Fancy Food Comes To NYC
From July 8-10, the National Association of Specialty Foods hosts the annual “Summer Fancy Food Show” at the Javits Center, a showcase of all kinds of food processing and packaging machines, materials, systems and products under one roof. There will be more than 140,000 exhibitors representing about 72 countries, presenting more than 100,000 specialty foods to discover and sample.
NYers Vie For Top Chef Title In Miami
Bravo’s battle of the foodies is back for a third season, and this time four of the competitors hoping to claim the Top Chef title are New York restaurant veterans.
Two of the New York “cheftestants” are executive sous chefs: Sara Nguyen, of the Lower East Side restaurant and lounge Boucarou, and Lia Bardeen, of the celebrity-chef restaurant Jean Georges in Trump Tower.
Another New Yorker competing in Miami comes from the renowned Café des Artistes on the Upper West Side, Executive Chef Joey Paulino. Contestant Camille Becerra is the chef and owner of Paloma, the “urban American” restaurant in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
“We all kept telling [Becerra], ‘You have to go on the show!’” said Mac McCarthy, the manager of Paloma who has worked there since its opening in 2005.
For the past two seasons, chefs from the city have taken home the title.
Pleasing hundreds of hungry New Yorkers on a daily basis is no easy feat, so it’s no wonder that New York chefs are ruling the kitchen.
“The New York restaurant business is so competitive,” McCarthy said. “I think the New Yorkers definitely have an advantage.”—Jovana Rizzo
Battle Of The Burgers
Whip out that secret recipe for those delicious homemade burgers you love so much and vie with others for the grand prize at Rare Bar and Grill’s “Between the Buns Contest.”
“The key to a great burger is the meat and how you treat it,” said Douglas Boxer, co-owner of the restaurant. “We cook our burgers the same way a traditional steakhouse does, with respect to the precise temperature and cut. For our T-bone steak, which is a blend of strip and sirloin, we grind up the meat, flambé it in alcohol, and top it with caramelized onions and cheese.”
The winner’s burger will be served at Rare Bar and Grill for a month with his/her name on the menu. In addition to receiving $500 and a set of eight steak knives from Fish’s Eddy, the grand winner’s name will also be emblazoned on a plaque in the restaurant. The judges include actor Jerry Adler, editor and publisher of ahamburgertoday.com Adam Kuban, author and radio/TV food expert Ed Levine and food blogger Andrea Strong. To enter, submit detailed cooking and assembling instructions for an eight-ounce burger made with any kind of meat before July 9.—Jessica Wang
Restaurant Week Heats Up In July
New York Restaurant Week returns July 16–20 and July 23–27, when over 200 of the city’s better restaurants serve up three-course prix-fixe lunches for $24.07 and three-course prix-fixe dinners for $35 (beverages, gratuities and tax are extra).
The semiannual event is in its 16th year and was originally designed to give attendees of the Democratic National Convention some lunch options. Today, it is geared toward getting residents of the five boroughs and visitors to enjoy restaurants they would not otherwise consider. Take advantage of the deal to try out Gordon Ramsey’s Maze, newcomer Anthos and Jeffrey Chodorow’s Wild Salmon and Kobe Club, recommends Chris Heywood, the director of tourism public relations for event sponsor NYC & Company. Make your reservation early as tables can be hard to come by.—Gabriela Frias
