# 30 in Saveur Magazine's 100 for 2010!

http://www.saveur.com/article/Kitchen/Tuna-Melt-1000079473

joystocke @ 7:14 am

by Warren Bobrow

Not a real Tuna Melt. It is the dreaded HOT TUNA! Photo: Warren Bobrow

An abridged history of the Tuna Melt:

Charleston, South Carolina. About 1965. Woolworth’s lunch counter on King Street. The air is thick with the smell of tea being brewed for the large glass containers that sit atop ceramic dispensers. Inside the containers are chunks of rough-cut ice, fresh mint and golden brown-colored tea.

One container says simply, Sweet. As quickly as a glass is filled, it is emptied by thirsty passers-by. All of King Street finds their way in for a cup. Sweet Tea is the most popular drink on a day like today.

It’s July and hamburgers are sizzling away on the sleek metal of the grill. The sun seems to rise low in the sky earlier and set later, extending the heat and mud-scented humidity from the tidal confluence of Ashley and Cooper Rivers.

Behind the counter, the ladies work at their prescribed tasks. Send a Tuna on White over there, cup of Tomato Soup to the end of the counter! Macaroni and Cheese with a Fish Cake? Side of Slaw!

Chef Bo is greeted; orders given. “Sweet tea! I‘ll have a grilled cheese sandwich, white bread with a smear of mayo and slices of American cheese, “just as you like it.” Atop the griddle on a shelf, a bowl of freshly made tuna salad sits on the edge… and, as if guided by a hidden hand, the contents tip over, falling on the grilled cheese sandwich.

Voila! The Tuna Melt is born!

About the same time as the tuna salad falls onto the grill, Bo notices it bubbling away along with his open-faced grilled cheese. Some of the tuna has coated the top. The smell is familiar to him. The metallic tang of nearby sweet southern ocean air, the syrupy caramelized smell of mayo combining and dripping on celery and onion sinking into the butter and mayo-coated white bread. And on top, becoming crisp and sealing in all the flavors… that errant dollop of tuna!

One of the gals from behind the counter offers to make him another one, ’cause he might not want to eat the mistake!”

Tucking in-carefully at first, then with fervor – time and history make way for a new sandwich, a new invention. Pursing his lips and sipping the sweet tea Bo has no idea that he has invented the Tuna Melt.

Soon, thereafter, the Tuna Melt became a favorite at the Woolworth’s lunch counter on King Street in Charleston, South Carolina. It was almost always served with a glass of sweet Iced Tea and a side of Lay’s potato chips.

http://www.saveur.com/article/Kitchen/The-2010-SAVEUR-100-List

Wild River Review contributing editor, Warren Bobrow grew up on a farm in Morristown, NJ. A graduate of Emerson College with a degree in Film, he spent his senior year as a research assistant in visual thinking at CAVS / MIT. He worked for many years in the corporate world.His column on food, wine and life, Wild Table appears daily in the online magazine, Wild River Review. In addition to Wild River Review, Warren writes for NJMYWay.com, NJ Life Magazine, NJ Monthly and SLOWFOODNNJ.org. He has upcoming work in Edible Jersey Magazine on the topic of Organic and Biodynamic wine and upcoming submissions for the Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America. Ed., 2. Warren is featured in Saveur Magazine’s 2010-100 best list. #30. February brings an article to NJ Savvy Living. Please follow his moving about and drinkin’ ’round on Twitter @WarrenBobrow1 or on Plaxo.

Trust your instincts and cook with passion!

You can support Warren’s work on Wild River Review, and his column, Wild Table by making a donation: Wild River Review, PO Box 53, Stockton, NJ 08559. Wild River Review is an international website and 501c3 non-profit organization so your donation may be tax deductible.
Please put Wild Bite in the subject line. Thank you!

Blue Hill/Stone Barns: Time Exists in Harmony with Nature

I might have been near Normandy in France the way the road opened in front of me with those stone barns set off the lane in the background. Several baby lambs ran beside my car and older sheep chewing calmly dotted the fields. It seemed everything on this farm worked in a specific meter. Each person I met was charged with a task of some kind, which they performed with a purpose, yet a smile at every turn was shared immediately and with meaning. It was a simple lesson in customer awareness, which enriched the scene.

Stone Barns, restored and in a sense re-created as they were 100 years prior in another time…. the drive through leafy forest north of here about an about an hour or a bit more, winding my way off the usual superhighway 287 route…the well beaten path of (old route) 9w through exclusive Alpine, NJ and across the Tappan Zee bridge from Morristown to Pocantico Hills.

