HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

TOP CHEF REPORT: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

TOP CHEF REPORT: 

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Top Chef doesn't return until January 7th, but you can still get your weekly 

fix and catch up with your favorites from season's past.

SEAON FOUR

Stephanie Izard (winner):

Is working on opening another restaurant, after she closed her Chicago restaurant to go on to the show.  It is set to open sometime in the Spring 2009 called "The Drunken Goat."  

Richard Blais:

Is currently living in Atlanta with his wife and newborn son Riley Maddox.  He has started a consulting company called Trail-Blais.  He is operating HOME which is a farm to table restaurant (I love these kinds of restaurants, may I recommend FARM in Bloomington, IN and Woodberry Kitchen in Baltimore, MD).  The menu is modern, southern style cuisine.  He also owns consulting company, Trail-Blais.  His most recent project is developing a modern hamburger concept called "FLIP."  He also competed on Iron Chef America, but lost against Mario Batalli in a chick pea competition. 

Andrew D'Ambrosi:

Twitters under the name bravotvchef along with Spike.  They are on the East Coast and totally spoil the show for us West Coasters, so don't read their updates if you are on pacific time.  

Nikki Cascone:

Has a line of hospitality major wear coming out soon. She will be making front of the house and back of the house uniforms.  She is also working on opening a new restaurant which will be a lot of seafood and light fare.  

Ryan Scott (hottie):

Has taken over as chef/partner of Mission Beach Cafe in San Francisco.  

Spike Mendelson:

Has just opened a new restaurant in Washington, DC called "Good Stuff Eatery."  It's focus is comfort food, burgers, fries and milkshakes.  http://www.goodstuffeatery.com/.  I hope to check this place out when I go home later this week.  I will of course write about it.

SEASON THREE

Hung Huynh (winner):

Hung is the executive chef at SOLO on Madison Ave, in NY which is a Kosher Mediterranean-Asian restaurant.

Casey Thompson:

Is now living in San Francisco working with Fischer Winery in Napa.  Casey caters dinner parties and pairs the courses with their meals.  

Brian Malarkey:

Continues to work at Oceanaire Seafood room where he is the exceutive chef and managing partner at the San Diego location.

Tre Wilcox:

Is a private chef in Dallas focusing on contemporary European cuisine.  He is also a spokesperson for Chantal cookware.  

Micah Edelstein:

Owns her own catery company, The Wandering Chefs in Boca Raton, Fla.  She is also working on a children's book titled "Silly Tilly Cooks Fusilli."

Dale Levitski:

Is dating Jack Mackenroth from Project Runway.  He has opened up Town and Country restaurant in Chicago.  

SEASON TWO

Ilan Hall (winner):

Hall moved to Los Angeles recently to open "Gorbles", named after the area in Scotland where his father was born.  Hall decribes his food as, "Jewish food date raped by bacon."  Hmm, so he is opening up, what will be a much less successful Jerry's Deli.  The place is set to open by New Years of this year, but it hasn't opened yet (it doesn't even have a website up yet!).  I met Ilan about two years ago at a wine and food event in Virgina and he cooked me the worst mussels I've ever had!  Good luck with your new restaurant!

Marcel Vigneron (runner up):

I am personally still bitter about Marcel's loss.  He was so funny, entertaining and truly talented.  Before the show Marcel was living and working in Las Vegas at Joel Robuchon, one of our top rated restaurants.  Since, the show, Marcel has had no trouble making headlines.  A few years ago a female viewer struck Marcel in the face with a beer bottle in a club, which required him to need alot of stitches.  He was also pulled over for a DUI in Lagana Beach this past August.  It's not all bad for our runner up, he is currently working as a sous chef at THE BAZAAR in the new SLS HOTEL in Beverly Hills, CA.

Betty Fraser:

Okay, so I was totally on team Marcel and can't stand Betty.  I think her trash talking was totally unproffessional.  Since the show Betty has continued to run her restaurant Grub in Los Angeles, which was nominated for "best morning after brunch spot" in January 2008. Has anyone eaten here?http://www.grub-la.com/menu.html

Cliff Crooks:

Cliff has a real chance of winning before assaulting contestant Marcel and getting himself kicked off of the show.  He is currently in NYC working at Blue Water Grill which was on Zagat's most popular New York Restaurants this year.  

Michael Midgley:

Michael was one of my favorites.  He was so charasmatic and hilarious!  He currently owns Midgley Catering http://www.midgleycatering.com/ in California.  Take a look at his website, the food looks awesome.

Mia Gaines-Alt

After eliminating herself (I think she would have been eliminated that episode anyway), Mia has closed her restaurant in Oakdale, CA.  It is rumored that she was not paying rent and the building was foreclosed.  After the closing of her restaurant, Mia moved to Hawaii and now works at Hotel Molokai.  

Sam Talbot:

Is off the market (sad face)!  Sam married model Paola Guerrero at City Hall this past November in New York.  Since the show he has opened The Surf Lodge in Montauk (The Hamptons), NY.  http://www.thesurflodge.com/restaurant.html  He has also signed on to be the executive chef of a new restaurant for the Mondrian Hotel (opening late 2009 in Chinatown).

SEASON ONE

Harold Dieterle (winner):

After winning top chef he has gone on to open Perilla Restaurant in New York City http://www.perillanyc.com/ in May 2007.

Stephen Asprinio:

In the Fall of 2007, Stephen opened Forte di Asprinio in West Palm Beach, Fla, an Italian restaurant.  http://fortepalmbeach.com/.  He has also the estate sommelier at the Livemano and Caselvento wineries in Tuscany, Italy.  www.livemano.it

Tiffani Faison:

Runner up Tiffani is currently the executive chef at Todd English's brasserie RICHE in New Orleans.  In May 2007 Tiffani cohosted a Greek Isles culinary cruise for "Olivia", a lesbian lifestyle and travel company.  Faison also won the $20,000 prize during the December 2007 holiday special.

Dave Martin:

Dave is currently living in New York where he is busy with his new restaurant Crave on 42nd.  He also teaches at the Culinary Loft in Soho.  He is currently working on opening a new restaurant called Bandolero, which has a Latin American/Southwestern and New Mexico fusion restaurant.  

