Jeebus

Not a cookbook per se but a copy of culinary artistry never leaves my desk.

Wouldn't a butter tart without raisins just be a tarte au sucre?

I am curious then, if you change you menu weekly and your lunch menu monthly why can't you get past 4 items on your spring menu? Should the chef of a restaurant really be coming on here and asking these kind of questions? isn't this why your employers are paying you and not us? no offense intended, but perhaps you are in over your head?However when I think spring I think of Morels Asparagus Fiddleheads Fava beans Fresh peas radishes Lamb Ramps just to name a few. And the food should be light, as mentioned this is not braise, confit season. 1 dish on a menu perhaps but beyond that keep it light.

Just to make thing a little more fun we were sent a list of the wines they will be supplying us with. 4 reds and 2 sparkling one red and one white, not very balanced to build a menu around but whatever. Thanks for the help and suggestions guys/girls. I will post a write up with photos once we have done the event. Here is a listing of the wines Rochford, Macedon Ranges Pinot Noir, '03 Turners Crossing, Cab Sauv, '04 Turners Crossing, Shiraz, '04 Goulburn Terrace, Sparkling Marsane, '02 Sandhurst Ridge, Shiraz, '04 Innocent Bystander, Sparkling Shiraz Voigner, '0

I am a chef up in Toronto and we have been asked to host an Australian winemakers dinner at the restaurant. I must confess other than the very basics I am not very familiar with the native cuisine and was looking to see if anyone may be able to shed a little more light on the subject. Any info or webs sites would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance for any help Jonaton Lome

I would recommend the Intercontinental on Front street but I am biased.

Yeah it was $5 for the very suspect lunch, $3.50 I beleive for your jacket, apron etc every day and they still docked you a half hour lunch even if you had no time to actually stop and eat it. Micheal really was a gem wasn't he.

I am a chef from Toronto looking to possibly move out to the west coast in the next few months. I was wondering if anyone could point me in the direction of a couple of headhunting agencies that work specificaly on the west coast. Any help would be greatly appreciated and thanks in advance. Jonaton Lome

Along the same lines...does anyone here know of any high quality Canadian waters that are sold. Looking for 750-1L glass bottles preferably.

Avalon was an incredible restaurant that lost a lot of key staff and never recovered. Part of that shot at Mr.Kennedy probably has to do with a fine young cook now working at the wine bar and not for Chris.

I would tell to not go to the hot house cafe. Mass produced crap IMHO.

mine isn't anything gross just unhealthy. I love fries tossed in clarified butter and dipped in Bearnaise sauce.

Maybe it was an off night at Tru but the meals i had at the two (Perigee, tru) werent even in the same league.oops I quoted the wrong person.

Massimo is an excellent Italian chef, but having worked for him I remember no fresh pasta ever. Mind you I worked with him at Preggo so he may make it now.

I work at the Intercontinental hotel in Toronto. We had the food and wine show next door at the convention centre. www.azurerestaurant.ca

Micheal Smith stayed at my hotel this weekend as the food and wine show was next door. I got to cook for him 3 times.

I have always used a diamond steel on my globals and they have been doing good for 7 years now. I have never had a problem.

Eric I am glad you enjoyed yourselves. I am not quite sure what happened with the reservation though. It's good you got a chance to speak with Kevin, he is a very talented chef.

Should anyone have any interest in the above tasting, seats went on sale yesterday and there are only 8 left. Here is a link to this event http://www.azurerestaurant.ca/champagne_dinner.html

On this subject here is a Champagne tasting coming up about a month from now. We have Guillaume Deglise the Worldwide President of sales for Laurent-Perrier attending this event. I have included the menu with pairings as well as contact info should anyone have any interest. Tickets will be going very fast as there is only 20 seats available, as we are doing this as a live cooking demo with the Chef and Sommelier serving. Laurent-Perrier Dinner Azure restaurant Intercontinental hotel 225 Front St. W. 416 597-8142 Monday November 14th Oyster Shooter with Champagne, Cucumber Granite Laurent-Perrier Ultra Brut ~~~~~~~~~~ Cream of Walnut Soup, Cured Duck Breast, Poached Pear Laurent-Perrier Brut ~~~~~~~~~~ Seared Skate Wing, Cookstown Vegetables, Parsley Puree, Winter Truffle Laurent-Perrier Grand Siecle ~~~~~~~~~~ Roasted Magret of Duck, Dupuy Lentils Forest Mushrooms, Beetroot Reduction 1996 Laurent-Perrier Brut Millesime ~~~~~~~~~~ Sparkling Chamomile Tea Sorbet ~~~~~~~~~~ Macerated Strawberries, Buffalo Mozzarella, Aged Balsamic, Mint Syrup Laurent-Perrier Cuvee Rose Brut ~~~~~~~~~~ Migniardise $150 + tax and gratuities

your cooks should go and eat at Perigee. ← I would agree they should eat there. I have not yet, but have never heard anything but great things about the restaurant. I wasn't knocking the food, just a couple of small observations on the presentation.

Well if you started eating the dishes and had to reconstruct some of them then the presentation issues are understandable. Maybe I am a little anal about it but, the bluefin tuna plate is a complete mess, the foie gras plate looks like it slid all over the place when your server was bringing it to the table, the veal sweetbreads plate has smudges and a big greasy fingerprint on the edge of the plate, the squab breast has splatters all ove the bowl and the rim of the plate, the red "soup" is all up one side of the bowl, the plate with the goats milk cheese looks like it sat 5 minutes too long under a heat lamp, On dessert #1 is that really a paper napkin on the plate?, and #2 is just sloppy looking. Again maybe I may be a little anal about this but at a restaurant of this caliber the little things are what make a difference to me. I asure you my cooks would be remaking those plates

Some very nice looking food, but also a few dishes that are really terrible looking, and just generally very sloppy presentations.

I had a guest recently tell me she was allergic to curry. I tried to explain to her that it i not possible to be allergic to curry as it is a blend of several spices. No no she says curry is a power made from grinding curry leaves. now normally I would leave it a t that but if it is cumin in the curry she is allergic to and I use it somewhere in her menu she is still going to have a reaction. Also had a lady very seriously tell me she was allergic to soup...all of them

The recipe I use is 1 3/4 cups AP flour 9 egg yolks 1 tsp milk 2 tbsp olive oil I also do it by hand the old fashoned well way. I find food proscessor doughs way too tough, but know many chefs who swear by it.