The founder of Standard Oil built this living enterprise at one time with no cares as to how expensive or how to skimp on materials-this place for built to endure for centuries… now it is wistfully and lovingly recreated by Chef Dan Barber and team; who to my great delight was tromping across… (With several producers and video cameras in tow) a 50 or so acre-rolling field dotted with the mobile cages of the free ranging chickens. I happened to be walking the estate in the gathering mist and came upon a very animated but soft-spoken man, with time to spend teaching his craft to others… and being videotaped at the same time for some television event in the future. It was completely unscripted and he spoke using his hands for emphasis. He was classically dressed as a gentleman chef/farmer in crisply starched chef whites, white apron and euro-clogs.

I had transcended the decades and was standing about 50 yards away-not hearing his words-only seeing him point softly, calmly, in a gentle fashion at the food raised all around me. Cows patiently waited-sheep ate-goats burrowed and pigs slept the day away. Chickens slept.

Meanwhile, nearby…..

The on site abattoir takes care of the nasty business of slaughtering- but this place, known for the “farm to table” approach to the craft of food-is disguised by few windows and few doors. You cannot see what goes on within, but I cannot imagine a fresher approach to dining.

Surrounding the abattoir, free ranging bird pens were filled with ancient varieties of edible birds, geese, turkey, chickens and ducks- which existed on grasses, and vegetarian grains almost hand fed by a swarm of young, eager farm workers… surrounded by pure soil and a constant variety of free-ranging insects who wander into the cages-then are hungrily devoured by the hungry, waiting birds. This variety shown above seems to have few feathers.. I imagined an "innner zip tab" engineered by ancestors long departed into the breasts for easy removal of all feathers. Chef Barber was pointing out to some young Berkshire Pigs who were napping-blissfully unaware of the restaurant “Blue Hill Stone Barns” just beyond a quiet knoll surrounded by a small pond.

They seemed to be smiling-perhaps they dreamt of warm days in the future there on this sustainable farm, their home and not of the sum of their parts which will grace someone’s farmers feast dinner later in the season?

I continued down the road and came upon the greenhouses. Over 1/2 acre under cover with roof panels which open with the time of day.

Tonight’s salad at Blue Hill was still in the ground.

Several female college students were snacking on a salad of Mache, chervil and faro grains with goat cheese made fresh daily from the farm. A young commis cook from the restaurant was charming them with some freshly picked greens, quickly prepared and served. I wanted to photograph them, but didn’t want to disturb their sense of discovery… The fog took over and I continued back to the front door of Blue Hill. But it was locked!

To my chagrin- Blue Hill/Stone Barns are closed at Lunch, unless it is a Sunday, but this was during the week… So-I enjoyed a visit to their well-appointed cafe. It reminded me a rurally set Chez Panisse. Friendly, smiling college aged girls and guys worked the steaming, spotless espresso machine. The foods were all self-serve, Tuna in water from Italy with chervil served on whole grains with a sprinkling of garden greens, a Frittata of local ramps and farm-made goat cheese-Sweets from classic breakfast treats to more succinct, yet humorous granola made on the farm with local dried berries and nuts, fresh yoghurt, milk from local farms and farm-made goat cheese filled the refrigerator cases-carefully chosen juices and seltzers-strawberry milk, chocolate milk and grand cups of steaming lattes…
… I helped myself to a lovely egg salad sandwich-composed of the day’s fresh eggs from the farm, capers, a simple garlic mayonnaise and then gently spooned over a warm slice of open faced chibatta bread from the estate’s bakery. Although a fine mist flew in my eyes-the energy of the place warmed me deeply. I enjoyed a tall glass of Ronnybrook Farms Chocolate Milk and photographed my lunch as it sat on the long wooden tables in my mind’s eye.

There were preserves to be sampled, made freshly on the farm. I chose an Apricot Jam and a Quince Preserve. Quince is meant to be cooked with, baked into a cheesecake of goat cheese and flaky crust. Not a sweet, but a savory.

The apricot jam made me think of iced summer wines from the Basque region of Spain, the softest bubbly nose…the flavors of stone fruits, some of those roasted apricots; marcona almonds coated in sea salt and drenched in fine olive oil…. the terroir from the soil. Deep in the earth-powerful salty flavors from the fogs, which hang over the ancient vineyards, fresh anchovies caught minutes before and then grilled over hardwood and sherry wine vinegar. Olives freshly crushed until they are a soft paste with garlic and anchovy more olive oil, grey salt and rosemary from the tree over there…. served with good charred country bread.

Creativity is easy to find when surrounded by deliberate provisions.

Lunch was a feeling of contentment. All that was missing was that plate of freshly grilled Anchovies right out of the sea and a glass of Spanish Txomin from the Basque Country to wash it all down.

Paul Bocuse once said-serve great bread and everything is possible.

