Wednesday, August 29, 2007
work in progress
apologize for the lack of posts, I am working on a website to be open soon. I will move this over when I get it running, hopefully by the end of this week. It will be www.chefkurt.com. Ciao and eat well!
Saturday, August 18, 2007
Crabs, Italian meats, and life in the restaurant
Just a few random thoughts.
I was reading about blue crabs in Edible Low Country, great magazine by the way, I wish we had an Edible Grand Strand. I think the Grand Strand does not get the culinary respect that it deserves, which is understandable because we have been home to the dreaded Calabash seafood buffet, but that is changing, We have some great restaurants and chefs working here. I think some of these places, including City bar, Umi Pacific Grille, Sea Blue, and a few others are ahead of their time, but the clientele are coming and more eclectic, fine dining restaurants are sure to follow. But I digress. I was reading about blue crabs, peelers, holding tanks, and soft shells. Looks like work but fun work. The "peelers" are held until the shed their shell, then 3 hours later are pulled and shipped. A large number go to New York City or other metropolitan areas. The ones I buy may come from down the coast a little ways, but go to Atlanta and back more often than not. I would love to see a coastal delivery system that could get fish, shellfish, produce, locally grown products, dairy, cheeses, grass fed beef, etc. to the restaurants. I know an infrastructure exists in Charleston, but not here. We will keep working on it.
Italian wine dinner at City Bar this upcoming Tuesday. As a former Yankee, I know a good bit about Italian style salumi, or cured meats. They can be difficult to find around here, though. I ordered a few through Lee's Farm Market down in Murrell's Inlet, they usually come through for me.
I am a firm believer in local and sustainable foods. If you are too, I would recommend joining Slow Foods http://www.slowfoodusa.org/. For the professional, there is also the Chef's Collaborative https://www.chefscollaborative.org/ and the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association http://www.carolinafarmstewards.org/. I encourage you to buy local whenever possible, find and visit your local farm market, food shops, and producers. The food will be better, fresher, and you will be supporting your neighbors.
Eat well!
I was reading about blue crabs in Edible Low Country, great magazine by the way, I wish we had an Edible Grand Strand. I think the Grand Strand does not get the culinary respect that it deserves, which is understandable because we have been home to the dreaded Calabash seafood buffet, but that is changing, We have some great restaurants and chefs working here. I think some of these places, including City bar, Umi Pacific Grille, Sea Blue, and a few others are ahead of their time, but the clientele are coming and more eclectic, fine dining restaurants are sure to follow. But I digress. I was reading about blue crabs, peelers, holding tanks, and soft shells. Looks like work but fun work. The "peelers" are held until the shed their shell, then 3 hours later are pulled and shipped. A large number go to New York City or other metropolitan areas. The ones I buy may come from down the coast a little ways, but go to Atlanta and back more often than not. I would love to see a coastal delivery system that could get fish, shellfish, produce, locally grown products, dairy, cheeses, grass fed beef, etc. to the restaurants. I know an infrastructure exists in Charleston, but not here. We will keep working on it.
Italian wine dinner at City Bar this upcoming Tuesday. As a former Yankee, I know a good bit about Italian style salumi, or cured meats. They can be difficult to find around here, though. I ordered a few through Lee's Farm Market down in Murrell's Inlet, they usually come through for me.
I am a firm believer in local and sustainable foods. If you are too, I would recommend joining Slow Foods http://www.slowfoodusa.org/. For the professional, there is also the Chef's Collaborative https://www.chefscollaborative.org/ and the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association http://www.carolinafarmstewards.org/. I encourage you to buy local whenever possible, find and visit your local farm market, food shops, and producers. The food will be better, fresher, and you will be supporting your neighbors.
Eat well!
