendships I want to last for life. “We really enjoyed your VIGLO popup dinner: Yummy food, great company, cozy ambience, fabulous presentation. Bravo.” - VIGLO diner Susan. “Loved everything I tasted and savored, the decors, and the warmth of the occasion. Great job.”- VIGLO diner Marie. “Perfectly cooked dishes & lovingly crafted presentations.”- Brentley Stead, writer for @folioweekly. “Our VIGLO popup dinner was a success, thanks to @thetastecurator for a flawless execution”- @bb’sRestaurant

We started out my VIGLO popup dinner’s 1st course with a bang: green shrimp & chips, using fresh jumbo shrimp coated in flat young green rice (“cốm”) that gave a deliciously unique crunch, flavor, and color. I call this my “New Vietnamese” dish because it’s the hottest food trend all over Vietnam now, where many restaurants offer their own presentations of flat green “cốm” fried shrimp. What made this course even more yummy was the kaffir lime coconut curry dipping sauce, and light & crispy boniato fries that chef @titoq4 wow-ed our diners with. The pickled black radish rose was the perfect garnish to balance out the richness of the dish. Photos: @natepwatson & @alexandranicom. “This green flat rice shrimp & chips were so exquisite & flavorful”- VIGLO diner Marie. “Loved the new experiences of flavors”- VIGLO diner Nick

Imagine rolling 120 summer rolls with all the vegs, herbs, two kinds of protein, and garnishes for my my VIGLO popup’s 2nd course. The two proteins inside two serves rolls were: “chao tom” grilled shrimp paste and grilled lemongrass chicken. Not everyone could roll them perfectly tight & slim the way they were supposed to be, and fast enough so guests didn’t have to wait too long. Luckily, my mother in law was in town so she became my go-to summer roller at my dinner. This is the kind of dish that can’t be made beforehand, so it was quite ambitious of me to incorporate it into my menu. Logistics & execution are everything when it comes to serving for 58 diners at the same time. But we did it successfully, phew! Chef @titoq4 and his kitchen staff at @bbsrestaurant were such a trooper for helping us plate: from making the red & yellow sriracha sauces so pretty to the tri-colored carrot confettis to the rice cracker dusted with spirulina powder. It took a village to pull this off. “The food was delicious, preparation meticulous, presentation amazing. So much thought behind every dish. One of the most amazing dining experiences I’ve ever had in my life.”- patron John C. Photos by @natepwatson #jaxgourmet #jacksonvillefoodies #popupdinner #popupdinners #foodiesofjacksonville
#gourmetjax
#folioweekly #eatjax #ilovejax #jacksonvillemagazine #jacksonvillemag #jacksonville #jackaboutjax #edibleneflorida #thetastecurator #popupchef #asianchef #asianchefs #vietnamesechef #vietchef #jaxchef #jaxchefs #jacksonvillechefs #jacksonvillechef #gourmetchef #gourmetchefs #asianchef

This dish “banh nam” (Vietnamese gourmet tamale) was the 3rd course from my recent #VIGLOdinner (Vietnamese with global influences) at @bbsrestaurant. This dish is the most hard to find at any Vietnamese restaurant in the US because it’s so time consuming to make. I could only find them in Vietnam. But the funny thing is, I used to enjoy eating banh nam in Vietnam for many years, but it wasn’t until I learned how to make them myself that I began to pay more attention to the banh nam served at Vietnamese restaurants, and realized that they didn’t use fresh shrimp but dried shrimp and food coloring to create that bright orange look and shrimp flavor. They tasted good but food to me is more than just about taste. I want to cook food that not only is delicious but also good for you, with the freshest ingredients and healthier cooking techniques than my parents’ generation of cooking. I elevated my #banhnam tamale by adding saffron to the rice flour, and replaced shrimp with fresh crawfish (which is in season), and pork belly that melted in your mouth, instead of the usual mince pork. And the orange color in my sauce was achieved from soaked annatto seeds. The garnish was a piece of crispy sage chicken skin. This dish was a fave of many VIGLO patrons. “Those tamales were to die for” - VIGLO diner Danielle. “The rice & saffron tamale was outstanding”- VIGLO diner Juan. “Your menu was truly exciting and brilliantly created. Each dish was a stunning masterpiece of taste, composition and excitement.” - VIGLO diner Leigh Cort, Host of WJCT’s Moveable Feast Radio show; Founder of Women’s Food Alliance; Founder of NorthEast Florida Press Club #jaxgourmet #jacksonvillefoodies #popupdinner #popupdinners #foodiesofjacksonville
#gourmetjax
#folioweekly #eatjax #ilovejax #jacksonvillemagazine #jacksonvillemag #jacksonville #jackaboutjax #edibleneflorida #thetastecurator #popupchef #asianchef #asianchefs #vietnamesechef #vietchef #jaxchef #jaxchefs #jacksonvillechefs #jacksonvillechef #gourmetchef #gourmetchefs #asianchef #tastecurator