Alphabeet Soup: Ukrainian style Borscht

Alphabeet Soup: Ukrainian style Borscht

Billy Reid (From Wild Culture)

October 22, 2009

Wild Culture

Filed under: Uncategorized — Tags: Bacon, Bespoke Clothing, Billy Reid, Bond Street, Bourbon, Drinkin' and Dronin', Kentucky, Live Music, Mint, NYC, Old Bourbon, Oxford American Magzine, Root, South Carolina, Southern Foodways Alliance, warren bobrow, wild river review, Wild Table, www.wildriverreview.com — jstocke @ 8:51 am

A Bucket o'PBR's at Billy Reid. Photo: Warren Bobrow

1-Year Anniversary of Billy Reid

Has it been a year? My discovery of Billy Reid has given me a new way of dressing, in keeping with the spirit of my “look” over the years. From the moment I walked into the shop on Bond Street in New York City, I felt something familiar. My wife and I shopped in the neighborhood and we stumbled in. There was an article in the New York Times waxing poetic about bespoke Southern Clothing and I am constantly intrigued to find that Kentucky bourbon and hand sewn bespoke clothing makes for a good conversation. Perhaps it is the casual elegance of the clothing. Maybe the music playing puts me in a good place. Then there is the sales help. I’ve always been spoken with, not spoken at. This is a good Zen exercise on manners if there is anything that a person can learn about great service.

Then there is the Bourbon. Great Kentucky bourbon can be offered to you if you know the secret code. There is a lesson to be learned regarding a glass of brown. That lesson is the art of listening for the queue. The secret code is somewhere between the actual word meaning, “yes, I’d enjoy a glass”… and that knowing smile…one that comes with a steady hand and quick wit. This is the Southern way of thinking. Offer a glass and reap the rewards. A new friendship is born!

Billy Reid-Photo: Warren Bobrow

You don’t know what I’m talking about? Then Billy Reid is not the store for you. With their 1-Year Anniversary on my mind, having the chance to enjoy a brown cocktail seems very friendly. Too bad the last few nights freezing weather killed off most of the mint. I’ll bet in a few days of warm weather, some sweet sprouts will pop up and a fine mint and bourbon cocktail will be offered up. If not, there is always Fee Brothers Mint Bitters- used only in very small drops!

Southern Gentility/Billy Reid Photo: Warren Bobrow

Billy Reid’s clothing embodies a deeply Southern sensibility. Inside every person who wears this clothing there exists a good old boy (or gal) who is “fixin’ to get some barbeque” from a restaurant like Skeets in Darlington, SC. This is pit style meat. Cooked low and slow. I once drove all the way from Charleston for Barbeque at Skeets. This was before Hugo. When I called asking for directions- the kind person on the phone said: “When you smell Hog, you’re almost there.” That in itself is the metaphor for good cookin’ and fine eatin’. So in the spirit of the 1st anniversary of Billy Reid’s store on Bond Street in NYC, grab yourself a tall-boy PBR or a short glass of Brown and drink in the smell of Pit Barbeque, which just may be on the menu tonight.

You need the right music to get all y’all’s in the mood. A bit of Vassar Clements is in order:

Magnolia Springfest, Live Oak, Florida 03/24/00 www.archive.org

Wild River Review contributing editor, Warren Bobrow grew up on a farm in Morristown, NJ. A graduate of Emerson College with a degree in Film, he spent his senior year as a research assistant in visual thinking at The Center for Advanced Visual Studies at MIT. He worked for many years in the corporate world.

His column, Wild Snack, appears every Wednesday on WRR@Large. His daily eMag; Wild Table is now available. In addition to Wild River Review, Warren writes for NJMYWay.com and SLOWFOODNNJ.org. He has upcoming work in Edible Jersey Magazine on the topic of Organic and Biodynamic Wine and upcoming submissions for the Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America. Ed., 2. February brings an article to NJ Savvy Living. Please follow his moving about and drinkin’ ’round on Twitter @ jockeyhollow.

Trust your instincts and cook with passion!

You can support Warren’s work on Wild River Review, and his column, Wild Table by making a donation: Wild River Review, PO Box 53, Stockton, NJ 08559. Wild River Review is an international website and 501c3 non-profit organization so your donation may be tax deductible.
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A Perfect-Ending of Summer!

A Toute Heure is located not in Martha’s Vineyard, or Boston or even New York City… But, if you ever find yourself just off the Garden State Parkway in Cranford, New Jersey and locavore is how you eat, then you must find your way to one of the best restaurants in New Jersey, if not in the entire Tri-State area. (New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.)

Walking up the path to A Toute Heure, is like stepping into a farmhouse located somewhere in the Hudson River Valley of New York, without the farm tractors parked outside.

Local to the restaurant is a postage stamp farm called Cherry Lane-mere blocks away-nurturing perfect little heirloom tomatoes that glow on the plate with an inner energy. The mention of the Cherry Lane farm had originally piqued my interest. Where was the Cherry Lane Farm? Did I know that it was “just around the corner?” You cannot get any fresher than this!