Monday, August 13, 2007
Summer seafood
I am at City Bar tonight, one of our restaurants. Thought I would add some thoughts / observations on seafood, being at the coast
First of all, surprisingly little seafood served in area restaurants comes from area waters. A lot of it is flown in from Russia, Canada, and Asia. Summer, however, is the best time for local seafood. I have been working hard to make headway and find sources for the truly local stuff
Shrimp- right now they are catching brown shrimp, which are a great shrimp! many people prefer whites, which they will start catching in the fall, but the brown are great in sautes, pasta dishes, jambalaya, and other spiced up dishes. They have a fuller flavor, which stands up to sauces and spices well. Look for clear, clean looking shrimp, little to no smell, no black spots on tail. Use within 48 hours.
Mahi- we are seeing some amazing local fresh mahi which lends to grilling or sauteing, with your favorite spice blend and maybe some grilled peaches and sliced avocado. Look for clear flesh, no odor.
Wahoo - we are seeing fresh wahoo from local waters right now. It is firm, somewhat dark colored flesh, great grilled, seared, or lightly smoked.
Triple Tail - great firm white fleshed fish, from Florida waters. We do a piccata with it at city bar, but tempura or sauteed would be nice as well.
Wreckfish or Stone Bass- GREAT fish out of Beaufort, SC, sustainable, fatty white big flaky flesh, like a cross between grouper and sea bass (both of which are over fished). If you can find some of this, TRY IT. Great sauteed or grilled.
Here in the Grand Strand, you can find local seafood at C&C Seafood in Murrell's Inlet, the fish counter at Phillips, and Berry's in Little River. Or call me at the restaurant and I will do what I can!
Have a great day and eat local!
First of all, surprisingly little seafood served in area restaurants comes from area waters. A lot of it is flown in from Russia, Canada, and Asia. Summer, however, is the best time for local seafood. I have been working hard to make headway and find sources for the truly local stuff
Shrimp- right now they are catching brown shrimp, which are a great shrimp! many people prefer whites, which they will start catching in the fall, but the brown are great in sautes, pasta dishes, jambalaya, and other spiced up dishes. They have a fuller flavor, which stands up to sauces and spices well. Look for clear, clean looking shrimp, little to no smell, no black spots on tail. Use within 48 hours.
Mahi- we are seeing some amazing local fresh mahi which lends to grilling or sauteing, with your favorite spice blend and maybe some grilled peaches and sliced avocado. Look for clear flesh, no odor.
Wahoo - we are seeing fresh wahoo from local waters right now. It is firm, somewhat dark colored flesh, great grilled, seared, or lightly smoked.
Triple Tail - great firm white fleshed fish, from Florida waters. We do a piccata with it at city bar, but tempura or sauteed would be nice as well.
Wreckfish or Stone Bass- GREAT fish out of Beaufort, SC, sustainable, fatty white big flaky flesh, like a cross between grouper and sea bass (both of which are over fished). If you can find some of this, TRY IT. Great sauteed or grilled.
Here in the Grand Strand, you can find local seafood at C&C Seafood in Murrell's Inlet, the fish counter at Phillips, and Berry's in Little River. Or call me at the restaurant and I will do what I can!
Have a great day and eat local!
Welcome to my blog
Hey everyone,
welcome to the initial entry in my blog. Let me introduce myself. I am Kurt D'Aurizio, Corporate Chef for the Divine Dining Group in Myrtle Beach, SC. I live and work in the north coastal region of South Carolina, and love the food and way of life here. I started this blog to share sometimes developed, sometimes random thoughts and observations of food and life. I hope you enjoy and visit here often.
Please let me know if you have or know of a food related blog.
Thanks,
Chef Kurt
welcome to the initial entry in my blog. Let me introduce myself. I am Kurt D'Aurizio, Corporate Chef for the Divine Dining Group in Myrtle Beach, SC. I live and work in the north coastal region of South Carolina, and love the food and way of life here. I started this blog to share sometimes developed, sometimes random thoughts and observations of food and life. I hope you enjoy and visit here often.
Please let me know if you have or know of a food related blog.
Thanks,
Chef Kurt
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