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Rachael H

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  1. I just wanted to thank Don for inviting me to do this chat, and I also want to thank everyone for writing in. Hope you all have a very Happy New Year, and I'll look forward to seeing you at CityZen! Cheers everyone! Rachael
  2. Hungry prof, This is actually a very good question, and one I ask myself all the time, and unfortunately I don’t have the best answer. There are times I go out to eat and see something that I really like, the furniture, china, or even a concept that I think I might be able to adapt for my own. I have so many different ideas; none of them really mesh well. Sometimes I want to have something like CityZen; other times I think something more casual is the way to go. However I am sure about certain things like the cleanliness, and production. I know I would want the service to be attentive, but not overbearing. I will hope to keep the front of the house excited to serve the food, and the back of the house proud to make it. I just don’t have 100% of an idea yet. However, I do know that where I have worked in my past is going to have a major influence on my future, where ever it may go. Rachael
  3. Jdl, So, this would be my “greatest hits” tasting menu. Keep in mind this menu consists of some of my favorite dishes, as a menu it’s a bit heavy, but I don’t think anyone would complain. So here it goes: Bluefin Toro Butter Pickle Ceviche and Yuengling Popover Horton Petite Manseng Foie Confit Plum Financier and Sarawak Pepper Gastrique Riesling Butter poached Maine Lobster Summer Truffle and Sweet Corn Chowder Arrowwood Viognier Wagyu Ginko nuts, Baby Carrots, Ciopplini Onions, And Crispy Shiitakes Volnay Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Souffle Milk ice cream 1928 Maury Rachael
  4. Hi Lion, When I was living in California I was very spoiled from the amount of amazing produce that was available, and how easy it was to obtain. It took awhile for me to get used to the crazy weather patterns here that would wash out a field of crops and leave us with little to choose from. The markets here get better every year, which is great. It would be neat if some of the smaller markets moved away from so much produce and maybe a local fish or butcher shop would join in. I know at the Dupont market you can get a lot of cheeses and meats as well, but some of the smaller markets could add something like that to strike a bit more interest. I think everyone just thinks of markets as having flowers and produce. That’s one of the great things about the San Francisco market, for example, they offer a lot more. Rachael
  5. JPW, I am sorry I didn't get to answer your question the night you were "flying solo", but if you find that to happen again I have a suggestion. If you can't make it to the bar at CityZen, then I would suggest the bar at Bourbon Steak. The restaurant just opened in the Four Seasons Georgetown. I was at the bar last night with a friend and had a great time. The area was bubbling with people, even on a Sunday. The food was great and they have very interesting wine and cocktails lists. I was very lucky, when I first came to DC Eric introduced me to everyone he came across. I have been able to get to know DC's greatest chefs. I have to say I admire them all, especially Jeff Buben. To be able to have a restaurant (or 2) for as long as Jeff or Michel Richard for example, in a city where new places are opening all the time, is definitely something to look up to. Rachael
  6. Hi mdt, At CityZen we try to change the menu once a month, give or take. The process all depends on how big the lightning bolt is for either Eric, I, or any of the other cooks. There are times that Eric comes up stairs to the kitchen and says “Ok, I just finished the best tasting menu ever”, or at times he says “we need a bass dish, rabbit and lamb, any ideas??” It’s one of the great traits of the restaurant. I really think that collaboration is what makes a great restaurant great. Being able to feed off of another’s ideas shows just how much creativity one has. It’s also good for the cooks. If they have a really good idea, that may need a bit of tweaking and it ends up on the menu, they end up cooking that dish for the guests with such pride. And now for the fritter question. First we need to understand what the mushroom fritter means to the restaurant and the reason that everyone gets one. The mushroom fritter is indicative of what we do from a technique standpoint. Here you have a small, bite sized dish, that really only has 5 ingredients used in all three recipes. A very simple dish with such an intense result. Slicing thinly the mushrooms and drying for powder, making a sauce so silky smooth that in the end the fritter is really just a vehicle to be able to eat the sauce. It means welcome and it shows