A black board prominently displayed on the wall tells all you need to know about who is supplying what ingredient to the restaurant. Fresh cheeses are listed alongside the farm names. All the varied locavore ingredients right down to the eggs are given a place on the wall. The list changes daily depending on what is fresh.

Local foods complete the scene in this change-the-entire-menu-weekly, James Beard Society-nominated restaurant. But that kind of award doesn’t make the scene. What makes the scene is the abundant energy and pulse-the smiles from the staff-the smell of the open kitchen as the staff prepares each plate. The kitchen just radiates good feeling… you can taste the energy in anticipation of your supper.

A Toute Heure is a BYOB. I brought a peach pit and citrus-tinged Sybille Kuntz Trocken Riesling in a 1/2 sized bottle for our appetizers and a really special bottle of a single vineyard, Pax Syrah from 2004-which has rested in my cellar until I opened it about 9 hours prior to dinner. The tap water doesn’t taste like chlorine that is a nice complement to the meal, one I cannot say for Morristown, New Jersey, where I live and where the tap water reeks of it, making for difficult drinking and eating.

We were presented with an Amuse Bouche of Hush Puppies that sent me right back down to Charleston, South Carolina. It was here that sparkling fresh shrimp from Shem Creek fished just out of the brackish pluff mud filtered water filled my memories. One taste and I was eating the essence of Wild Shrimp. A brilliant, freshly made remoulade sauce sealed the deal.

My mother-in-law, who doesn’t eat shrimp, was offered a small plate of several heirloom “cherry” tomatoes. Each one was brimming with flavor and were still slightly warm from being just picked maybe seconds before they were sliced, dashed with a grassy olive oil and a bit of sea salt to raise their inner secrets to her fork. I tasted one and wanted to eat an entire bowl of them with aged Balsamico and crusty bread.

I started with a bowl of Kara’s Mussel Pot, an appetizer size that dwarfed the other plates on the table. It was brimming with succulent, steaming hot PEI Mussels. Sweet and plump, they came drenched in Belgian Ale from a local microbrewery, dotted with sweet, yet tangy blue cheese and a splash of cream. I inhaled most of the bowl and set to work at the excellent bread served and refilled without my notice to sop up the broth.

My wife and her mom shared the satisfyingly filling, meltingly soft to the tooth Paffenroth Garden’s roast beet salad. Each generous portion of beets echoed their specific terroir and was folded between perfectly cleaned local greens. I could smell the earthy nature of the beets and it stirred a far away feeling of summer and memories that lingered at the edge of my memory.

Tables around us shared large portions of all the items I had myself dreamed of ordering. Steak Frites! Pork n’ Clams! Cones of Pomme Frites - Can I snag one?

I ordered the Hudson Valley magret duck breast which came over goat cheese-infused mashed potatoes that tasted made a la minute-the glutens of the potato had not turned to glue. I wanted to jump right in to bowl full of them. A veritable pillow-top mattress made of them. The duck, rendered of the fat that sometimes plagues other examples of this dish, tasted as if it had been running around just that morning. Or swimming, so deep was the flavor.

The other dishes were the boneless, brined, “brick” roast ½ chicken. Brick-Cooked Chicken holds a special place in my heart and this delicacy was brined to bring out all the flavors of a small, organic bird. So delicate and almost sous vide in texture- I wanted to tear into the chicken and perhaps convince the chef to fry me up a few wings,to keep me honest and quiet.

My mom-in-law has a restrictive diet, so she doesn’t eat meat in a restaurant, nor most fish. A Toute Heure accommodated her needs, serving her the bountiful, piping hot, Heirloom Cherry Lane Farm’s eggplant gratin with Gruyere and Parma cheese. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her polish off a plate of vegetables so quickly.

While we were finishing our meal I took note of the cheese list. Perfectly aged cheeses abound. Without asking, we were served a selection of cheeses which included: Cayuga Blue from Lively Run Dairy in NY, a perfectly aged specimen of the Weston Wheel from Woodcock Farm in Vt., and my personal favorite-the Constant Bliss from Jasper Hill in Vt. Each cheese was just about 2 bites-served with house-cured olives and more of that excellent toast, carefully marked by the grill in crosshatches. I love seeing that extra effort at taking an ingredient and expanding on the flavors of the charred bread.

Dessert would be a selection of the best ice-cream I have ever tasted in NJ, the Burnt Sugar, the brightly flavored and toothsome Spearmint Bittersweet Chocolate Chip and the Ricotta with Candied Citrus. if I had a cooler, they might have been missing some. My wife enjoyed the chocolate bread pudding, drizzled with caramel sauce.. it was… deep, dark and filling.