VIGLO popup dinner last Sunday. 4th course: rib & truffle pho. Took 3 days to make the broth- tons of beef bones, marrows, three whole chickens, dozens of chicken backs, and roasted beef shanks went into the broth in the end to tenderize the shanks. Then 65 roasted beef ribs went into the broth last to cook them and deepen the broth even more. When you have broth this pure & delicious, it’s a crime to even think about msg. Pho seasonings go in last. Fresh Vietnamese herbs in a separate dish. So much TLC went into this bowl of pho. Notice how we trimmed the wiggly roots of the bean sprouts to leave only the edible, whitest, prettiest parts. The piece de resistance was shaved fresh black summer truffle on top. The aroma and taste of truffle & pho are like a match made in heaven, something I discovered while experimenting. “My mom used to own a pho restaurant before we left Vietnam in 1975. Preparations for the broth was an intense and involved process. Your ‘pho bo’ certainly brought memories back alive, and was one of the best I’ve ever had. Great work.” VIGLO diner Justin. #phokinggood #asianchef #vietnamesechef #vietnamesefood #vietnamesefoods #cooksofinstagram #chefsofinstagramn #tastecurator #jaxgourmet #jacksonvillefoodies #popupdinner #popupdinners #foodiesofjacksonville
#jaxgourmet #gourmetjax
#jaxdining #eatjax #nomnomjax #natediesjax #folioweekly #annaeatzjax #eatdrinkjax #eatjax #ilovejax #jacksonvillemagazine #jacksonvillemag #jackaboutjax #edibleneflorida #thetastecurator #viglodinners

Floating enlightenment lotus dessert from my popup VIGLO dinner last Sunday. This dessert may look simple but very time consuming to make. The cookies’ recipe was taken from @gaggan_anand ‘s own “flower power” cookie on their 2-Michelin Star menu in their Bangkok restaurant. We then piped in Vietnamese coffee ganache and edible gold flecks. The lotus seed candy took 4 processes to make: soaking dry lotus seeds in water, drying overnight, candying them with lemon drop sugar, and final step of wrapping each in a wafer wrapper that you can pop the whole thing in your mouth without unwrapping. The lotus crisp took 4 steps: slicing lotus roots, soaking in water to get rid of starch, drying overnight, deep frying, and candying them with ginger sugar. All this presented in a floating birch boat & floating lotus leaf, in a bowl filled with water and dry ice for a zen smoking effect. You can’t see this but dry ice was kept inside a perforated metal tea strainer box to prevent the smoke from over bubbling. Execution is everything. It was an epic dessert for an epic crowd. And the butterfly pea tea (that I got from my trip to Bangkok) was also quite unique: came out a clear blue but a few drops of squeezed lime turned it into a beautiful purple/lavender color, which you could see a bit of the tea cup towards the end of the video. “One has to truly be there to truly know how very lovely this dessert could taste”- VIGLO diner @annaeatzjax “This dessert was totally amazing”- VIGLO diner Juan. “You are Hollywood and the dinner was the best OSCAR ever,”- VIGLO diner Susie.

There’s a new delicious dim sum place in Riverside, S & R dim sum, that you’ve got to try. Everything was fresh & non greasy (but the soup dumplings stuck at the bottom so when I tried to lift them up, they broke and the juice escaped). But everything else was on point #foodstagrams #foodlover #foodies #deliciousasianfood #deliciousasian #chinesefood #chinesefoods #shumai #porkshumai #shrimpshumai #yumcha #dimsum #homechefmeals #thetastecurator #chinesedimsum #jacksonvillefoodies #jacksonvillefoodie #foodiesofjacksonville #edibleneflorida #jacksonvillemagazine #jacksonvillemag #folioweekly #jackaboutjax

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