Lee Anne Wong:

Lee Anne is currently working as one of the culinary producers on the fifth season of top chef.  She sources and styles the various ingredients for various challenges (UM awesome f-ing job!!!).  Lee Anne also blogs about top chef and has a podast and webcast called "The Wong Way to Cook."  Wong was also a chef consultant in 2007 for the movies Mostly Martha and No Reservations. 

WINE-ing WITH STACEY

WINE-ing WITH STACEY: Moscato 

Dessert Wine

Tonight I went to a friend's house for a dinner party.  One of my friends brought over a bottle of MOSCATO from Trader Joes.  MOSCATO is a sweet, syrupy dessert wine that is slightly darker in color than your traditional white.  It's name comes from the two varieties of grapes used; the muscat blanc and muskat canelli.  The particular version we drank was the 2007 Late Harvest MOSCATO from the Paso Robles region of California.  This win was very good; it had honey, nectar and floral notes and flavors.  I could only drink a little bit of this.  I am not really much of a sweet drink gal, but I did enjoy trying something new.  This wine retails for under $15 and tastes expensive and the bottle is gorgeous.  It would make a great hostess gift.

Always drink responsibly and enjoy!

MY TOP FIVE FAVORITE CHAINS

MY TOP FIVE FAVORITE CHAINS

In a new city and looking for some familiar food? Here are some of my favorite, never fail chains.

Menus and prices may be slightly different throughout the US, but you can pretty count on these place to be consistent.

PF CHANGS

http://www.pfchangs.com/

PF Changs is afforadable and there is something for everone on the menu.  They also accommodate large parties.  I also appreciate that they offer brown rice and some healthier options.  I personally love the Kung Pao chicken and eggrolls.  I don't think I have every ordered dessert here, I am always too full.

The Oceanaire

http://www.theoceanaire.com/

The Oceanaire Seafood Room always has great, fresh seafood.  I enjoy sitting at the bar in Baltimore.  They have small flat screen TVs and always have the game on, which isn't common on a fine dining restaurant.  I love the calamari there.  They also always have a nice selection of oysters to choose from and a good scallop entree on their menu.  They have change menu quite often, but some things, like the calamari are staples.

Roy's Hawaiian Fusion

http://www.roysrestaurant.com/

I love love love love love Roy's!!  It is so good and I always get such great service.  I love the spicy crabcakes and the butterfish entree.  Both are staples, at least in Baltimore they are.  It is hard to find good crabcakes outside of Baltimore, so I am not sure how many locations offer those.  I always get the chocolate lava cake when I go.  They make a really great one.  They have the pineapple marinated vodka martini cocktail.  I always think those things look really pretty on a bar. Most places don't actually pour from the cooler and neither does Roy's, but they still mix up a pretty good pineapple martini.

Flemming's Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar

http://www.flemingssteakhouse.com/

Flemmings steakhouse is definetly the best steakhouse chain that I have been to and they have the largest wine selection of them by far.  If you go to the one in Baltimore, request Don as your server.  I always get a rare filet, which is always cooked perfectly and well seasoned.  They have pretty good calamari too and an excellent selection of desserts.  Their sides are family style.  You should definetley go for the asparagus and the mac n cheese (trust me it's good).

Nobu

http://www.noburestaurants.com/

Skip the sushi at Nobu, it's nothing special.  I have been to two different locations and both of them have been just perfect.  The fish is so fresh and amazing.  I love the black miso glazed cod and the yellowtail jalapeno sashimi (pictured above).  I would also reccommend ordering some tuna, it is so bright red and gorgeous it's hard to resist.  

TONIGHT I WENT TO (12/26)

TONIGHT I WENT TO: THE GRAPE

I met two girlfriends at THE GRAPE in the Town Square Las Vegas shopping center Friday night.  I arrived at 8:30 and the place was probably half full with a few people sitting at the bar.  The place as you can see below, is really pretty and has a great, warm atmosphere.  My friends and I were seated at one of the high tables in the back, which I prefered since their was a jazz band playing in the front righ corner of the restaurant and it would have been too loud if we had been sitting so close.  The music was good.  They played some familiar covers and the sound faded into the background nicely.  My two friends each ordered peach bellinis and I ordered a glass of the Rancho Zabaco "Heritage", Sonoma Zinfandel (2006)($11).   It was a medium bodied wine that had a little spice, but also some sweet fruitiness to it as well.  It was very nice and warmed me up on a chilly night (yeah, a chilly night in Vegas does exist!).  Since I had not eaten dinner I ordered the Asian chicken sliders ($10).  The sliders came out pretty fast and were really tasty and satisfying!  The sliders each consisted of a mini chicken breast with lettuce, tomato, dijon mustard and an asian BBQ sauce which was tangy, spicy and sweet.  We also ordered the chocolate fondue for two ($15).  The fondue platter was served with strawberries, pineapple, banana, peanut butter blondie (my fav), toasted marshmellows and graham crackers (to make smores), pound cake and rice crispy treats.  When the chocolate was first served to us it was luke warm, so we let it sit under the candle for a few minutes before digging in.  Everything was good and the prices were really reasonable.  I would love to go back again and I recommend it.  The restaurant was having some computer issues that evening, but we didn't have to wait too long for our check.

For more information, locations near you and franchising information log onto yourgrape.com

SANTA FE CHICKEN SANDWICH

SANTA FE CHICKEN SANDWICH

I love this sandwich. It beats a PB&J anyday. It has tons of flavor and is easy to make.

