I’ve had the pleasure of vacationing in Greece on several occasions. And among the most memorable things about it was the pristine freshness of the fishermen’s catch. It didn’t smell like fish; it smelled like the ocean. That was the “driver” when I created THE OCEANAIRE SEAFOOD ROOM– that and the utter simplicity of the Greeks’ preparations: simply grilled or broiled, or quickly sautéed.
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Food
King of the Crab Houses
JOE’S STONE CRAB is a Miami Beach institution – a national icon, even. It’s been around for over 100 years, and is one of the highest grossing restaurants in America, rumored to bring in more than $30 million annually – despite being closed during Miami’s four hot summer months.
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Head to Ridgedale and Have Yourself a Field Day
I rarely post stuff about our own restaurants….but this is a big deal –because we’ve just opened a “little sister” outpost of GOOD EARTH at Ridgedale Center in Minnetonka.
It’s called FIELD DAY, BY GOOD EARTH.
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Road Trip!
Joanne and I recently drove down to Chicago to visit her brother. We stayed downtown in Madison on our first night and stayed there again on our way back to Minneapolis; a great way to break up a drive and revisit two of our favorite restaurants in Madison: L’ETOILE and RARE STEAKHOUSE, both downtown, right on Capitol Square.
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Little Sprouts in the Big Apple
THE BEST PART OF WAKING UP (IN NYC)
Joanne and I are taking our grandkids to New York next month. As it’ll be their first visit there, we’ll take them to the Statue of Liberty, Central Park, Ground Zero…
As time allows – because we have a lot of restaurants to visit.
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ITALY, SICILIAN STYLE
My partner, Pete, just got back from visiting in-laws in Sicily and I was reminded of my visits to the island and how I enjoyed being there. I write this now because if any of you are contemplating a trip to Italy, this is an ideal time to take in Sicily: The tourists are gone and the weather is perfect.
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The Piece of Cod that Passes All Understanding
It’s said that fish and chips originated in northern England during the mid-1800s, when Spanish Jews first brought fried fish to the British Isles and, coincidentally, deep-fried potato became an established food item.
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PARMIGIANO REGGIANO… CUT THE CHEESE
Back in the early 1980s when Pete and I were preparing to open Pronto Ristorante, we figured it would be a good idea to learn more about Italian cuisine. So we signed up for an “Italian immersion cooking school” taught by the legendary Marcella Hazan in Bologna, Italy.
Every day, we would start out bright and early by going to the central market, where under Marcella’s guidance we would select the best seasonal produce, cheese and meats for the daily meal, and finally head off to the pasta maker.
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ME & BARTON G
I know, I know – I just posted about how I’m not a fan of fancy restaurants – too hoity-toity, pretentious and expensive.
But there’s one restaurant – an expensive one – that I can’t get enough of.
And the food isn’t even that great.
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