Fabulously Fierce Friends on Friday, A New Series on CQ

To a certain degree, your friends define who you are.  You identify with them and admire them for their best traits and often take on the characteristics that you admire in them.  This series will profile some of the amazing people that I have met over my years in music and the food service industry.  I'd like to share with you how fantastic they are. Starting on the first Friday in February, I will publish a different Fabulously Fierce Friend's answers to a standardized list of questions along with a little of their backgrounds.  I think you will enjoy reading their responses as much as I have, and maybe even learn a little something along the way too.


Here are the questions and my answers:

1. Who are your role models - food related or otherwise?

Julia Child, of course.  Alton Brown.  My mother and father.  Dan, my patient partner.  Mark Ostoich, my oboe dad.

2. What is your drink of choice?

bubbles or brown liquor.

3. What is your favorite cookbook or other food related book?

Larousse Gastronomique, Great Wine Made Simple by Andrea Immer, Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child.

4. What was your most memorable meal and why?

so many - sushi in Japan at the neighborhood dive, graduation dinner with family at Commander's Palace in NOLA, March in NYC with Mistress Botrytis, Meritage with Elsa, Alinea with Dan, First chef's journey at 30 Gloucester Street L'Espalier, The Modern with the crew, Campagne in Seattle, Birthday dinner cooked by Chef Alex at The Majestic, I could go on and on...


5. What is your favorite kitchen gadget or tool?

Immersion blender, my Henkel chef's knife, my hands.

6. If you had to make dinner with ingredients at your home right now, what would you make?

pasta with tomato sauce with a side of garlic bread. this sounds like a blog entry in the making...

7. What kind of music do you like to listen to while you cook?

all kinds - classical, jazz, standards, opera, rock, pop, alternative, even country sometimes.  depends on my mood.


8. What is your philosophy on cooking and eating?

use local fresh ingredients.  keep it simple.  the key to a great meal is patience.

9. Are there any foods you can not stand to eat?

not a fan of raw bivalves - oysters, cherrystones, littlenecks, etc.


10. If you could use any super power in the kitchen, what would it be and why?

time travel - it would be great to be able to go back and correct mistakes like adding too much salt or overcooking something.


Tune in to CQ every Friday to see who the next Fabulously Fierce Friend will be.