You will need:

Sub Roll (I used an onion one, but any will do)

Chipotle Mayo

Sliced deli chicken or turkey (I like boar's head)

Slice of Mozzarella Cheese

Avocado slices

Tomato slice

a handful of spinach leaves

salt and pepper (to taste)

1. Slice roll and lightly toast

2. Spread a thin layer of mayo on one side and lay slice of cheese over it

3. toast again until cheese is melted

4. Slice avocados and tomatoes

5. place avocado on bread
6. Then place spinach leave on top (do them second so they have heavy things weighing them down)

7. Place tomatoes on top

8. Then put deli meat on top of tomatoes and use salt and pepper to taste

10. Top with other side of roll and ENJOY (with some chips or something of course!)

SPICY THAI CHICKEN AND VEGGIES

SPICY THAI CHICKEN AND VEGGIES

I love thai food and it is so easy to make at home. It is quick, simple and delicious. The more veggies you use the more complex this dish will be since you want everything to cook at the same time. If you think this might be too much to handle, you can always stir in frozen mixed vegtables. I think this dish would be good with beef, shrimp or scallops, but I am going out of town and wanted to get rid of the food in my fridge, so I used chicken last night!

For this dish you will need:

Chicken (already cut into cubes)

Broccolli

Edamame

Sweet potato

Corn (canned just makes it so much easier)

Spinach

Noodles

Butter

Olive Oil

Coconut milk

Chili Powder

Crushed red peppers (do not add these in if you don't like spicy)

Red Curry Paste (sub for a yellow or green version if you don't like spicy)

1. heat olive oil in a large frying pan

2. sautee chicken

3. in a small frying pan, heat 1 teaspoon of butter

4. sautee spinach until wilted and set aside

5. steam broccolli, drain and set aside

6. boil edamame, drain, de-shell, set aside (you may also use frozen shelled version)

7. bake the sweet potato for 45 minutes at 400 degrees in the oven, the slice it into cubes and set aside

8. boil a large pot of water and cook noodles of your choice, drain and set aside when ready (I use brown rice noodles)

9. stir over medium heat 1 cup of coconut milk, 1 full tablespoon of curry paste, 1 teasspoon of crushed red pepper and 1 tablespoon of chili powder

8. stir until completely mixed

10. After the chicken is completely cooked, stir in the vegtables and noodles for about a minute or less

11. slowly stir in sauce, the more you use the spicier it will be

12. ENJOY!!

This is what the dish will look like before you ass the sauce. Look at all those colorful veggies! You can totally be adventurous with this dish and add in peppers, mushrooms (even though I hate them) zucchini, squash...etc

MERRY CHRISTMAS

HAPPY HANUKKAH

Go on and eat some latkes and jelly donuts!!

ENCORE, ENCORE!!

ENCORE, ENCORE!!

Steve Wynn does it again, and we're glad he did!! The Encore hotel opened last night. I was lucky enough to be an invited guest, so I was in the hotel for the ribbon cutting and Steve Wynn's speech. At 8pm the hotel was open to the public and high rollers from all around the world were the first to place their bets! It was very exciting. I went with two others. We started in the hotel lobby bar. It had gorgeous red decor and a really cute small plate menu that also boasted an impressive cocktail list. I had a glass of champagne. one of my friends has scotch. They had a really extensive list if you are a scotch drinker. After drinks, we decided to walk around and make our way slowly to Botero, their steakhouse. I wasn't excited about going to a third steak house for the third night in a row (if you read my LA blog you would understand), but this was WOW. It was the most amazing meal of my life, well, so far. There was nothing wrong with anything. The service was incredible and food impeccable. Everything was perfect! The food came out pretty quickly between courses. Normally, I wouldn't like this, but I understood. It was their first night of service and they were fully booked. It was better to receive my food slightly fast than to go hours between courses. I think on a normal night they will get the timing better. It wasn't too fast. I didn't feel rushed or anything, but I prefer to eat slower when I go to fine dining restaurants. They had a really impressive wine list. I ordered a glass of red when my steak came. They also had alot of scotches and other spirits to choose from. I ordered a hangar one lime on the rocks to start. Which is my cocktail of choice if it is available. The decor was stunning. There was a huge fountian and statue in the middle of the restaurant and also an amazing open view to outside. The them was black and white without being too black and white. They splashed in some orange, green and brown so that it was easy on the eyes. The paintings were unique and fun to look at it. We each picked an appetizer to start. I picked the seafood crudo. It was a selection of raw fish (so fresh and amazing that I even ate salmon!) prepared different ways. The salmon was in an olive oil, citrus garlic marinade. The tuna was topped with extremely small diced mango and avocado. It's an obvious combo, but it works. The yellow tail had jalapeno peppers on it with mixed greened and the hamachi had some sweet glaze on it. We also ordered the Dungeness crab angiolotti. The pasta was light and fluffy. The textures went really well together. They were rich, without being overbearing. It was creamy and light and the crab just dissolved in your mouth. Our third appetizer was the parmesan gnocchi with a sweet tomato sauce. It melted in your mouth. It was amazing. It wasn't too dense, and it was cooked perfectly. You taste how fresh it is. They brought us out bread with olive oil. I tried the cranberry variety, it was fresh, warm and delicious. Our steaks came out. I ordered the 8oz filet, rare. You can choose between 3 preparations: chimichurri, peppercorn and traditional. I ordered mine chimichuri style. It was well seasoned, but didn't overpower the taste of the meat, which was phenomenal!! I was cooked perfectly. The steak knives were the sleek silver kind that I think are just so sexy and classy. I barely needed to apply any pressure with the knife, it just sort of sliced its self. It was perfect and delicious. I couldn't have asked for a better steak and it went perfectly with my wine, which I wish I could remember what I had. I am pretty sure it was the only merlot by the glass. After dinner we ordered two desserts. The first was the cheese cake sushi roll. The outside crust was fried so that it was thin like seaweed. Next to the dish there were thin slices of pineapple that looked like ginger. The chocolate dipping sauce looked like the soy sauce and then there were red dots of strawberry puree accenting the dish. It was a perfect bite if you combine everything together and how innovative and refreshing! It was really good. We also ordered mini jelly donuts with a caramel peanut butter dipping sauce. I loved the dipping sauce, but the donuts were really nothing special, but they were still pretty good. The meal was perfect. I would definitely go back and if you are visiting Vegas MAKE A RESERVATION NOW!!!! We walked around the hotel a little bit. They have a Chanel store with one of a kind haute couture Chanel items. They a few upscale boutiques, one for clothing one for shoes. They also have the second Manoli Blahnik store in the US in this hotel. They have a huge rock and republic store. I think it is their second or third store. Their Rolex store i the only licensed Rolex store, which means that it has every model in stock! Everything about this hotel is so luxurious and the decor is really sexy, modern and bright. It is not cheesy Vegas at all. Steve Wynn has done it right. It is simply elegant, and beautiful.