Coffee was served in a French Press-nice touch! I wanted more-but wanted to be able to sleep and dream of our beautiful meal.

At A Toute Heure, if they stick to their ethos of fresh food,cooked simply with the love that we were shown through the excellent service and not-overly intellectualized cuisine, they will have that grail.. The James Beard Award nomination, hanging on the wall-just out of eyeshot though, for their food doesn’t need an award to be truly wonderful.

What better ending to summer could there be than that?

a bit of the food show

fancy food show: redux.

(Instead of single malt scotch, single cow cheese?)
It was stinky-with a washed rind. Cheese was dunked in Farmhouse Cider.
That's milk from a single goat, they didn't make too much of it, here taste some.
Frozen hot chocolate at Serendipity-those guys don't get any older. Still tastes the same. delicious!
We don't have any more pork." 'What about that?' (I was pointing to the pile of crispy skin) I've got to have a slice of that skin... Crunchy goodness!
It was a Black Footed Iberico ham that caught my eye... I just had to have a taste sliced thinly, by hand.
Ciao Bella? My palate needed cleansing with the creamy goodness of the malted milk gelato.
Smoked Salmon from Maine with wild blueberries?
Zzzzzz Serendipitea... iced? Hot?
Popcorn with shaved Black Truffles.
Half of all imported foods are either Natural or Organic...says the NASFT
Flavored pastel colored Marshmallows are "all the rage"
Whole Black Truffles are in a basket. May I have one? No?
Korean Sea Salt...hand harvested and air dried for three years.
Mushrooms hand gathered that morning for Sid Wainer & Sons on Cape Cod
Eighty different styles of PANKO? And that was only from Japan!
Micro-greens in all varieties for the home chef or commercial chef.
Egg Creams like dad made out in the garage! Espresso Soda in a bottle!
Blue Footed Chickens on the video monitor-from kill to table in 1 hour.
Jelly Belly in flavors too many to count. Apple and Walnut anyone?
Ice Cream made from soy milk that tastes like carob.
Labeling machines, make your own labels at your restaurant. Become an olive oil superstar.
Frozen Gourmet Desserts from Morocco. Olive oil from Liberia. Olives from all over.

Next aisle, honey from Tasmania, honey from San Diego, honey from Poland, honey from Savannah, honey from New York, honey from a single hive?
Crackers, wheat, oat, groats, walnut, soy, corn, cedar (for cooking, not eating) rice, beans, etc., etc.,
Soups, I was hot just thinking about hot soup in a hot room. But I tried some anyway. Tomato Soup-milk, cream, butter, stock, and tomato.
Two Hens were at the food show- I love their chicken pot pies-they are adapting their business plan to fit a vegetarian/agrarian model and it works-the veggie pot pies have great crusts and are delicious.
Belgian Beers poured by the beer makers. Tripples, Dubbels, and Lagers. Then to Germany where they were pouring shots of peppermint schnapps from a small restaurant in the Bhurgherland... then to Mexico where they were serving little stoneware jugs of single village Mezcal. Then to England for some Ginger Beer...

Saline

It’s amazing to me how a sip of a wine can vividly recreate a memory of a place.

I was tasting Sauvignon Blancs the other day at the wine shop CoolVines where I work part time. As soon as the crisp, cool, fermented liquid touched my lips, the resin quality and razor sharp acidity reminded me of a trip to Damariscotta, Maine about 23 years before.

We were sitting on the deck at one of the seafood pubs that graced the once-working waterfront. I was a chef at that time, working for Jim Ledue at Alberta’s one of the first gastro-pubs located in Portland, Maine. We changed our menu daily depending on what was fresh from the local farms and piers. He encouraged his cooks and all of his staff to taste food, preferably from near and also from places like Damariscotta, way Down East. We were blessed in Maine to have a wealth of some of the freshest seafood-much of it shipped overnight to Japan for waiting diners.

Jim Ledue had told me about a place up the coast a piece that served Pouilly Fumé -not the maligned “Chablis” in the box that was and still is served with every fish “suppuh” meal up and down the Maine Coast. This special place was known for its wine list, especially the French wines from the Loire Valley that went with a very specific kind of food, Belon Oysters brought over from Brittany in France to be introduced, then grown in vast beds surrounding the Damariscotta River.

In those pristine waters, many types of seafood are found living their lives far from the frantic pace of modernization. The relentless tides which churn and combine brackish mineral-laden river and icy cold ocean salt water only improves the specific terroir of the water-bound place. Tides rise and fall 20 feet or more with a frothing power.

