How international was your day?

I am sitting in front of the computer, with a cup of organic chai tea I had an epiphany.  Before I get into it, I am going to Tarantino this blog and go back to the beginning and bring you back to my cup of tea.

I wake up, and I am not a breakfast person by any means, well in the traditional (American) sense that is.  My day does start with a big cup of Joe.  Whilst sipping away I begin to contemplate the first meal of the day.  I choose to go with some Braunschweiger, which is a type of liverwurst or pork liver sausage, brown bread, and an egg "over hard"...very northern European.  A second cup of coffee and my morning is complete.  Today, breakfast was best enjoyed outside in the shade, work at this point could be debatable.

I went through the motions, and before I knew it, my work life began.  I fit the top button of my coat in its place and round the corner to the kitchen.  As I walk down the line, my right hand is  habitually turning on equipment as I am moving and looking forward, drawn towards what awaits me. My "Cantonese Grandmother," our 17 year veteran in the kitchen, has prepared lunch and for the smart employees who come in early for their shift get to capitalize on Chinese, Cantonese, and Vietnamese fair.  Today, beef chow fan or fried riced and Chinese tea is what is offered.  She dishes me up a bowl with all my favorite fixings; shrimp paste, a dash of soy sauce, and Chinese ketchup. Top it off with some fresh tomatoes, give it a good mix and we can just call this "first lunch."  I grab a coffee cup, pour a glass of tea, and I am now ready for work.

As the day progresses, I am at my station working on some prep before service, keeping in mind all the things that need to be done for Thanksgiving...going to be a busy day so tons of prep.  Trying to stay focused, my nose can not help the smell of curry in the air.  I peer over my shoulder and I notice the a.m. sous leaning inside the tilt skillet. Ok...I'll bite, let's see what he is up to.  He got some goat ordered and started braising it when he arrived this morning so he could make his favorite dish his wife makes, "curry goat." A popular dish in Trinidad, where she is from, I am thankful that Conor learned the ins and outs of this dish so he could share it with us at work.  Staying true to the dish, on his way into work he picked up some roti , an unleavened flat bread that is traditionally served with this dish.  Questions fly around the kitchen and it was not long until we got the green light to dig in.  Conor was pulling meat off the bone as cook were piling it on a torn piece of roti.  I take my ration and head for my station.  With all of my mise en place at my disposal, I garnish my "second lunch," with diced raw onion, fresh cilantro, and yes, Chinese ketchup.  Crossing cultures I know but the flavors worked really...really...well.  Now I say "second lunch," because I ended up eating three more, only to stop there because we are sitting down for "family meal," in a hour.

"Family meal," a term we use for the meal we serve our employees.  Not limited to the kitchen and wait staff, we put out a buffet for all the employees...everyday.  A protein (usually two varieties,) vegetables, a starch, a salad buffet, and usually a dessert of some sort from the bake shop.  There is something to say about a staff that sits down to eat together, and for some reason I am always in "ah," when I see all the white coats in one room.  The kitchen usually sit at a big round table, taking jabs at each other,  and critiquing each others lunch decisions.   This event takes place at 5:30 for the kitchen, making this either a way late lunch or a early dinner.  With two lunches down, I sit with a nice Italian espresso and watch the others eat their curry goat.  Time for service.

The Chef has done a little prep and now has a project for me.  He has put together the dough and fillings for knish, a popular Yiddish savory pastry.  He tells me that he is looking for an appetizer size and needs a yield count for the dough, the beef filling, and the potato filling.  Playing around with shapes, sizes, and portions I slowly accumulate my next course.  During service, it is an expectation for all the cooks to taste the food before going out.  Equipped with a plethora of tasting spoons, by the end of service I have consumed enough food not desire a meal.  I do however find myself making a taco (house made shells of course,) with pork carnitas and tomatillo salsa.