http://www.encorelasvegas.com/

LOS ANGELES (PART DUEX)

LOS ANGELES (PART DUEX)

I guess I just couldn't stay away! I went back to LA again this weekend to visit with some friends. I got in on Saturday and I went to lunch at Chin Chin with three other girls at their West Hollywood location. Later that evening I went to The Parlor in Santa Monica to watch the Ravens kick the Cowboys ass! We ordered some light appies, since we had a late dinner reservation. After the game, I met up with even more of my friends at STK in West Hollywood. Later that night we partied at Kress in hollywood for an Afflication tee shirt company party. On Sunday I went to brunch with two of my friends at Jerry's Deli in Studio City. Later that evening, a group of us went to the Magic Castle in Hollywood. What an experience that was. If you have been to Southern California, please comment on your favorite restaurant or bar so that I can visit it next time I am in town. I always have the best time when I go to LA! :-) Thank you Allison for making my last two trips so amazing and fun!
Chin Chin

I drove from Vegas to LA and arrived around 1:00pm. My three friends were already hungry and ready to go! We wanted to go to Ketchup in West Hollywood, but they are only open for lunch during the week so we walked to the next closest place, Chin Chin. Chin Chin is you guessed it, Chinese food (and dim sum)! It is not your typical carry out Chinese food, as you can probably tell from the pictures about, however, the prices were really moderate. There are four locations in Southern California and one in Las Vegas. Chin Chin has been open since 1983 with a focus on healthy, fresh, made to order Chinese food. We sat outside at the West Hollywood location. It was nice out and they had a heated patio. There was great people watching. This place is usually a celebrity magnet. We sat at the table next to Lonnie Moore (Millionaire Matchmaker) and JJ Torregiani (Paula Abdul's on again and off again boyfriend) both co-owners of the Dolce Restaurant and nighlife group. They were with two other guys, that I am going to assume are also part of the Dolce Group. Two of my friends ordered the mango boba or bubble tea. It was a mango smoothie with a tea base and tapioca balls at the bottom. I did not like it. The texture was really weird and I didnt like the flavor of the tapioca very much. The mango smoothie alone would have been nothing special. Two of the girls shared dumplings, fried rice and the shredded chinese chicken salad. They loved everything. The other girl ordered the orange chicken with brown rice. I love when restaurants allow you to order brown rice. I ordered the lemon grass pad thai it had chicken, scallops and shrimp in it. It was so good! The dishses were an average price of about $12. I would definetly go back there again! The service was pretty good.

8618 Sunset Blvd.West Hollywood, CA 90069Phone: (310) 652-1818 Hours: 11 AM - 10:30 PM

http://www.chinchin.com/

The Parlor

I went to watch the Ravens vs the Cowboys at The Parlor in Santa Monica. Since I knew I had late dinner plans, I didn't want to eat, but by 8:15 and two drinks later, I knew I had to eat something. I ordered the thai chicken skewers and sweet potato fries. I LOVE LOVE LOVE sweet potato friends and they were goooooood ones! It was the perfect amount of food because I was still a little hungry for my later dinner. The bar was packed. It was hard to get seats right away. The food was pretty good and I was impressed the menu had more than just the regular old bar food options of chicken fingers and cheese burgers. It was a really fun sportsbar atmosphere and I would definetly go back to watch more games if I ever moved there. 1519 Wilshire Blvd.Santa Monica, CA
http://www.theparlorsm.com/
STK
We went to STK after the Parlor. The place was packed. We ended up having a table of about 9 people. The girls were pretty full from eating earlier, two of them shared the slider burgers and ordered the Parmesean fries. It looks like french toast when it was served because it was in large fried squares with white powder on it. It was a really cool presentation. I had a little bit of my friends steak. It was good quality meat. We skipped dessert. I had a dirty martini with blue cheese olives. I love blue cheese stuffed olives, they are amazing. Anyways, everyone seemed to really enjoy their food. STK is usually a place for celebs to be seen, but no one famous was there that night, which is good, because it would have been an even bigger mob scene had one been there. STK is extremely expensive. It is good quality meat and an awesome atmosphere though. I would love to go back and eat more than I did.
755 N La Cienega BlvdLos Angeles, CA 90069(310) 659-3535
STK is owned by THE ONE dining group. They also own Kiss Fly, Coco Deville tenjune, ONE and Bagatelle. They have locations in CA, NY and Las Vegas. Their new restaurant FSH will be opening soon.
http://www.stkhouse.com/
KRESS
We got to Kress around 12:30. The Kress serves food, but we were there for the nightlife part. I think this place is 5 levels. One of those is a roofdeck which I hear is really fun in the Spring and Summer. We stayed in the basement lounge the whole night. It was really fun. The music was awesome, but the dance floor was kind of small. We still danced alot! It got reallllllly hot down there. I wish they would have had more air conditioning. The club was packed, but not too packed. Pauly Shore bumped into my friend and he was so obviously wasted it was hilarious. We had a really fun night. We stayed til close!!
6608 Hollywood Blvd. http://www.thekress.net/
Jerry's Deli
Jerry's Deli has the best matzo ball soup I have ever had and the best place to go with a hangover. Jerry's Deli has 9 locations in SoCal and 3 locations in Miami. I have been to to 3 locations so far. Jerry's Deli offers a full cocktail list, espresso drinks, soups, salads, sandwiches, fried appies, hamburgers, breakfast items and so much more. The portions are huge!! I ordered the california omlette and asked for it scrambled. It was eggs, provolone, avocado and chicken. It was really good, but you could taste the butter!! The other two girls got matzo ball soup which I tried and it was amazing. They got curly fries, which were so good. I haven't had those since 5th grade. They also each got the corned beef sandwich. Jerry's is known for their lean cornbeef and I highly recommend that you order a sandwich. At the end of the meal I got a giant cookie. it was chocolate chip with peanuts. I ate half of it and then slipped into my food coma until dinner. Catering and online ordering is available. Do not skip the dessert case up front.
http://www.jerrysfamousdeli.com/cgi-bin/cNc/showPage.plx?db=jerrysmenu&pid=1
The Magic Castle