Just north of the town of Damariscotta the products that are raised in tidal inlets produce whelks, lobster, clams, sea urchins, peeky-toe crabmeat and Belons. These were the usual fare at the restaurant we were sitting in. A stainless steel plate of oysters sat in front of me amid a swirl of locally collected and very colorful Dulse Seaweeds. The oysters were set haphazardly over the plate overflowing with roughly cut ice were lemon chunks, a red wine mignonette, and freshly ground horseradish.

I could smell the seaweed, saline-sweet and fresh. It stung my nose the moment we arrived having just been delivered from a local fisherman. An ancient wooden skiff was tied roughly to the deck. Wooden boxes of local seaweeds and urchins were being off-loaded.

I ordered a bottle of a mineral-tinged Sauvignon Blanc. Our feast was to be a few plates (then a few more) of several local varieties of oysters. I raised my tiny seafood fork to my mouth. All at once the taste of cool icy briny salt water rushed into my palate, cleaning it of the wine, immediately followed closely by deeper foam, all framed by a brackish sea-charged, living finish creating a vivant tabla rasa for the next taste. This oyster was deeply creamy with its liquor tasting of freshly raked grey fleur de sel- more liquid saline and life spilling out.

This stirred some of my deepest cravings. There is no wonder to me that crisp, acidic steely Sauvignon Blancs we drank that day were the perfect foil to this primal food. I dipped my oyster into the shallot and cracked pepper-infused mignonette, squeezed fresh lemon over it and chewed - breathing in the tang of the sea, then the softly yielding creaminess of its texture, its very soul so to speak, as this oyster was alive, unable to escape from my tongue and teeth.

I devoured every morsel on my plate and ordered another dozen, then another… Seagulls yelled for handouts. Sipping more of the wine I took in the day around me-a salt infused breeze that blew in as fog off the coast.

Behind the counter at CoolVines, I took another sip of Sauvignon Blanc reluctant to leave the realm of a perfect memory.

Carmel Haifa

I worked at one time as a cook for a Middle Eastern man in New Hope, Pennsylvania. He did classical French food in his restaurant, not Middle Eastern foods. I've worked in many white table cloth restaurants and a few soul food restaurants, I know a bit about good ingredients, either Middle Eastern in origin or locally gathered, what's fresh, like homemade Harissa sauce made with olive oil, garlic, roasted hot red pepper and lemon juice, plus, rotisserie spun marinated lamb, veal and beef, or chicken or vegetarian kebab, cooked over smoldering hard wood coals. All prepared with love and smiles... That energy alone is what brought me to this several month old restaurant in Morris Plains, New Jersey. I was hungry and wanted to taste the heat that surrounded the place.
Set on an ambiguous street, directly across from the bustling NJ Transit station, this likeable restaurant boasts Middle Eastern comfort food without saying a word. The scent of natural wood charcoal is evident in the un-air-conditioned space of about 150 square feet. The grill is my focus here, although large hunks of lamb and veal turn on spits, giving off little bursts of fat and natural juices, which collects in a pan under the rotating meats. The front window is spotlessly clean and the open kitchen shares in a thorough cleaning when I walked in this afternoon. The owner was carefully cleaning the refrigerator case and each internal section making sure it gleamed. I often stop here because the restaurant is that clean. In the past, I used to drive down to Paterson, NJ for Middle Eastern food and a glance at the Great Falls... but that food, although delicious at the time never sat well with my stomach. This little gem of a restaurant in Morris Plains uses good local fatty lamb for their shish kebab sandwich. It is grilled over natural hardwood coals that I smelled from the street and then more so the moment I entered the restaurant. There is a sign on the menu that reads just that: "we only use real natural charcoal". The scent of lamb fat on hardwood charcoal is familiar to me. Recently I grilled some local baby lamb rubbed with garlic and thyme. The spices were different, but the smell of baby lamb is the same. The owner, like an old friend, greets me warmly although I only recognized the kerchief-veiled woman. She looks up at smiles at me, I smile, her husband who is cleaning by the window smiles too. They all know why I am here. I usually order the meat that is swirling so enticingly in front of me. This rotisserie cooked meat is then stuffed into a pita which, when sliced open is added with lettuce, pickled onions, Harissa paste, tahini sauce and the slices of veal and beef... but today, I want a grilled lamb kebab sandwich. Sizzling hot marinated lamb, cooked over hardwood coals, oily hot pepper paste, tahini, lettuce and chopped pickles.... Yum.


Carmel Haifa 682 Speedwell Avenue Morris Plains, NJ 07950
(862) 242-8918

What to drink and with what foods?

A primer on summer grilled foods and the wines that go with them।


It's turning into a lovely summer, albeit a wet one-but I'll take summer any day over winter. Open windows, bed sheets dried on the line outside... I'm getting hungry for barbeque..... Anyone?

Here is a list of some backyard friendly grilled foods and the wines that complement them.

