Peter Liam, senior correspondent and critic for Wine & Spirits magazine, launched Champagneguide.net, an online guide to the wines and wine producers of the Champagne region in France.
The Web site features more than 100 Champagne houses and estates and tasting notes for more than 600 champagnes--non-vintage bruts up to expensive cuvees--on the market. Producers ranging from well-known brands to small estates are included. For those new to the language of champagne, the site offers a glossary of terms that includes familiar wine industry vocabulary and some words specific to champagne and champagne production.
The National Restaurant Association (NRA) announced Kristina Vänni as the winner of the NRA Show Hot Chef Grilling Challenge. Vänni is a contributing writer and community host for Better Homes and Gardens' Web sites betterrecipes.com and mixingbowl.com. In Vänni's winning video submitted on YouTube (shown below), she prepares maple-Dijon glazed grilled Arctic char with cucumber, fennel and radish salad, grilled bread cheese with cloudberry preserves and a lingonberry-cardamom martini. Vänni will receive a trip to upcoming NRA Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show, May 16 to 19 at McCormick Place in Chicago where she will demonstrate her recipe during the Culinary Scene showcase. Her demonstration is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 19.
This article was mentioned in People & Place (page 9) of the May 2009 issue of Chef Magazine.
The public has fully embraced chefs as celebrity figures. They eat it up--every morning news food demo, every cookbook signing, every cooking class. To say "image is everything" would be an understatement.
The foundation of that image--long after the stage lights are dimmed and the Sharpie markers are capped--is your restaurant's Web site. Intrigued potential customers are visiting your Web site to be further enticed to dine at your restaurant. So, what better way to wow them than with mouthwatering images of your signature dishes?
Here, Chef Magazine speaks with Comet on tips for working with a food photographer so that the images on your restaurant's Web site and other publicity materials can capture the essence of your cuisine--and capture some more customers, too.
Chef Magazine: When it comes to photographing food, how do you approach the subject, and what is your philosophy? Comet: I first think, I want to make something that people will look at and say, "I want to eat that. I want to be there." It's exciting. In this one photo, you're trying to convey this feeling of relaxing, family ... friends, delicious. It's a lot of emotion that's wrapped up into one photo. I think that I have a particular style typically that I do that's pretty simple and calm and refreshing. You want your photo to look like something that you can taste and feel and smell. It's a lot to wrap up into a shot. You can't taste it. You can't smell it. So you have to do it with lighting to bring out all the emotion.
Chef Magazine: Do you find that it's challenging to work with food because it can be changing? If it's something that's hot, as it cools, it may lose some of its natural color and its original shape. What sorts of considerations along those lines do you look at? Comet: Yes, it does change. And especially with digital, you can see from frame to frame that it's changing. A lot of times, we work with stand-in food to get everything right first. If it's changed so much, you have to start over with it. You have to replate the dish because the last thing you want it for it to look tired or old. That's not very appealing. But a lot of times, once you do all the preliminary [work], it is pretty stable. The thing that really makes it sing is, first off, the lighting. And also, right before we do our final shot, we're adding water and juices or sauces--something that really makes it appealing.
Chef Magazine: How can a restaurant benefit from working with a professional food photographer? Comet: Just like a chef, I think that a food photographer can take the food to another level. It's kind of like a shared vision. In the long run, it ends up saving time and money. A food photographer brings a certain set of expertise with lighting and angles. I have had a lot of restaurants or chefs do their own photos--and then after a while, they realize they're not that good. Everybody has a digital camera, but they're lacking. I mean, I can't cook like they can.
Chef Magazine: When a chef sits down with a food photographer for the first time, what points should they discuss? Comet: First, I have them tell me about their business and their philosophy, what their goal is. I have them show me some of the food and dishes. What kind of style do they like? Even if they describe it, sometimes I have them show me different printed pieces they like because people interpret words differently. Then you can get really down to the specifics. I ask them how they're going to use the photos. Something for the Web site, you'd want to keep it simple and light and airy, as opposed to if it is going into a special format in their menu. This might be the first meeting, but always I ask, if I have the job, to set up a "pre-pro"--pre-production--meeting before the shoot, so we can really go over each shot specifically.
Chef Magazine: What should a restaurant client do before first meeting with a food photographer? Comet: I think that they should do their homework. They should look at the photographer's portfolio and the Web site. I think they should ask the photographer, have they worked with a chef before, and do they work with a food stylist? They want to figure out if the food photographer has some styling skills and has a couple of tools in [his or her] tool box. It is a big savings not to work with a food stylist if the chef is capable. ... They should look at the list of clients that the photographer has worked for. If they can, talk to some of the clients to see what the experience was like. If they've never gone to a photo shoot before, ask to sit in on one or come by the studio for an hour. I actually do that a lot with clients because it's a good education for them. Have a pre-pro meeting, and get a precise estimate on the number of shots, the usage for the shots, etc.
Chef Magazine: What is a typical day like on a restaurant job site? Comet: First off, it depends on the restaurant. Some aren't open for lunch, so if you can go in and shoot all day, that's great. We can always go in and shoot from 9 to 11 [a.m.], take a break [for lunch service], and then go back to shoot at 2 [p.m.]. Sometimes, they have an extra banquet room we can shoot in. We might set up a studio-type setting and bang out a lot of the close-up food shots. Typically, I like to shoot with a larger format camera. If there are some restaurant shots or atmospheric shots or people working or some details they want me to grab, we do that with 35-millimeter [film], and it's much more casual. We might be using natural light or a mixture of natural and some strobe. I like to get in and spend the day there and really feel the rhythm of the restaurant.