A group of 8 of us went to the Magic Castle in Hollywood for dinner and some magic shows. The decor was cheesy and it was so random. I mean a huge castle/mansion in the middle of Hollywood. The Magic Castle is a club for Magicians and Magic enthusiasts. It also houses the Academy ee Magical Arts. The castle has been operating since 1963 and has housed some of the most famous magicians around the world. It was definetly a unique experience, and you have to be a member or be invited by a member to be able to go so the exclusivity part made this experience even more unique and fun! We ended up getting seated for dinner around 10:00pm. I would describe the menu as old man steakhouse. I mean their signature dish was the "steak milton" a steak with hollandiase sauce on it! The probably haven't changed the menu since the place opened.We ordered chicken lollipops (the new trend in chicken wings, moving the meat to the top of the bone before deep frying so that it looks like a lolly and is actually easier to eat). They were really good. Our waiter was really funny and nice and the service was pretty good. The food was over priced as expected and mediocre. I split the mixed grill with my friend. It was lamb, steak and chicken. Everything was dry and poorly seasoned. Clearly the food isnt't the main attraction. After dinner we went to our first show. We saw Ed Alonzo perform (Max from Saved by the Bell). He was really funny and definetly had a dirty sense of humor. I was picked to be his magicians assistant for a trick. I had to pick a card of an animal. I picked a duck. The I had to strap him into a straight jacket. The he escaped for the jacket and pulled out a duck. It was pretty crazy. I was just really excited that I got picked to be the magicians assistant. Last year at the Penn and Teller show at the RIO is Vegas I tried so hard to get picked and they picked 6 volunteers and I never got picked. Oh well. If this writing stuff doesn't work out, I think I may have found a new career. (kidding). We also saw another performer, AYE JAYE. My friend Allison and her boyfriend got picked to go on stage at this show, so that was exciting! After the shows we were allowed to wonder around the mansion. They had all of these old pictures and props every where so it was really cool to see. We also ran into Dax Shepard (Employee of the Month) and Kristen Bell (Forgetting Sarah Marshall). It was a really interesting and amusing evening. I had a really great time!

Oh and don't skip the dessert!!

http://magiccastle.com/

WHO IS TOBY YOUNG?

WHO IS TOBY YOUNG?

Toby Young, author of How to Lose Friends and Alienate People, will be joining the cast of Top Chef as the newest judge. Young is a British Journalist, but doesn't seem to be a food expert like all of the other judges and guest judges that appear on the show. He is extremely sarcasitc, dry and blunt which will make for some entertaining comments I am sure! He worked for Vanity Fair in the early 90s and is famous for saying "those who can't write, teach. Those who can't write, write about themselves" Toby Young has made a career out of this. Check out http://www.tobyyoung.co.uk/ for more on his work.

TOP CHEF REPORT

(pictured Hosea's Smoked Pork Tender loin)

TOP CHEF REPORT

Welcome to this week’s Top Chef report. I am currently writing you from my bed in Las Vegas. Sitting here with a glass of merlot because I AM SNOWED IN! Can you believe it? We got 6 inches today.
Today’s quick fire challenge is a one pot wonder. I love these. They chefs get 45 minutes to create their meals. They brought in Martha Stewart to judge it. She’s awesome! I don’t think she’s a top chef, but I think she’s the master or entertaining and sweets. Jeff is making a potato risotto which sounds really interesting and good. I love Fabio; I think he has such a cute personality and charm and he seems pretty talented. I think he will make it far in this contest, maybe even go all the way.
Martha really likes Hosea’s pieaya, Jamie’s scallop and Arianne’s beef over cauliflower puree. She didn’t like Jeff’s risotto, Eugene’s Korean stew and Fabio’s polenta. She thought the mushrooms were too gray and unappetizing. She picks Arianne as the winner. Jamie is so F-ing jealous it’s crazy. Focus on your food girl and do your best. The people that play it safe never make it to the finale keep taking those risks and make some good food!
The elimination challenge is a 250 guest holiday party. I love holiday party episodes!! It always gives me such great ideas for entertaining in my own home. The Harlem Gospel Choir come singing into the kitchen in the middle of Padma’s instructions on the challenge. The chef’s are asked to draw knives; the 12 numbers correspond with one of the 12 days of Christmas! How creative. The chefs have to make a dish inspired by the number they have picked. I am very excited for this challenge; it is so creative!!
Hosea has the pipers smoking and he smokes up the entire kitchen! What a mess. On the day of the elimination challenge, the chefs discover that someone had left the fridge open. Radika’s duck and Hosea’s pork are totally ruined. They are able to get more product and all the chefs chip in to help them. They find the extra meat in the top chef kitchen. Nice teamwork!!
Michelle Bernstein and Natasha Richardson are the guest judges for the elimination challenge. Stefan has 12 drummers drumming and made a chicken pot pie with “drum” meat. Very creative. Padma and other guests really seemed to enjoy it. They were really tiny and precious! Radika has a partridge in a pear tree, she did a braised duck with pear chutney. Chutney is Indian food Radika… Carla had two turtle doves. She did mushrooms caps because they kind of look like turtles. I hate mushrooms. Some people felt it was too salty. Gene had five golden rings. He made a poisson cru with pineapple ring and gold Yukon potato chip. I don’t think that chip had any business being there. The judges didn’t love it he may be going home tonight. Fabio had nine ladies dancing. He used crab cakes and made “dancing crab cakes”. The judges thought it was dense and not very good. Poor Fabio. I like him. Jamie had seven swans a swimming. She made a crudo of sea scallop in vichyssoise with lemon agrumato, leeks and micro greens. That is quite a mouthful! Michelle thought that the scallops were raw. Other guests said that it was too slimy. Two raw dishes? Come on Jamie. Step up your game or go the F home already! You have such a shitty attitude I don’t even enjoy watching you! Melissa had eight maids a milking. She made gorgonzola and NY strip steak on sourdough crostini with cranberry vinaigrette. All the judges taste is cheese. This is not looking good for Melissa either. It seems that they are disappointed with a lot of dishes. If I had to guess this early on I would say Gene is getting the axe, but you really can’t tell. Leah had three French hens and made a braised Guinea hen with butternut squash puree over puff pastry. It looked really good. Natasha didn’t like the puff pastry party. Arianne had six geese a laying and had 6 different deviled eggs. Tom thought they were good, but not impressive enough. Hosea had the eleven pipers piping and made smoked pork loin with chipotle mashed potatoes and apple brandy jus. They judges liked it a lot. He seems to be getting a lot of ribbons. This is how the guests vote! He might be the winner. Leah gets jealous of the girl hitting on Hosea. It is rumored that they are having a romance. Who knows, they could just be flirty. As of now they haven’t been shown much together in that way. Jeff has made ten lord a leaping. He searted halloumi and kasseri chesse (I love halloumi cheese!!!) with roasted beets, pears, mint and spices. How is this lords a leaping?? The judges really liked it and he seems to getting a lot of votes to.
Radika, Stefan, Jeff and Hosea are the top four chefs in this challenge. Natasha picks Hosea as the winner. He wins Michelle’s book. She gives it to all of the chefs for helping him. Gene, Melissa, and Jamie are in the bottom three. They criticized Jamie for her scallop being too raw and slimy. They told Melissa that they couldn’t taste her meet enough because it was over powered by the cheese. They told Gene his dish was too sweet. He old got 8 guest votes out of 300. He is really stubborn at standing by his dish. I think Gene has a good chance. Elizabeth’s least favorite was the scallop. Natasha thinks that Gene has a shitty attitude. Tom was disappointed overall and wants to talk to all of the chefs and tell them that they need to step up their game. Tom enters the waiting room and sits down to talk to the chefs are how disappointing and bland their food was. He wants them to focus on doing something amazing and over the top. He decides not to send anyone home as a “holiday gift”. WOW! I guess this happens about once a season.
UNTIL NEXT WEEK

