Taste Testing: Dining at the Restaurants of Cheftestants/Judges

[ProudMary]

Not exactly a restaurant of one of the cheftestants, but interesting if you're in the Philadelphia area.

Top Chef Quickfire, new eatery by Bravo, opening in Comcast Center

From the article: "Bravo and Philly-based Spectra, the food services and hospitality company, are joining together to open an eatery called Top Chef Quickfire in the Comcast Center.

The new concept will serve fans of "Top Chef" items inspired by dishes from past cheftestants.

Philly's Eddie Konrad, the lovable "Eddie Money" from Season 16, has been consulting on menu development."

[Miss chi chi]

I'm getting Rick Bayless Frontera Grill Taco Fiesta tomorrow night! I'm so excited because he is awesome, the food is awesome and my understanding is that he is doing a great job supporting his employees. 

[Yeah No]

2 hours ago, Miss chi chi said:

I'm getting Rick Bayless Frontera Grill Taco Fiesta tomorrow night! I'm so excited because he is awesome, the food is awesome and my understanding is that he is doing a great job supporting his employees. 

I am so jealous!  I went to Chicago 14 years ago and ate at Frontera Grill.  It was one of those all time greatest meals of my life, and that's saying a lot because I've eaten in a lot of great restaurants by anyone's standards.  I had read recently that he had planned to branch out to NYC but I wonder when that will ever happen now because of the pandemic.  And he IS awesome, isn't he?

[bkathi]

On 5/3/2020 at 9:59 AM, wlk68 said:

The weird thing is that he actually has a family style restaurant called …*drumroll* ... Family Meal. It's super casual and geared towards serving yummy food to busy families.  

I've eaten at Family Meal in Ashburn, VA. It later switched to an Italian menu (Aggio), and then it closed (prior to the pandemic).  It was good and had an interesting menu, not cookie cutter like so many spots.  

[FormerMod-a1]

I just ate at Justin's restaurant in St Paul.  What's funny, is that I didn't realize I was at his restaurant at first. I knew I was at the new southern/bbq place, but didn't put 2 and 2 together until he was talking to us at our table.  I had seen him walking around and stopping at all the tables. Anyway, before we talked to him, I am sad to say I was actually disappointed in the brisket.  It had good flavor, but was too wet and the fat wasn't rendered well.  The ribs were good, but had a smoke I didn't particular like, lots of others did though, so that's definitely a personal preference thing.  The hush puppies were good, and the pimento cheese was good (yes, really).  The star of the night was the fried chicken - SOOO GOOOODDD!!!  He was super nice and talked to us a lot and answered all kinds of questions*.  One of my friends asked why they don't have white meat fried chicken, so there was a long conversation, then he cooked up a fried thigh for her special, free of charge (this was after we had all eaten) but based on their conversation he thought she'd just had bad thighs.  Turns out he was right.  She loved it.  He actually brought a couple to the table so we all had some.  😄  After he left the first time I told the whole table he was on Top Chef and did well (one person knew).  But again, for some reason I never brought it up to him.  I think he could tell I knew though, by the way I kept staring and smiling as he talked to us.  And one person at the table did take his picture.  Anyway, TL: DR - Justin is super nice, the brisket was just OK, but the rest of the food was good and the chicken was da bomb!

* questions on what wood he uses to smoke, where he sources his meat, why the dark meat chicken is best for fried, cooking times, etc.  

[dleighg]

I make a minor hobby out of checking out Top Chef restaurants when I'm traveling, and I was just randomly listening to the local radio and they mentioned 'Dale Talde in Tarrytown NY.' I live just up the road so-to-speak and never knew this! It is a Hong Kong inspired menu, and we were just in Hong Kong a year ago, so we will definitely have to check it out once I am willing to sit down in a restaurant again. Expensive, so this would be a special occasion place.

Goosefeather in Tarrytown

Edited August 2, 2020 by dleighg

[ProudMary]

5 hours ago, dleighg said:

I make a minor hobby out of checking out Top Chef restaurants when I'm traveling, and I was just randomly listing to the local radio and they mentioned 'Dale Talde in Tarrytown NY.' I live just up the road so-to-speak and never knew this! It is a Hong Kong inspired menu, and we were just in Hong Kong a year ago, so we will definitely have to check it out once I am willing to sit down in a restaurant again. Expensive, so this would be a special occasion place.

Goosefeather in Tarrytown

From the link you shared:

In addition to his work in the kitchen, Dale was also a three-time cheftestant on Bravo’s Emmy Award-winning culinary show, “Top Chef.” He competed in Season 4, “All Star” Season 8, “Top Chef Duels”, and became one of the show’s most popular cast members.