Grilled Vegetables in Phyllo pastry - We all love the crunch of Phyllo Dough hot out of the oven. The creamy texture of grilled vegetables with a layer of melted fresh goat cheese makes for a crunchy sandwich of sorts. I suggest using a dry Vouvray for this dish. Why? The crisp texture and bright acidity of the Vouvray acts as a foil for the smoky flavor of the grilled vegetable and caramelized goat cheese. The Chenin Blanc grape is very forgiving to grilled vegetables.
Hamburgers on the grill- Wait! STOP! Don’t just open a beer to go with your burger. This is just too easy to mess up. Find a wine from Germany. The grape isa a red variety is known as Dornfelder. This stuff rocks. The one I remember is about 15 dollars and is delicious with a hamburger that you should be able to grind yourself, composed of Beef Cheek, Brisket and Short Rib. Or throw some fatback in there for good measure. Even a good ole' American style Chuck Burger would work in a pinch.
Grilled Salmon. It doesn't get any easier than this to open your icebox and take out a tray or two of ice cubes. Add the cubes to a bucket filled 1/3 with water. Take a bottle of Pinot Noir from Oregon. This bottle shouldn't cost more than $ 20 or so. Place the bottle in the bucket of ice and water. Let sit for about 30 minutes while you prepare a grill. Rub a fillet of Salmon well with Kosher Salt, Pepper and fresh Thyme from your garden. If you don't have the Thyme then plant some! It will come back year after year and give your garden the scent of Southern France and the region of Provence. Grill the salmon until just done and set aside to "firm up". Open that bottle and dig in. Serve with Cole Slaw, Potato Salad and a glass of the Pinot.




Fried Chicken... Fried Chicken has a special place in my stomach usually reserved for foods that speak of the Southern United States. Not that fried foods only hale from the South, but I have had the very best Fried Chicken ever at Martha Lou's Kitchen in Charleston, South Carolina. Martha Lou would serve her fried chicken with a cup of sweet tea, but I serve mine with a wine from Australia, a crowd pleaser if you will. To my palate, Aussie Chardonnay vinified in Stainless Steel without any oak is most pleasing to me. This wine is crisp, inviting, easy to drink and very inexpensive, with most types priced less than Twelve dollars.


Watermelon- Wine with watermelon? Why not? I suggest a Vermentino from Corsica in Italy. Grown in volcanic rock outcroppings, this lively and fresh tasting wine is not complicated to drink. Usually these wines are served with seafood, but why should you have them with watermelon? The lively almost melon-like flavors of the wine, coupled with the refreshing quality of the watermelon speaks volumes of what tastes great with many different types of food. Close your eyes and sip. It reminds the drinker of being on an island, tucking into a bowl of watermelon gazpacho on a steamy summer night.
Pork Ribs slow cooked on the grill. I love pork. Although it surprised many people, I was born with a slice of bacon in my hand. Nothing says to me summer more than pork ribs, cut Chinese-Style (across the rib) from Hoeffner's Prime Meats; Butcher Shop in Morristown, New Jersey. Steve and his brother Martin brine their pork in a proprietary 10 % brine solution for a few days until the pork has "given up its secrets" and yielded to a softer tooth. Then grilled in a simple marinate of Ginger, Soy, Garlic, Nam Pla (Vietnamese fish sauce) and a dash of Mirin (Japanese sweetened rice wine vinegar) for a sultry, dark finish. I marinate my ribs in this mixture overnight. The wine should be something inky and rich, such as a CDR (Cotes du Rhone). The element of charred oak barrels coupled with the Mouvedre grape with a dollop of Syrah and a smaller dollop of Cinsault or Grenache make for a perfect grilled food wine. The flavors of dark in color, grade B maple syrup, the terroir of the earth, and dried leaves complement pork to a turn. Expect to pay no more than 10 or 15 dollars for a very delicious and most serviceable bottle.






On the subject of ribs, I have found that beef short ribs, when grilled "low and slow" for about an hour, just off the fire (in this case over hard-wood coals in a 10 year old Weber Barbeque grill) can be every bit as pleasing as short ribs cooked in a braising liquid in the oven for hours. In fact, I prefer the flavor of short ribs on the grill, as they don't dissolve into nothingness after a few hours. Plus, the smell of the char and smoke make for a lovely summer drink of wine. I'm getting thirsty just thinking about this combination. Which wine? Beef commands the use of Malbac from Argentina, or Carmenere from Chile. These almost syrupy wines can be considered better for beef on the grill than the old standby, Cabernet. And.... they cost only about 15 dollars a bottle. Try to find a decent Cabernet at this quality level at this price? Good luck!
Hot Dogs-What goes with hot dogs or even tofu dogs? Let's look at the components of a great hot-dog. First the roll, I prefer a Potato Roll, lightly toasted so the bread remains soft and generous. The roll will soak up any juices that have oozed out of a perfectly cooked snappy hot dog. Grainy German-style mustard? Dijon? Regular yellow mustard? Ketchup? Heinz only of course... This would be excellent resting on a Hoeffner’s' house-made beef, natural casing hot dog. Relish? Of course, made with nuggets of fresh sweet corn. And the wine? I might suggest a full-bodied Soave, made in the old style in lightly aged oak cask. The uncomplicated nature of Soave is a perfect foil to the snap and pop of a freshly grilled hot-dogs. Or Tofu Dogs if you will.

