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Flavor is the Focus For Top Chef's Eli Kirshtein at Atlanta's ENO
Spiky-haired, bespectacled Top Chef contestant Eli Kirshtein garnered the ire of Tom Colicchio after serving up what the judge deemed "raw lamb." That's no mark of a master chef, but as we know, even talented artisans are prone to missteps, perhaps owing to the pressure of a major prize and a national audience in the millions.
Off the show, Kirshtein serves as the Executive Chef of Atlanta's ENO Restaurant and Wine Bar. No relation to Brian Eno as far as we can tell, although that would make it infinitely cooler. Like many of his competitors, he's a locavore, sourcing ingredients for ENO's menu from farms and specialty stores around the great state of Georgia.
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NYC's Winter Restaurant Week Returns In 2010; Better Get Booking
The bass restaurant week entree at NYC's Asiate restaurant
Foodies, unite! Book your trips to New York City now for the end of January or beginning of February, since the dates for Winter Restaurant Week were just announced. Some of the best and most famous restaurants in the Big Apple will be offering up prix-fixe lunch and dinner menus from January 25 to February 7.
And although restaurant week has been around in NYC since 1992, the prices haven't changed for the menus since 2006, meaning that 3-course lunches are a set $24.07 and 3 or 4-course dinners are $35.
Of course they're breaking out the prix fixe menus during the low period before Valentine's Day, but that's just means more foodie fun to brighten up dreary winter days. We're already plotting our reservations, and although you won't be able to book tables until probably sometime around New Year's, it's the right time to plan an indulgent trip to the city. Put our the airfare alerts now!
Related Stories:
· NY Restaurant Week Is Up For A Second Helping Through Labor Day [Jaunted]
· Restaurant Weeks coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: Jaunted]
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Robin Leventhal of 'Top Chef' Pushes Truffled Popcorn In Seattle
Even when the grand prize eludes them, Top Chef alums often find a way to get the maximum mileage out of their fifteen minutes. Take, for example, Robin Leventhal, who didn't earn many popularity points with her fellow cast mates, but did manage to land an Executive Chef gig at Seattle's See Sound Lounge in early October. A simple panna cotta proved to be Leventhal's Achilles' heel on the show, so it's a good thing that there aren't many desserts on See Sound's menu, aside from a couple ice cream sandwiches and the silly inclusion of candied orange peel.
See Sound talks up their new chef's pseudo-celebrity stature on their website, declaring with pride, "The show is extremely popular. Take heed, watching it makes you hungry!" However, it's going to take more than a paltry self-endorsement to convince us of the restaurant's culinary cred. In our experience, the focus of restaurant/lounges tend to be promoting a cool, sexy atmosphere, not quality dishes. Pre-judging? Maybe, but let's take a closer look at what's on the menu for more.
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Laurine Wickett Of 'Top Chef' Gives Left Coast Some Market-Fresh Options
This week's cheftestant profile involves travel to you, rather than a self-initiated jaunt to a cast member's restaurant. Laurine Wickett, whose tenure on Top Chef effectively ended after what is arguably the show's most difficult challenge, "Restaurant Wars," has since returned to San Francisco where she runs Left Coast Catering.
New York born, but Northern California bred—at least in the culinary sense—Laurine incorporates the Bay Area's various cultural influences into market-fresh menus for her clients. Whether left coast parents planning a Bat Mitzvah or bride-to-be hosting a dessert reception, Laurine will provide you with options galore. We perused some of her sample menus online, which reflect a flavorful Californian approach to cooking while turning to other regions of the world for inspiration. She does everything from sushi stations to steak and french fries, on the same menu if you'd like guests to have multiple options. Her ill-fated Pork Rillette (or, as Dana Cowin punishingly put it, "cat food") made no appearance on any of the menus we saw.
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Some News From Philly That's Not World Series-Related
How do you enjoy Restaurant Week menus and prices without it actually being Restaurant Week? Well, if you're in Philadelphia, all you've got to do is book your hotel stay on withlove.gophila.com, and you'll receive all the details on the hotels where you can dine on discount prix-fixe menus through December 30.
Restaurants featured run the gamut, from super swish 4-course meals at Lacroix at The Rittenhouse to fresh Italian at Positano Coast. And since we promised Restaurant Week prices, you'll be happy to hear the the 3-to-4-course meals are all either $20, $30 or $35 per person. We're guessing that Lacroix is up at the $35 end, but menu choices aren't piddly; think "prime rib, crab imperial, handmade orecchiette and olive oil-poached Scottish salmon."
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Ash Fulk Cooks Up Friendly Swiss Fare at Trestle on Tenth, But Maybe Not For Padma
Northern California native Ash Fulk didn't have it easy during his run on Top Chef. He didn't win one challenge on the show, and was eventually asked to pack his knives and head back to New York City, where he serves as a Sous Chef at Trestle on Tenth. The Swiss-French-American restaurant is a neighborhood-y locale open for breakfast, brunch (on weekends), lunch and dinner, making it a go-to spot for Chelsea diners looking for elevated comfort food. And schnitzel.
Trestle's menus aren't intimidating in the way that many contemporary, haute cuisine restaurants tend to be. Here you'll find familiar dishes with a Swiss-French influence that makes them just different enough to be memorable, without being too perplexing or stomach-turning. We're still wondering why fellow TC contestant Hector would dare include Tofu Ceviche on his menu. No, Trestle is where you'll find a Signature House Burger, Cobb Salad, Roasted Chicken with Seasonal Vegetables in Consommè, and Coriander Hanger Steak.
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dineLA Restaurant Week Turns Into Restaurant Month
Los Angeles foodies, cleanse your palates and rev up your digestive systems, because dineLA Restaurant Week is extending for yet one more week. Originally slated to run from October 4-9, it stretched through the 16th, and now through the 23rd. In that case, shouldn't it be called Restaurant Month? No matter, because the extension is to your benefit, giving local restaurant-goers the chance to sample some of the city's best eateries for a mere fraction of what it would normally cost to dine at them.
Here's how it works: Go online and take a look at the list of over 200 participating restaurants, choose where you'd like to eat, and make a reservation by calling them directly or via OpenTable. As a friendly tip, we suggest telling your maître d' and server upon arrival that you have joined them as a dineLA Week patron, for two important reasons: 1) You want to make sure that you're getting the adjusted rate, which ranges from $16-44, depending on which price tier of restaurant you choose, and whether you're eating at lunch or dinnertime, and 2) You can't just go about ordering whatever items you want. The restaurants have crafted special dineLA menus for the occasion—three courses of some of their chef's best.
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Eva Longoria Parker Wants To Play Airport Restaurant Mogul
Oh, celebrities and their silly plans for world domination! Desperate Housewife Eva Longoria Parker is preparing for opening of the second location of her Hollywood restaurant Beso, this one in Vegas, but she's already looking to expand... to airports?!
Beso Vegas isn't supposed to open until New Year's Eve, but Parker told People that she's also looking into branching out to airports with Besitos, a limited-menu version of the flagship. First stop, naturally, is LAX, an airport that recently announced it was revamping its concession offerings.
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The Strange Controversy Over The Birth Of The Popular El Cholo Nacho
The venerable Downtown Los Angeles restaurant, El Cholo is notable for at least three things: (1) being open since the Great Depression, (2) making mind-eraser strength margaritas, and (3) introducing to the City of Angels a little thing we like to call the nacho. Heady stuff, we know. We'll address each in turn.