Dessert is a different story, after tasting savory all night, something sweet to cut through all of that is sometimes just a necessity.  My options...English pudding cake or a caramel cheese cake with cashew turtles.  Oven is off so English pudding is out of the question, (and their is no anglaise hanging out or that oven would be on) so I went for just a bite of the cheese cake and a little to-go box of the turtles.

On my way home, I pick up my favorite beer from Holland, crack one open at the door, and start to reflect.  Through the motions again, I finally end up in front of the computer with a nice cup of organic chai

The stipulations:  Authentic, is nothing your going to find down the "international isle," of your mega mart, so unless it is a beer or wine, we do not want to hear about what you bought at Publix.  Now if you go to a speciality market, that is a different story.  Remember, traditional is not a product, frozen in Mexico, flown to the United States, and labeled Asian.  That in mind, lets hear it, what did you eat today?  If you have any pictures, send them to us via facebook and we will post them for all.  

        
          

Steps to eating a Vegan Dog in Orlando

Step one: Make your way downtown. If you were to find yourself standing between I-Bar and BBQ Bar and happened to look across the street.  You would find, tucked between two buildings, a hot dog stand.  Asking the crowds pulling away from the stand, we found that the vegan dog stop is an iconic Orlando staple.
Step Two: You are not about to eat a hot dog, so get the idea out of your head.  Frank orders up two Buddha dogs with all the works.  Soft bun, vegan dog, vegan chili, vegan curry sauce, and "the condiment bar is behind you," he says.  Which is where you would find the familiars; ketchup, mustard's, and whatnot.  I believe that Buddha would have opted for the sriracha, so I topped mine as such.  Ok, eating your dog, first tip...take advantage of the foil you are given (if your going for the works.) Remember, your not eating a hot dog.  The Buddha dog is all one texture, with the dog being slightly firmer then the bun, but the taste is a perfect expression on how you should end your night after a few beers from one of the bars on Orange. 
Step Three: Do as the others do.  Sit on the curb, enjoy your new found way to enlightenment, and watch the people pass.

For us, it was two bites, a recommendation to the people standing around, and we were off to our next stop.    

Kimchi and Chong

Brand new to the UCF, Oviedo area, located at 7 Alafaya Woods Blvd, you will find perched right up on the road is "Kimchi," Korean Restaurant.  I have been waiting for this place to open the day they hung their sign on the building, and my patience has been greatly rewarded.  First opportunity that arose since the opening of their doors, I jumped!  Walking up to the door, a sign (in Korean) posted on the door was the first promising sign that, and here is what is important, the Koreans dine here.  This is key for authenticity!  I take note of the English translation that unfortunately they are closed on Tuesday, a quick glance at the phone....its Monday, I am good.  I step in and I immediately know that I will be enjoying myself here for two reasons. First, a table of smiling faces in front of me, jam packed with food, (so i know why they are happy.) Second, while escorted to the table, a quick look over my right shoulder I see a bar and a visual display of the beer selection, now I am happy.  Speaking of happy, I have yet to meet a service staff member as happy as ours.  "Come honey, sit down, we feed you!"  "Thank you, whats your name?"  "Honey, my name is Chong, you know like Cheech and Chong?"  Chong was amazing, she did every thing to ensure a good time there.  From answering the laundry list of questions, to showing me how to eat my food...more on that later.

Hite! Crisp, clean, and super refreshing beer.  Made from the finest water of Korea I gathered and the beer is pasteurized without heat using a ceramic filtering method (interesting.)  Really easy to drink and guess what? Goes great with Korean food!

Also interesting, was this sanitized spoon.  I can not tell you how much time I spend looking over utensils when dining out.  It is crazy how many dirty dishes one would encounter eating out.  Not here, this spoon was clean, sanitized, and I had the little paper to prove it.  Speaking of clean I cannot express how clean this restaurant is, white glove clean, surgical room clean, clean clean...I like.

I was assured that the pork dumplings were made "in house" so that was first thing ordered from the kitchen.  See the dipping sauce?  Order it by the gallon! Sweet, salty, and just the right amount of Korean red pepper to make those dumplings shine.  After further investigation, I am convinced, the dumplings are hand made, I could eat these all day long, and I just might go back, sit at the bar and do just that.