😂

In your mind, Dale!

The menu looks great though. Dale could cook, but he was a total asshat.

 

 

[FormerMod-a1]

Dale has also been a judge on Beat Bobby Flay a few times

[hendersonrocks]

Late to the party for this season, but I went to Maria's taco place in Tucson in December 2020 and it was really good. I had a fish taco, a meat taco, and shared apps with friends - and also wish I wasn't as hungover as I was so that I could have had a cocktail too. 

[PamelaMaeSnap]

Had dinner last night at Thacher & Rye, Bryan Voltaggio’s new(ish) place in Frederick and just have to say it was one of the best meals I’ve had in 30 years here in the DMV (and I did dine at Volt way back when but this was better). Seriously, not a single misstep. Highlights included the best lasagna I’ve ever had (and grew up in NYC with some great legit Italian spots), a fried soft shell crab appetizer with fish sauce, pork tenderloin and some great dessert sides ... I’m still full 24 hours later. And WILL go back before we move to Cali ... this is short-listed for “GOTTA have one more meal here” ...

[MomAtPlay]

We went to Jamie’s restaurant, The Black Sheep, last night for dinner. It’s in an unassuming strip mall on the outskirts of Las Vegas. The food was amazing and the service was excellent. It was as good as anything we’ve had in New York, Washington D.C. or San Francisco. Jamie came out to take pictures with the diners but, since she was wearing a mask and you wouldn’t be able to tell it was her, I didn’t ask for one. She comes across as sort of young and quirky on the show but to run a restaurant of that caliber she must have some significant business skills.

 

[ilovebeaarthur]

For the Columbusites in this topic, Avishar created some menu items for ClusterTruck, available for a limited time:

 https://www.clustertruck.com/collaboration-with-chef-avishar-barua/

[Quilt Fairy]

Not sure what thread this belongs in, but Jaime is from Vegas, right?  Because I'm pretty sure she popped on a new Netflix show called Fresh, Fried and Crispy.  The host visited her restaurant, and as soon as I recognized her I thought we'd get her weird schtick, but it was primarily held to just giggles at the host's jokes.  Anyway, she made salmon skin tacos, and they looked really interesting.  The salmon skins were cut into circles and deep-fried to be the taco shell.

[Peper81]

My husband and I visited Louisville a couple of weekends ago and got to eat at Edward Lee's restaurant 610 Magnolia and it was amazing.  When our Uber stopped at the location, we all looked at each other (even the Uber driver) like are we sure we are in the right place but sure enough we were.  There's a reason they say to look for their distinctive door because otherwise you'd never know the place was a restaurant.  In fact, it's actually an old converted barn that Lee bought from the previous owner after working for him for several years.  The inside is very small, maybe only 15 tables or so, but there are numerous staff members who make sure you never run out of your drink or need anything without being intrusive.  The food is amazing.  It's all seasonal so you don't know your menu beforehand unless you email them and they only send it a day or two before your meal.  It's a tasting menu so you have two options for most of the 5 courses.  The pasta course only had the one option but I'm not certain if that is always the case or if its just the way it worked out that day.  They also do an amuse bouche to start the meal.  I did not partake in that part because it was foie gras.  My husband ate it and said it was really good.  The portion sizes were perfect which I have found is very hard to get right it seems.  Both my husband and I felt full but not overly stuffed like we'd be sick and we cleaned our plates each time.  There was only 1 course where we both picked the same thing and it was because neither of us wanted lobster (I don't eat shellfish, I'm not allergic but I really hate the texture).  Otherwise, we each got something different and tasted each others.  All of them were absolutely amazing!

The best part of our visit is that while we were eating, the general manager, Liz, was talking to some guests seated behind us and talking to them about the whole evolution of the place.  At the end, she mentioned that Lee was actually in-house that night.  I was pretty excited to hear that but I thought there's no way he's actually going to come out.  I figured he wouldn't want to make a big deal and would just stay in the back but he didn't!  At first, he just came out of the back and checked somethings at the bar.  I joked with my husband that I was going to tell everyone that Lee was there and said hi.  My husband laughed and said I'm sure he said hi to someone in his staff so it's not completely untrue.  But then, he actually came out to the guests.  At first he just stopped at a table that was clearly there to have some kind of party and he handed the guest something and talked to him a while before disappearing again.  The table was right next to ours so I was still on a high for being that close to him and I thought that would be the end of it.  However, he came back out and walked around to every table and said hi and asked how we liked everything.  He was so nice and friendly.  I thought it was really neat for him to come out and meet with everyone.  Very cool experience but, honestly, I still would've been happy even if he wasn't there.  The food was amazing.