you what you are in store for. Dishes that satisfy you with flavor and refinement. You read about CityZen, the restaurant that changes all the time, but never the fritter. I can’t tell you how many people come for dinner, and ask for another round of the fritters. If this happens we thank them by giving a basket with a pool of the sauce on the side to dip them in. We even have regulars that request no mushrooms with their meal, but insist on the fritter. However there are the times that guests, like Don Rockwell, just don’t like the fritter, and that’s ok. (Don doesn’t really like anything at CityZen anyway) We are happy to give another canapé. The guests that do come and don’t turn it away, understand that it’s like being welcomed by an old friend at the start of a new journey. I'm just kidding, we love Don Rachael
  7. Hello synaesthesia, You are probably right, but before I went to culinary school, I worked at Roadhouse Grill. I was a waitress before I went to Disney, and when I returned home (before culinary school) I worked in the kitchen. I worked lunches and dinners. I made the nacho plate, and worked the grill. It was definitely NOT fine dining, though I was learning. I was the only girl in the kitchen minus a women that rolled egg rolls in the morning that were filled with cheese and jalapeños. Yes, people thought that I couldn’t do it, but when they worked with me, they realized that I wanted to do it, and I did. Again, I can’t stress enough, everyone can do anything they want. If you work in a restaurant that is treating women inferior to men, please leave. Nothing good can come out of it. You also have to think that if the chef is treating women bad, it seems to me that he (or she) is probably treating the rest of the staff poorly. I can’t speak for Europe, they have a different culture and very deep roots, but I know that if I worked in a kitchen, and the chef screamed at me or hit me, I would not have returned the next day. For your other question, I have a few guilty pleasures. There is a bbq place in Rochester called Dinosaur Bar-B-Que. The first one opened in Syracuse, and most recently NYC. The pulled pork sandwiches are amazing. They smoke the pork and ribs right in front of the restaurant. I have even brought a sandwich back for Eric, with his mouth full he nodded with approval. I don’t get to eat out to much, and when I have the opportunity I try to go to a place that I haven’t been to before. Though, my sweet tooth weakness is a warm brownie sundae with hot fudge and vanilla ice cream. Delish!! (That will be my only Rachael Ray reference) Rachael
  8. Thanks for your question Thistle, I really have never been interested in actually partaking in the Top Chef, or Hell’s Kitchen type of show, but I love to watch them. They definitely are very entertaining!!!! I did watch the beginning of the episode you are talking about. I thought the paella dish was the perfect dish for the quickfire. Other than that, I think a polenta with a poached egg and winter vegetables would have been good too. Now, I have to say that I have had a few days to think about this, which isn’t really fair, and this was a VERY hard challenge. If you said lord’s a leaping, I would have done frogs legs. (I didn’t end up watching this part of the show, so if the chef did frogs legs, good job!!) I looked online to see some pictures of what the contestants made. The dishes looked like they were at least 2 bites. So I have to say, for 5 golden rings, I would make small parmesan tortellini, with a tomato water reduction that was buttered out, with some meyer lemon and capers in the sauce. I would steep some saffron in the milk before making the pasta to give it more of a gold color, plus the flavor would go really well with the rest of the dish. Five on a plate of course, they would be small. Rachael
  9. Hi Dan, -If I had the opportunity to do it all again, I don’t think that I would change anything, good and bad. I really think that everything happens for a reason. All the people that I have met, all the situations I have experienced, had some impact in shaping my life, and I am happy where I am at right now. I guess I needed time to realize what it was I really wanted in life (that was when I was in nursing) and then when I realized what it was, I tried to get there as fast as I could. -Thin crust when I go out for pizza, not the cracker style, and when I make it at home it always ends up thick. (I always seem to use too much dough.) -After a hard day, a beer usually helps, and a friend to vent to (preferably one who is in the industry). On easier days, I TRY to go to the gym after work, but most of the time I’m too tired and I end up just watching some TV. I always need some down time. -I can honestly say that I have never been so mad at someone that I just started yelling at them. Whenever I feel my blood start boiling, I keep really