Chef Magazine: What camera do you use? Comet: My main camera that I shoot close-ups of food with is a digital-back Phase One, on a 4-by-5 camera. The reason being, it gives me swings and tilts so you can throw stuff out of focus and have a lot of control.
Chef Magazine: Any closing remarks? Comet: It's a real special relationship between a food photographer and a chef. It's very different than working with a food stylist. It's sort of like a shared vision: You're really working as a team. It's his or her food, and the photographer is bringing that vision alive. It doesn't get any better than that.
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The National Restaurant Association will host a one-hour Webinar on Thursday, May 7, at 3 p.m. EDT, to discuss some common questions surrounding the H1N1 flu virus. The Webinar, developed in partnership with cleaning and food safety products and services provider Ecolab, will provide tips on how to prevent the spread of the virus among employees and restaurant guests and on how to properly educate employees and patrons about the possible risks of the virus.
The winners of the 2009 James Beard Foundation Awards, the nation's most prestigious recognition program honoring professionals in the food and beverage industries, were announced Monday night during a ceremony at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. Among the 38 categories, awards were presented for Restaurant and Chef, Book, Design and Graphics and special achievement. Below are the 2009 Restaurant and Chef winners. For a complete list of winners, visit www.jbfawards.com/winners.html.
chef Chase Wilbanks prepares the Lamb Cook-Off's winning dish in his ski gear
Wilbanks' recipe for Oven Roasted Colorado Lamb with Two Goat Cheese Gougere, Spring Pea Puree, Smoked Red Wine Sauce and Pickled Ramp Salad was chosen as the winner out of lamb dishes from 20 Vail chefs and restaurants who each had 80 pounds of lamb leg to work with.
Terra Bistro sous chef Adam Hand took second place with his Kingston Lamb Patties, and Sweet Basil chef Paul Anders finished third with his Slow-Roasted Leg of Lamb with Ricotta Cannoli and Smoked Paprika Chimichurri.
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The American Culinary Federation (ACF) Chef & Child Foundation and Clemson University have partnered to offer a series of monthly "Culinary Nutrition News" articles, to be posted on the first Monday of each month on ACF's Web site. The articles aim to bridge the nutrition gap for chefs by providing current research information.
Each month, experts will contribute articles on topics such as vegetarian foods, allergy awareness, fiber-rich foods, healthful cooking and downsizing portions and calories. The inaugural article, "Vegetarian-Friendly," is now available for download.
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As of this morning, there have been 286 confirmed cases and one death related to influenza A/H1N1 (formerly known as "swine flu") in the United States. None of these cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control's (CDC) H1N1 FAQs Web site, had anything to do with consuming pork products: "H1N1 viruses are not spread by food. You cannot get this new H1N1 virus from eating pork or pork products. Eating properly handled and cooked pork products is safe."
An April 30 Crain's New York Business article reported that several independent New York City restaurants have noticed a slight drop in patrons ordering pork. To combat it, restaurant owners are training staff to field questions relating to the H1N1 flu and eating pork. The situation is also providing the opportunity to discuss sustainable husbandry practices.
"My hopeful assumption is that people know how we source our animals," said Andrew Tarlow, co-owner of sustainably focused Marlow & Sons in Brooklyn, in the Crain's New York Business article. "People should be asking, 'How did this happen?'"
On May 1, in an interview for Chicago Public Radio's news magazine program "Eight-Forty-Eight," chef/partner Bruce Sherman of North Pond, a champion of seasonal and small-farm products, said, "When you force tens of hundreds of animals in a small space, and they’re crawling over each other or they’re on concrete beds, foraging through their own waste, sitting in it and sleeping in it, it can’t help but affect the sanitation and health of the pig and the community around it.
"I think ultimately, for us as cooks, it’s because the [sustainably raised] product tastes better. It tastes better because the animals are able to lead a more natural existence … so it develops more flavor, it’s got more characteristics from what it eats and where it eats and how it eats than something that is stuck inside a warehouse or a pen," Sherman continued.
While independent restaurants have not reported decreased traffic, some restaurant chains are experiencing a drop in same-store sales as customers and their families avoid busy public places, according to a May 1 CNN Money article.
Basic flu prevention tips. Because influenza is mainly spread person-to-person through the coughing or sneezing of infected people, the CDC recommends the following:
Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hands cleaners are also effective.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.
Stay home if you get sick to limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.
Maintain a healthy work environment. Ensure adequate air circulation, and post tips on how to stop the spread of germs. The CDC's Web site offers basic facts on the H1N1/swine flu and general tips on avoiding the flu. Promote hand and respiratory hygiene for your employees, and ensure easy availability of alcohol-based hand sanitizers.
Communicate openly and proactively with your employees. Remind employees that following good hygiene and sanitation practices in the restaurant and staying home when they are ill can help prevent transmission of many illnesses, not just influenza. The NRA offers guidance on communicating with your employees.
Be informed about government and industry pandemic preparedness activities and plans. Preparation is key to protecting customers, staff and your business. In the case that an outbreak would ever become a pandemic situation, use information provided to you by the NRA and other industry resources, be familiar with your state and local pandemic plans, and maintain contact with the appropriate officials. Monitor news and developments coming from the federal government on pandemic preparedness through sources such as PandemicFlu.gov and the CDC's swine flu resource. PandemicFlu.gov has a section to help businesses prepare for a pandemic.
Chef's Stirrings is the official blog of Chef Magazine, the industry publication for restaurant and foodservice professionals. The blog offers culinary news and online exclusives from the editors ofChef.
Peter Liam, senior correspondent and critic for Wine & Spirits magazine, launched Champagneguide.net, an online guide to the wines and wine producers of the Champagne region in France.