Edited July 7, 2021 by Peper81

[stewedsquash]

@Peper81 Your visit to Ed Lee's place sounds wonderful. Have you ever watched him on The Mind Of A Chef? (Netflix series featuring several chefs) I have watched every episode and the one I can remember most is Ed's episode. After reading your post I went to his website and see that he was nominated for an Emmy for his role in that series. He also has a James Beard award for Best Book Of The Year. What I remember most about the his episode is his love of plain old fried chicken, he gets a box of it, drives off in a truck and eats it outside. 

Edited July 9, 2021 by stewedsquash

[biakbiak]

6 minutes ago, stewedsquash said:

ur visit to Ed Lee's place sounds wonderful. Have you ever watched him on The Mind Of A Chef? (Netflix series featuring several chefs)

It was actually a PBS show and is no longer streaming on Netflix. 

[stewedsquash]

It states clearly on the credits that it is PBS, I watched it on Netflix because it was not available on my PBS. I did not recommend for someone to watch it now, I asked if they had watched it.

[Yeah No]

20 minutes ago, stewedsquash said:

@Peper81 Your visit to Ed Lee's place sounds wonderful. Have you ever watched him on The Mind Of A Chef? (Netflix series featuring several chefs) I have watched every episode and the one I can remember most is Ed's episode. After reading your post I went to his website and see that he was nominated for an Emmy for his role in that series. He also has a James Beard award for Best Book Of The Year. What I remember most about the his episode is his love of plain old fried chicken, he gets a box of it, drives off in a truck and eats it outside. 

BTW, I seem to recall Ed was in a few episodes in Season 3.  All the episodes are available for sale on Amazon video plus at least a few are free on the PBS site.

[biakbiak]

13 minutes ago, stewedsquash said:

It states clearly on the credits that it is PBS, I watched it on Netflix because it was not available on my PBS. I did not recommend for someone to watch it now, I asked if they had watched it.

You called it a Netflix series, I was pointing out that it was no longer available there, which it would be if it was their original content, in case people were interested in the recommendation. 

Edited July 9, 2021 by biakbiak

[biakbiak]

6 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

BTW, I seem to recall Ed was in a few episodes in Season 3.  All the episodes are available for sale on Amazon video plus at least a few are free on the PBS site.

Yes they went by seasons, Ed was season 3. David Chang, who exec produced it season 1, Sean Brock season 2, Gabrielle Hamilton season 4, Season 5 different restaurants, and Danny Bowein season 6.

[caitmcg]

2 hours ago, stewedsquash said:

He also has a James Beard award for Best Book Of The Year. What

I have his cookbook, Smoke & Pickles, and it’s very good. 

[stewedsquash]

6 hours ago, caitmcg said:

I have his cookbook, Smoke & Pickles, and it’s very good. 

I have Buttermilk Graffiti on hold at the library. I am going to find Smoke & Pickles based on your review. I also got very interested in Kwame's memoir last night, when it popped up on my Amazon reads. I read a sample and I am recommending it to my library. Speaking as a voracious reader, Kwame is a very gifted storyteller. I was completely in his world from the first paragraph. 

[Peper81]

15 hours ago, stewedsquash said:

@Peper81 Your visit to Ed Lee's place sounds wonderful. Have you ever watched him on The Mind Of A Chef? (Netflix series featuring several chefs) I have watched every episode and the one I can remember most is Ed's episode. After reading your post I went to his website and see that he was nominated for an Emmy for his role in that series. He also has a James Beard award for Best Book Of The Year. What I remember most about the his episode is his love of plain old fried chicken, he gets a box of it, drives off in a truck and eats it outside. 

I can't remember if I saw any of the Ed Lee episodes or not.  I started watching it when I first found it on PBS but then life got the better of me and I never finished.  I saved it on Netflix when I saw it on there but it's gone now.  I'll have to keep my eye out if it ever pops up included on any of the streaming apps I already pay for.  Thank you for reminding me that he was on it.

[stewedsquash]

@Peper81 I watch a lot of chef shows and I forgot that The Mind Of A Chef showcased a chef not just in an episode but over a season. I remember most from his episodes Lee taking his toddler daughter with him to a market and the fried chicken scene I mentioned above. I think the other chefs that interested me as much as Lee were Gabrielle Hamilton and Ludo Lefebvre. The one I was least interested in was Magnus Nilsson and David Kinch. It was with a weary eye that I watched Sean Brock's episodes because I was aware of his descent into drugs and alcohol. He seems to have gotten to the other side of that though. I have not watched the season 6 chef since I didn't see it as available when it was on Netflix. 

I wish someone posting here would go to Maria's place and try her food. 

