Chef Louie Night @Boston Center for Adult Education, July 15, 2012

So I finally made it to a Chef Louie Night event.  I seem to never be in town when they are held.  I barely made this one as I had just landed back in Boston from Chicago earlier that afternoon, but the food was well worth heading back out after a full travel day.

Chef Louie Night features talented chefs on Louie DiBiccari's team which on July 15th included Samuel Monsour of JM Curley, Michael Sutton of O Ya, Douglas Rodriguez of Clio, and Brandon Arms of Garden at the Cellar.  The chefs prepare ingredients which attendees voted for weeks before.  The ingredients are a mystery to the team until the day of the event.

The Ballot:

I want Chef Louie's day in the kitchen to be straight out of an episode of:

Myth Busters
Survivor
Dirty Jobs

Though it's kind of weird and probably not good for me, I'm a sucker for food that's:

Totally raw
Wicked hot
Super-sized

And just to make things interesting, let's add in some: (pick 3):

FourLoko
Absinthe
Pop rocks
Foie Gras
Veal
Ghost chili's

Attendees ultimately voted for Mythbusters, wicked hot, Pop Rocks, absinthe, and foie gras.

My friend and I purchased tickets for The Chef's Table.  We were able to witness a bit of the action in the kitchen.

Chef's Table.

The attendees were pretty diverse in age, race, and level of self-importance.  My friend and I found the majority of the crowd to be a bit stuffy with an air of pomposity and arrogance, which I found slightly amusing being that I felt it was one of the most low-key food events I've had the pleasure to attend. Such is Boston at times, unfortunately.

We dismissed these folks and enjoyed the conversation and interactions with those who were simply enjoying the food and beverage, including the sponsors:

WINE BY 90+ CELLARS

• Sparkling – Lot 49 Sparkling Rosé, Veneto, Italy, NV

• White – Lot 65 French Fusion, Languedoc, France, 2011

• Red – Lot 53 Cabernet Sauvignon, Mendoza, Argentina, 2008

I really enjoyed both the bubbly Rosé and the Cabernet.

Another sponsor:

BEER BY HIGH & MIGHTY

XPA – East Coast Pale Ale, 5.0% ABV
Purity of Essence – India Pale Lager, 5.4% ABV

My friend.  This was my bday gift to her!

The hors d'oeuvres we lovely.

Chef Louie serving frog legs on cucumber with peas and berbs.

The other was a scallop ceviche with bacon-chili powder in greens (not pictured).

The Menu:

FIRST COURSE
Pork belly biscuit, Szechuan peppercorn glaze, pickles, charred jalepeño kewpie

 The pork belly biscuit was my absolute favorite dish. The spice of the kewpie was a nice accompaniment!

Pork Belly Biscuit

SECOND COURSE
Pop Rocks Torchon, macerated strawberries, absinthe, anise

I personally prefer foie gras pan-seared versus a terrine/torchon, but I thought the presentation of this dish and the incorporation of the pop rocks was creative and interesting.

Pop rocks torchon

 THIRD COURSE
“Fried chicken and watermelon” - Crispy wing, kohl rabe slaw, watermelon hot sauce and rind pickle
 
An interesting dish.  The fried chicken was decent and I really enjoyed the watermelon hot sauce and the slaw.

FOURTH COURSE
Roast leg of lamb, native carrot, harissa, crunchy soy beans

By far, the lamb was a close second favorite of the evening!  The meat was tender and the portion generous.  The seasoning was perfect and I loved the spice of the harissa!

Overall, I enjoyed the food at Chef Louie Night.  

For upcoming events, you can visit Chef Louie Nights here.

For other events and or class information at the BCAE, click here.