quiet, and go through everything in my head. The worst is to blow up at someone, and then come to realize you are the one at fault. Usually by the time I finish contemplating the situation, I can sit down and have a normal “adult” conversation. -Yes, there have been plenty of times that I thought I may have made a mistake, and should have gone with a different career choice. As the years went on though, I found myself enjoying it more and more, and the stress became a welcome challenge. -As time goes on, balancing my work life and social life has become easier, especially since I have moved back to the east coast. I can see my family and friends in this area a lot easier. I just wish I did a better job of keeping in touch with some of my friends that are not in the industry, but I try. Rachael
  10. B.A.R., The hotel purchases all the paper goods for all the outlets, and then I requisition them. Yes, they either buy from Sysco, or US Foodservice. It's hard to find a small organic producers for plastic wrap!! Rachael
  11. Hi Rieux, My parents are from Marion. My father's parents still live there, and whenever I go for a visit we always make a stop at Mikes, on route 6 for linguisa pizza!! There's always the Lobster Claw in Chatham. Rachael
  12. Hi MBK, If I only had 1 day in Paris this would be my list of must see’s…… Must start by eating a croissant aux amande. I would have to walk around almost every arrodisment. Walking is the best way to see Paris, I never took the bus when I was there, metro or taxi if I was in a real hurry. Hot chocolate at Angelina. I was never a big fan of the pastries there, but the hot chocolate is to die for. My favorite park to walk around in was always Jardin du Luxembourg. I am a big fan of Jules Cheret lithographs, so I would have to stop at the flea market Les Puces de Saint-Ouen. While I was there I would try to find some silver kitchen spoons. The ones I have now are a matching set that I bought at a yard sale for 5 euros on rue Mouffetard. I would stop at my favorite tea shop, Nina’s, near Vendome. It’s very small, but the teas are amazing, and the shop is very elegant. Lunch would be a ham and cheese baguette (with butter) from Paul. I know, I know, Paul is a chain of sandwich shops, but their ham and cheese is perfect!! Dinner would be at Ma Bourgogne. It’s a small bistro on the corner in Place des Vosges. It always has been my favorite place. On a nice night you have to sit outside, and then you can walk over to a bar and have a drink in the Bastille. If I was in town for a few days, then I would have to add another restaurant, but more like Pierre Gagnaire. I have never been, and would love to go. Rachael
  13. Thank you for your question lion, A rubber spatula. I can’t cook without one. It makes so many jobs in the kitchen go faster, and cleaner. Scraping around the sides of a pot, getting every last bit of a product from your bowl or pot, or even using it to pass something through a chinois or tammi (as long as the food product is a bit thin or loose) Rachael
  14. Good evening ladi kai lemoni, I eat everything (at least once ), except figs. I found out that I am allergic to them. I was at Everest, and Thierry, the chef de cuisine, asked if I’d ever had a fresh fig. I said no, and was excited to try it. It was good, and almost instantly my mouth began to itch. I went home and all the unpleasant reactions began. I have tried to just handle the figs, wash them or cook them. That doesn’t work either, I break out into hives. There aren’t many foods I haven’t tried. I am lucky because Eric likes to try everything, and makes us try them as well. The CityZen team went to Japan 2 years ago to cook at the Mandarin Oriental Tokyo, and I tried a lot of interesting foods there like whale, and sea cucumber intestines (I do not recommend). There aren’t many foods that I know of that I haven’t tried, but that doesn’t mean I have tried everything. It’s one of the best parts about traveling; discovering new foods that you never knew existed. Rachael
  15. Thanks for another question Waitman, I really haven’t been too interested in the molecular gastronomy movement. I have dabbled a bit, as I think we all have, but I still prefer food I can sink my teeth into. I think it's great that it’s getting so much press right now, but if the power in the world goes off, I want to still be able to cook an amazing meal using just a wood-burning stove. I had my reasons for going to work at The French Laundry, and CityZen, but my reasons for staying have been because I'm inspired by the chefs thought processes, especially when it comes to food. I think if I wasn't, I wouldn’t have lasted very long at either place. It’s really important to find a restaurant producing food that inspires you. Remember, you will be there all day, everyday, until you leave. Rachael
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