A tad bit familiar with Korean food, I do know that I love a really good Seafood Pancake, and this is by far the best one that I have had.  This cake is a festival of textures.  Crunchy and crisp at its exterior, then you move to the individual textures of the seafood, the squid being the most prevalent, and then when you get to the bottom the pan"cake" almost has a dumpling texture at the bottom.  Hard to explain but its fantastic!  What makes this cake for me though is the charred scallions you find in every bite.  It brings such a terrific smokiness to the pancake that is unmatched.  A meal within itself or in this case a perfect appetizer for two.

We headed up during lunch service, and their lunch menu is all under $8, and a steal for the amount of food that you get. This one was the Pork Bulgogi at $7, similar to a bento box, offered (from left to right) Fried tofu accompanied with a seaweed salad.  The pork, marinated and thinly sliced with vegetables.  Korean kimchi, fried pork dumplings and rice.  The value, unmatchable, the taste of everything, impressionable, and the the next course...still to come.

 Also on the lunch menu and also totaling in at $7 was the Chicken Donburi.  (means covered chicken, Chong informed me)  What she didn't tell me is that it was covered in egg and love.  Strips of nori lend depth to the dish and the vegetables are a must to tie it all together with the rice.  Now at the bottom of this bowl, totally unbenounced to me, there awaits this flavorful broth.  I was picking away at my dish, layer by layer when Chong catches me performing poorly. She comes over. 

"No! No! Honey, like this," grabs my spoon and incorporates it all together for me, makes a perfect bit on the spoon and even offered to feed it to me.  Now that is service!  She was right, the dish instantly become richer, sweeter, and more balanced.  As for the chicken, it was like schnitzel brought to the Korean level.  Moist, tender, and, succulent.  They offer the same dish in pork and beef varieties so what ever mood your in for protein, the rest is going to tie together... guaranteed.

Kimchi is located near my home turf so I plan on making this a regular stop.  I already have my eyes on a bulgogi beef burger they have on the menu, and I must stop in for dinner one night.  If you have no idea how the Koreans do dinner, then your in for a treat my friends, and that is another blog.  For now check it out, I will be the one sitting at the bar with a stack of empty plates and beer bottles for my (oh so much needed) Korean dumpling and beer rain day.  Chong...I will see you soon!

If your an avid reader of the LBC, you know that I am a sucker for after diner mints or "free candies," (that one was for you Brian,) and the one they gave us at Kimchi can be described as a bowl of "Pop's" (milk, sugar, cereal) all in one hard candy. Now that...is an after dinner mint!

Its times like these...

"Chestnuts roasting in the fire"....better yet, barley in a kettle getting ready to be transformed into a delicious malted seasonal brew. Ah, yes folks fall is here, and with it come the many different flavored micro-brews, seasonal spiced ciders, coquitos, ponches, sangrias and mulled wines. I'd really like to know what everyone is drinking around this time of the year. Send us any names of your favorite beer, favorite wine, or maybe even favorite sangria, I'm curious to see what you guys are enjoying out there.

Here is this weeks finds from me to you:
1-Ephemere, Unibroue, Canada. ( Green apple flavored ale made with real apple and curacao peels). Super light, easy drinking beer, its almost cider-like.

2-India Pale Ale, from the good guys at Lagunitas Brewing Company (Petaluma, California) Its what you would normally expect from an IPA without the extra bitterness. I would say its the easiest drinking/smoothest IPA I've tasted, hoppy in a good way.

3-Magic Hat's #9 "Not quite pale ale" (Burlington, Vermont). Perfect for the person who doesn't want the full flavor of a real pale ale. Its medium bodied, lightly hopped, without the strong, bitter residual aftertaste.