[hendersonrocks]

Quote

I wish someone posting here would go to Maria's place and try her food. 

Scroll up! I posted in May about having eaten at her place. It was great - I had two tacos, shared an app, and some of the salsas - and I'm excited to go back.

[Msample]

An interesting direction for Tom Colicchio:

https://thetakeout.com/tom-colicchio-opens-new-fast-casual-chain-in-hospitals-1847259671

 

[marybennet]

I was in Chicago recently and ate at Parachute, Beverly Kim's restaurant with her husband.  It was wonderful!  It's a small, beautifully-designed but comfortable and unpretentious space.  And the food was amazing.  From what I've read, it used to be more of a Korean-American restaurant, but they took advantage of the forced off-time of Covid to reconceive the restaurant a bit to emphasize more traditional Korean dishes.  We had four things, all really flavorful.  One thing--a salad featuring whelks--was really spicy but other things less so; it was a great wake-up-your palate dish.  A pork belly and pork collar plate with banchan side dishes was terrific.  What was best was a pajeon, a seafood pancake.  I've had pajeon a number of times but this was off the charts good and interesting.  Fun, too, that the people at the next table felt comfortable recommending things (the salad, for one) and we told them what to get next time.  The whole room was happy to be eating there, I think, and it made things charmingly sociable; so did our entirely nice and helpful server.  Good, interesting Korean spirits, too.  It was expensive, but it was our splurge for the trip.  Yay for Beverly; she's really made a beautiful place. 

Edited November 16, 2022 by marybennet

[Sailorgirl26]

I was in Dallas in August and hit up Tiffany Derry's Roots Southern Kitchen. I had the fried green tomatoes, gumbo, and german chocolate cake. It was all crazy delicious. It was a Sunday night and the place was packed. Highly recommend it if you're ever in Dallas! 

[marybennet]

Adding to news of Top Chef and my Chicago trip, which I talked about just above:  while there, I attended an event catered by Stephanie Izard's Goat Group Catering--a nice surprise to see who the caterers were.  The menu was mostly vegetarian (though not entirely)--lots of vegan and vegetarian people in attendance.  Everything was really good.  Great salads, especially one featuring crispy quinoa; I didn't know quinoa could be crispy, and I'm glad I know now.  Lovely fish.  Green beans with a miso dressing and maybe some fish sauce?  Good food, and there was something just nice about seeing that it was a solid, well-run business.

[Ancaster]

Last night I had the pleasure of dining at Gregory Gourdet's restaurant Kann, in Portland, Oregon.  I talked about it in the Last Chance Kitchen thread (we'd been talking about Gregory's appearance on that show), and @Bastet suggested I cross-post here.  https://forums.primetimer.com/topic/145121-season-21-last-chance-kitchen/page/3/#comment-8347534

Highly recommended if you're ever in town!

 

Edited April 21 by Ancaster

[Salacious Kitty]

IIRC, Kann is vegetarian. Is this correct? I noticed that you had vegetable dishes. 

[Bastet]

54 minutes ago, Salacious Kitty said:

IIRC, Kann is vegetarian. Is this correct?

I just checked the menu, and it's not vegetarian.  It sounds good.  I haven't been to Portland in quite some time, but if I'm there again and Kann is still going, I'll definitely try it out.

[potatoradio]

Was in San Diego recently and got to dine at Animae (founded by Malarkey, at least in part). I don't normally pick up on decor that much, but the place was drop dead gorgeous. Every detail, down to the silverware and cocktail glasses, met the art deco theme. Nothing at all what I'd expect from Shenanigans, but my wife told me this was his fine dining endeavor, not the Cali fresh cuisine of his other restaurants. I was seriously impressed.

The crab fried rice could have used more crab flavor, but the seafood dish I had was amazing. It was in a broth that was like a lobster bisque and included scallops, mussels and prawns. Not a big mussel fan, but was worth it!

My wife had a cocktail made with waygu beef fat and it was incredible - not beefy flavored, but gave such a different mouth feel than the usual cocktail.

Also, waygu wontons were pretty tasty and the Taiwanese chicken....wowsers! 

My wife's sirloin (couldn't bring ourselves to cough up the $ for a waygu entree) was very flavorful and tender. 

 

We had the chocolate cremeux for dessert and was completely worth it. Such depth of flavor and texture contrasts. 

Definitely worth the splurge and I was really pleasantly surprised - not what I would have expected from Malarkey, but he does do fine dining awfully well!

 

Also fun, at the Padres game the next night, the managing chef threw out the first pitch. 

Wouldn't put it on par with Craft Steak, where I had the lobster bisque I will never forget, but definitely glad we went.