NEW PRODUCT ALERT

NEW PRODUCT ALERT:

DEL MONTE NO SUGAR ADDED MANDARIN ORANGES

DEL MONTE NO SUGAR ADDED MANDARIN ORANGES

Del Monte no sugar added mandarin oranges half only 6 grams of sugar, 40 calories and all of the taste of the original.

mix together with grilled chicken, spinach, sliced almonds, avocado and asian dressing for a delicious light and healthy asian chicken salad!
(pictured below)

I love Kraft's light asian toasted sesame dressing!

TOP CHEF REPORT

TOP CHEF REPORT

(pictured lamb with carrot puree and wilted kale)

Welcome to TOP CHEF REPORT (12/10/08). Sorry it is so late! I was in Cali!! The quick fire challenge is the "name that ingredient" game. Daniel and Hosea face off first. They each taste a sauce and name as many ingredients in it. The sauce is shrimp and lobster bouillabaisse. Hosea wins. He names 4 ingredients. Jeff loses to Arianne. Thank you Carla! I was waiting for someone to say cream!! Stefan beats Arianne in the second round. He guesses 7 ingredients in the Thai Green Curry. All the girls seem to think Stefan is an asshole. I like him alot, what do you think? The final round sauce is a Mexican Mole Sauce. Carla is out on the first try! Peanut butter? Really? I think she is so annoying! It's between the baldies Hosea and Stefan and Hosea wins! There will be immunity for this challengeThe Chef's pull knives that say either "old" "new" "borrowed" or "blue". They Chefs are responsible for Gail Simmons' bridal shower. I think Jamie needs to stop whining and complaining please!!! Fabio, Leah and Melissa are on the blue team. Daniel, Carla and Gene are on the new team. Gene is really into sushi, can he make anything else? Jeff, Hosea and Stefan are on the old team. I think that is a great team, they are all 3 of the most talented chefs on the show. It Will be exciting to see how their dish turns out. Arianne, Jamie and Radika are on the borrowed team. They are doing an Eastern spiced lamb marinated in yogurt, vadauvan carrot puree (I will have to google this spice later), wilted kale, and cucumber raita (this will need to be googled as well). It doesn't sound like a very strong menu. I wish Radika would stop doing Indian food like she said she wasn't going to do in the first episode. She doesn't want people to think she can't do anything else, but I get the feeling she can't!!. The new team's menu consists of a surf and turf sushi roll (ummm WTF, really?....interesting I guess?), frisee salad with won ton, peach miso BBQ sauce (what is this going on exactly?) and a yuzu sorbet. I still can't stand Carla. I'm sorry, I just don't know why! The blue team's menu is really simple they are going to make a Chilean sea bass ( you know how I feel about this dish, its either perfection or a disaster and they bought theirs from a super market, so it was probably previously frozen, but I hope it turns out good, roasted corn puree (yum, if done right) and swiss chard. The old team menu is tomato terrine wrapped in eggplant (sounds good to me!), carpaccio with tomato sorbet and a gazpacho. I think they might be on the chopping block for using too many tomatoes. I don't even think tomatoes are that "old". I mean those tomato, basil and mozzarella salads with balsamic are in every yesterday these days. That dish is so "NOW". I am getting heartburn just thinking about all those tomatoes to be honestTom comes in and we learn there is no such thing as a blue food. How interesting. I did not know that. I mean I have seen blue lollipops, but those are artificial! I don't know if Tom was amused by their "borrowing" rationalization. Tom doesn't seem excited about Gene's deconstructed sushi. I've had deconstructed chili that I love and was fun to eat, but I don't know about sushi. Gene turns his failed rice into a chili pepper sticky rice which I think is really interestingOld served first. The loved Jeff's sorbet, but felt the terrine was a little bland. Daniel adds shitake mushrooms with Carla's salad without asking. She was annoyed. I guess I would be too. New serves second. The beef with peach BBQ sauce looks good. That's a pretty hard dish to F up though. The women don't really understand how to eat it and the shrimp was cold. Leah is so cocky, it's really annoying. I think she is safe for this week though. Wow that carrot puree is HOT YELLOW. The something borrowed lamb dish looks really pretty! They finish plating at the last second. They think the lamb is well cooked and delicious and love the flavors and spices. Everything went together. Gail was very happy with it. I think these girls may be the winners. The Chilean seabas was served last. They were the blue team, so they encrusted it in blue cornflower. VERY CREATIVE. They thought it was delicious, but didn't really have bold flavors. It didn't look like anything specialThe old and borrowed courses are the two favorites. They loved Arianne's lamb. She got off to a rough start, but is really proving herself. I think she may have some talent, but does she have what it takes to be a top chef? Arianne won another elimination challenge. Jamie is PISSED!!! She is talented, but not that great. I mean she did serve a raw egg on live TV. Stop drinking your haterade Jamie and focus on your food. Your attitude STINKS! I am glad that Daniel admitted to putting the mushrooms in, which is good. I am glad he didn't throw Carla under the bus, even though I think she is pretty annoying. There is no way the blue team is in last place. Their dish seemed much better than that sushi mess. The judges were disappointed that Carla didn't speak up about the mushrooms. I think that Gene is going home. His dish was the worst and he was the leader and made most of the main componentsTeam blue is safe. I knew they would be. Bye bye Gene... I think he is just young and inexperienced. I was wrong. Daniel was sent home. It was just a matter of time. He didn't really stand out.