4-Anchor Steam barley malt beer (San Francisco, California). What can I say about this one right here? I'm pretty sure everyone in my kitchen is a fan of this one. Its crisp, well-balanced, medium bodied, lots of molasses/roasted malted barley flavor. Perfect for any excuse you want to find for drinking a good tasting beer.

5-Rye Pale Ale, Terrapin Beer Co (Athens, Georgia) "this one's for you Johnny M". Its a pale ale with a slight more complex flavor. Earthy aroma, lots of hops. Somehow, I can imagine a good loaf of bread could me made with this ale and it wouldn't be quite bad at all. (When you come to pick up your food truck from Orlando, we can have many-o-these brother cholo).

6- Last, but not least we have Hevelius from The Kraper brewery in Poland (established in 1690). Named after a famed astronomer/brewmaster (Jan Hevelius), this strong pale lager/pilsner european style beer will definitely throw you back a bit. Definitely not for the frail coors light/bud light drinker. It has so much body, hops, clove, bitterness, old world taste ( all good things I was already expecting from a beer like this one). I don't really want to spoil it for you guys who might actually go and get this one, and I'll even tell you its on sale at your local whole food to further pressure you into trying it. Some ideas that came to mind were either using it in a really good braising application, or a really good arroz con pollo.

If you do actually go and try one of these, give us you input and let us know what you think, or maybe some suggestions that we can review or talk about on the blog.

Enjoy the holidays and be safe out there.

Arepas at "El Pelao", Semoran and Curry Ford Rd. (Morcilla, chicken, braised beef, pork, cheese, stuffed inside a cripsy corn cake) Perfect 12am snack...

The Lunchbox Crew is hittin up the streets of Semoran Blvd to see what treats are out there...

Kudos!!!

Congratulations to Andreas Proisl for passing his Certified Executive Pastry Chef (CEPC), and Tyler Field for passing his Certified Executive Chef (CEC)exam with the highest score, not an easy task by far.

The 3 Months of Fall

With Fall officially starting September 22nd, and the Florida weather still on the warm side.  I truly start the seeing signs of fall beginning in October.

As Frank mentioned in a previous blog, the first thing that comes to mind when I see the first sign of changing colors and cooler temperatures is the vegetation of the gourd-like squash of the genus Cucurbita and the family Cucurbitaceae (which also includes gourds.)  So I think he would agree to dedicate this month, "The month of the Gourds."  Now we missed this month entirely, and I would like to apologize to the viewers out there and the supporters of this blog.  I have to thank Frank for getting out a blog about a shared passion in the beginning flavors of the Fall months just in time.

November is here and Thanksgiving is around the corner.  I feel that it is only fair to dedicate this month to the fowl.  Chicken, quail, game birds, ducks, geese, and yes of course the turkey.  All beautiful in their own right and a popular answer to many chefs and cooks alike to the allusive question, "What would you eat for your last meal?" or "If you were to be stranded on an island, what animal or ingredient would you bring?" To wrap up this month, we will be hitting the streets of Orlando, looking for the best fowl preparation in the time given, and report back to you. Now Thanksgiving is an Epic meal and we will be expecting photos of yours. Send us your photos via Facebook and we will post the best ones.  (Not a friend yet you say? Just send us a friend request...its that easy.)

The December month wraps up the fall season saying goodbye just before Christmas.  Since I excluded the 8 days in September, I am tagging them onto the end of December making Winter December 31.  Making this month the "Month of the Swine," because I cannot think of a better animal that is appropriate in every season but particularly shinning in the fall.  A true head to tail season for the pig, and that's just what we will be doing in December.  We are going to start at the head and make our way to the tail in the month of December letting you know where we stopped along the way.  Looking forward to this one personally, and if we are lucky I might be able to snap a picture of Frank loosing his meal eating some of the "undesirables."

The LBC is back on the move, so stay tuned, again sorry for the absence, and thanks for all the support!

Underground Restaurants Take Culinary Education to the Extreme - Culinary Ed

Underground Restaurants Take Culinary Education to the Extreme - Culinary Ed

Interesting way to experiment with creativity and getting your name out there..