Rib Eye Steak-Say the word "Rib Eye Steak" and imagine charred bone and fat bursting with mineral beefy flavor, sizzling on a smoking hot, well-seasoned grill. Heat doesn't even start to consider the flavor of aged Prime Beef on the grill. Again, seek the consult of an old-style butcher (Like Hoeffner's in Morristown, NJ) who ages their meats for a minimum of 28 days. If your butcher does not age his meats, find another butcher who does. What wine with Rib Eye? Think of charred flavors, sweet and smoky...crunchy almost on the tooth. My favorite wine with grilled Rib Eye is Red California Zinfandel or a Rhone Ranger composed mostly of Mourvedre or Syrah. Red Zinfandel is similar to Primativio from Sicily. The Cali-Centric highbred of Old World and New World wine making techniques is perfect with grilled aged beef. Expect to pay about 15 dollars for a serviceable one. The aged beef will be expensive, but worth it.





White Zinfandel is not really wine, but it is a marketing concept. I suggest passing over that liquid fantasy, but drink in its stead, a fantastic lively Rose from Province.
Grilled Chicken-the sweet tomato tang of barbeque sauce (your choice) is perfect with a Rose from Province in France. Grill the bird as usual over hardwood coals. Serve with sweet corn-fresh snipped steamed green beans and homemade slaw. Expect to pay about 12 dollars or so for a wine that with its scent and racy acidity will create memories all on its own.
Chilean Sea Bass (currently not endangered) is all the rage at the local Whole Foods Market near us. This firm fleshed fish stands up to smoke and fire extremely well, but you may want to cook it in a basket so that it doesn't please the "grill gods" by falling through the grill grates eventually burning your supper. I suggest a firm, acidic-tropical fruit tinged, dry, New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. These wines are crisp, refreshing and vinified only in Stainless Steel. These zesty wines carry through the flavors of grilled stone fruits and lip puckering lemon candy.



The same holds true for Red Snapper or 'head on' shrimp on the grill. On the topic of shrimp, never peel the shrimp before they go over the coals, the flavor will be true to the sea if you leave them unpeeled. Split them up the back with a knife (carefully!) to expose the dark vein. Remove it if you can. As a bonus, the color and flavor of the shells once they are grilled brings style to your plate. Once grilled, Shrimp are so easy to peel. If your fishmonger can supply the shrimp with their 'heads on' this added a lovely dimension of flavor almost unknown to the "normal" back-yard grilling palate, I'd love a plate right now of Grilled Shrimp n' Grits. The wine for this little endeavor would clearly speak of Pouilly Fume. The Loire speaks to me of minerals and scallop shells, dusky lime tinged wines with haunting personalities. They cost fewer than Twenty Dollars.
Turkey Burgers. What can be served with Turkey Burgers? Turkey as a rule is usually served with a number of different wines from Pinot to Dry Rieslings and everything in between. Expect to add a light chill to the wines, either red or white. Serve on a freshly toasted roll, lettuce, tomato, red onion, Heinz... you get the picture?
Lobster on the Grill screams for a rich white. A Rhone Ranger (Roussane) from California would be well matched with natural acidity to cut the mineral tang of the sea flesh. Split the lobsters in half, clean and grill with lemon zest, finely chopped shallot, finely chopped garlic, a splash of good Spanish Olive Oil and a splash of the wine you are drinking. Garnish with chopped Italian Parsley. You should not have to spend a bundle to get something delicious. Think 15 dollars (don't pay any more) and that is a bargain compared to what you will pay for the lobsters!
Peaches on the grill with vanilla gelato. It's almost Jersey Peach season! Slice these Stone Fruits in half, sprinkle with sugar and a shake of sea salt. Grill just off the heat in a grilling basket until caramelized and their color takes on a brownish hue signifying juicy and sweet. Scoop some Vanilla Gelato into a dish and spoon the hot grilled fruits and a homemade shortbread cookie over the top. Garnish with fresh spearmint. Serve this with a "dessert in a glass", a Spanish Oloroso sherry. These "forgotten" dessert wines shouldn't cost more than 10 or so dollars for a 1/2 bottle. There is more than enough for dessert, and they are delicious on their own, right out of the fridge.