Until next week...

LOS ANGELES

LOS ANGELES:

This weekend I took a trip to visit some friends in Los Angeles who live in the Brentwood/Santa Monica Area. They were AWESOME hosts and took me to some really cool places. Here is where I went...

BRAVO CUCINA ITALIANA

Bravo is located in the Third Street Promenade in downtown Santa Monica. This place is an outdoor mall with tons of shops, restaurants and street performers. It is really close to the beach and a seems like a really nice and fun area. I went to Bravo with 2 of my friends. Two of us each got a class of the Blackstone Merlot ($8) which I love because it's cheap and I know it will be consistently good. My friend and I also got the Molto Bene Salad which was romaine lettuce with chicken, feta cheese, olives, tomatos and a honey vinaigrette ($14). Our other friend got the chicken marsala. It was served with roasted potatoes which looked awesome and a side salad. I am not a fan of mushrooms, actually I despise them more than anything on earth! However, he said that his food was really good. We sat outside on their heated patio and the waitstaff was friendly and attentive. We were given free dessert cards so we ordered the chocolate ganche cake and tiramisu to share. The tiramisu was excellent because it actually had alot of coffee flavor and I find alot of them to be sort of bland. The choclate ganache was nothing special and hard to eat. It completely fell apart when I stuck my fork into it and wasn't even that good, however, I have no self control when it comes to desserts so of course I nearly finished it! :-)

Check out http://www.bravoitalian.com/menu/ for menu and locations

ROCK SUGAR PAN ASIAN KITCHEN

My cousin took me to eat at Rock Sugar Pan Asian Kitchen in the westfield mall. The place is gorgeous. It is owned by the Cheesecake Factory group and you can totally tell. It definetly has that corporate chain feel and lacks alot of originality. We went for lunch, so we sat outdoors and it was really nice. When you walk in their are alot of cocktail lounge tables. It looks like it could be fun to go with a group get a cocktail from the unique list of cocktails and sit there for a little either before or after dinner. My cousin and I shared 3 dishes. When you first sit down they give you crispy rice crackers with a red mild chili sauce/dip. It is very good. Kind of like the Asian version of chips and salsa. We shared the cilantro grilled shrimp over mixed vegtables (which is a special). It was good because the outside was really charred and gave the shrimp a nice flavor. The shrimp were sort of small in size however. We also had the crisp calamari which is marinated in coconut milk and served with a chili dipping sauce. It was great. The sauce wasn't as spicy as I would have liked, but it was still good. The third item we shared was the Singapore Hainan pork which was served with sweet onions peas and chili sauce. The pork was pulled and really good and really tender. The sauce tasted like a spicy curry sauce. I love curry sauce, but if you don't then this dish is not for you. We didn't order dessert, but I saw some being passed around and they looked awesome. This is definetly a 3 after meal mint kind of meal! haha. Alot of different flavors and spices going on! The most unique thing we saw, was that they kind of valet your leftovers for you. They gave my cousin a ticket and keep the leftovers that people wish to take home in a cabinet upfront. They do this so that the table in clear between courses. I think it is kind of nice.
For more information and to find a location near you visit http://www.rocksugarpanasiankitchen.com/

PINKBERRY
I LOVE PINKBERRY! Who doesn't? It is only on the west coast, but if you live near one I strongly recommend getting over there ASAP. My friend and I were able to walk to the one near her and since it was a gorgeoous day out we did! I ended up ordering the green tea yogurt with pom seeds, bananas and yogurt chips. Please keep in mind, this is not healthy. It may be healthier than regular icecream but it doesnt have alot of sugar!
Log on to http://www.pinkberry.com/ for nutritional info and locations near you

ROBATA BAR
I really loved it here! The concept was Japanese fusion ala carte. They had sushi and raw dishes available, but my friend and I decided to order the skewers. They recomment 4 skewers per person including one fish and one vegtable. The skewers are ordered off of the robata yaki side of the menu. We got a gyu (aged ribeye) skewer which I ordered rare, because I think that's the only way to order meat that's not a burger. It had alot flavor and was pretty tender. The skewers are served with 3 dipping sauces a sweet ponzu, a spicy mustard and another more mild creamy one. I hated the spicy mustard. It tasted like mustard and wasabi mixed together. If you like wasabi you will like it. I think wasabi is hot for no reason without acutally enhancing the flavor of a dish which is why I don't like it. Spicy on the other hand, I can handle because it adds a flavor to the dish. The other skewers we got were the tsukune which was chicken meatball with teriaki sauce (amazing), suzuki which is chilean seabass (which I am always nervous to order since it will never be fresh, since it's from Chili it will be previously frozen 80% of the time you order it. It is also extremely easy to over cook) the final skewer we got was the nasu the japanese eggplant with sweet miso (Japanese eggplant is alot smaller and not what you would expect if you are used to eating regular eggplant, it is more dense). The meal was absolutely perfect. We sat at the bar, because I belive you get better service than if you sit at a table and I prefer to do whenever I am eating with just one other person. The cocktails were just as good as the food. We each ordered 2 cocktails the green lotus (white lotus vodka, green tea extract, ginger and cucumber) it was light and refreshing and the kyoto rose martini (belvedere vodka, white tea Bulgarian roses and garnished with a rose petal) it was mildly sweet and pefect for an after dinner drink. I think this would be a really cute date place since it is imtimate and had a sexy atmosphere and requires you to share dishes.
www.robatabar.com

After dinner we went to Busby's Restaurant and Bar for late night dancing and cocktails. It was a young fun crowd and they played great music! I was happy I got to go to a fun local bar while I was in town. www.busbysonline.com 3110 Santa Monica BlvdSanta Monica, CA 90404(310) 828-4567

SPANISH KITCHEN

We came to Spanish Kitchen for some late night snacks and cocktails. I ordered the steak tacos with a crispy shell. They came out about 2 minutes after I ordered them. They really have their act together over there! I got a patron silver margarita with salt. It was perfect amount of sweet and sour and tasted like they used natural ingredients and for the 12 bucks I shelled out for the drink, I wouldn't expect anything less. The three tacos were small, but reasonable ($9). They were nothing special, but did the job. They served chips and salsa. The chips were warm and the salsa was good and spicy, just the way I like it! It was a fun place to hang with a large group. Apparently it is a celebrity hotspot. Luckily it wasn't on the night we went. It was still crowded but I'm sure it would have been totally different scene had a member of the HILLS been there.

Check it out. www.thespanishkitchen.com826 N La Cienega BlvdLos Angeles, CA 90069(310) 659-4794

THE BELMONT

We went to the Belmont After Spanish Kitchen. They are owned by the same restaurant group and also serve food, but we didn't eat there. The food looked really good especially the salad with the seared tuna on top. I still have my Maryland license, which caused me some problems. The bouncer couldn't have been more of a douche bag. He looked at my ID and told me it looked "shady". I know that I look like I am young, so I decided to be patient with him and said "if you think it's fake you should ask a police officer to scan it I understand you probably don't see many MD licenses" He asked another bouncer to look at it, who was probably more dense than him and had no idea whether or not they would let me in. He told me my options were to 1. leave 2. he needed a second opinion. I said okay and then he stood there for about 5 minutes looking at my ID telling me how shady it looked. I said well if my options were to leave or have a second opinion can you please go get your second opinion. Apparently this is attitude in LA. Not in the east coast, but in LA this is attitude and this loser on a power trip told me to leave. My friends were pretty insistent I was getting in this bar and I kind of like a challenge. It would have been nice to get in just to be like ha I'm 22 and you're a f-ing moron! So I asked to see the manager, who looked at my ID and said he think it might be fine, but then asked me to sign a paper and match my signature. So I was in the clear, the manager said I was fine and could come in and then walked away. Then, the bouncer still didn't want to let me in. He said I was rude, I apologized, he said my ID looked fake, I said well 2 other people said it was fine and then walked right in past him. It wasn't much of a happening bar scene. They had hangar one vodka which I really enjoy drinking on the rocks so I had one of those and then we decided to leave. I would love to go back and try the food, but as for a bar, there really wasn't much appeal. Everyone was basically seated and there were so many tables and chairs everywhere (that were empty might I add) that it was hard to walk around. At the end of the night Frank the idiot bouncer apologized for embarassing me and keeping me help up for 20 minutes and then called me hot. I smiled and told him to have a good night. Gotta love LA!!

http://thebelmontcafe.com/

747 North La Cienega Boulevard . Los Angeles, CA. 90069 310.659.8871 tel

SAY YEAH TO FAGE (pronounced FE-YAH)!!

SAY YEAH TO FAGE (pronounced FE-YAH)!!

Fage Greek yogurt is 100% all natural yogurt and it is one of the healthiest foods you can eat!

It is made of just milk and yogurt cultures has 90 calories per container, no fat, 7 carbs, 7 grams of sugar and 15 grams of protein!!

You may find it difficult to eat this one it's own since it is slightly bitter, so here are some healthy ways to enjoy Fage!

Yogurt topped waffle:

You will need:

1 container of fage

1 whole grain waffle

diced strawberries

a handful of almond slivers

honey (any kind you like!)

1. Toast the waffle

2. Top with 1 container of fage, strawberries and almonds

3. drizzle with honey and ENJOY!

This is a simple, quick and healthy way to enjoy breakfast.

Salmon and Onion Quiche

You will need:

2 containers of fage

6 eggs

1 9 inch pie crust

diced smoked salmon

onions
1. mix together 6 eggs and 2 containers of fage

2. stir in onions and salmon

3. bake at 375 for 35-40 minutes
It should looks like the picture below and is perfect for sunday brunch. Serve with mimosas!!

Tzatziki
you will need:
1 container of fage
1 teaspoon of olive oil
1 half teaspoon of minced garlic
diced and thinly sliced cucumbers
Mix all ingrediants together and enjoy!
Serve with Pita with my 5 alarm spiced chicken http://chefstaceybeth.blogspot.com/2008/12/5-alarm-spiced-chicken-with-tzatziki.html

5 ALARM SPICED CHICKEN WITH TZATZIKI AND A GREEK SIDE SALAD

5 ALARM SPICED CHICKEN WITH TZATZIKI AND A GREEK SIDE SALAD

***Warning: this dish is SPICY!!***

You will need:

chicken breast

tzatziki yogurt sauce

1 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

black pepper

diced tomatos

romaine lettuce

diced onions

diced cucumbers

olive oil

basalmic dressing

a large frying pan

1. Dice tomatoes, cucumbers and onions

2. mix together with dressing, pepper to taste and a handful of romain lettuce for the side salad

3. mix together all 5 spices
4. coat both sides of chicken with the spices

5. heat olive oil on the stove in the pan

6. pan sear chicken 2-3 minutes on each side or until fully cooked

7. serve with pita and tzatziki sauce

ENJOY!!