I've always been a fan of the open kitchens at restaurants. Watching the chefs at work can be as entertaining as the dishes they are pushing out. It also helps when the chef is personable and interactive with guests.
Cue the Chef's Window Tasting Dinner at East by Northeast.
Of course Chef Phillip Tang has made an extraordinary name for himself over the past few years after Lumiere, Hungry Mother, and T.W. Food as he serves up pretty amazing Asian street and modern foods.
He did reveal that a Korean street food event is coming in the near future so BOLO.
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| Cheesing with Chef Phillip Tang and Tamika! |
I picked the perfect time to head over to EXNE after a number of nudges to cross the river by friends who've been and even by their manager Blayne.
The week after my dinner experience, they are closing for summer vaca and revamping the place in the meantime.
The space is perfectly understated so here's hoping for just a little sprucing up. Chef says there will be new paint and such.
I can't wait to see the new digs and set up my one on one interview with Chef Tang for the "At The Pass with DrFoodie" Series where he will join Chefs Gordon Hamersley of Hamersley's Bistro (Closing after 27 years in the South End at the end of October), Karen Akunowicz of Myers & Chang, Brian Poe of Poe's Kitchen, Tip Tap Room, and Estelle's, Carey Dobies of Savvor Restaurant and Lounge, and more.
The Chef's window seats only 4 people at a time. Reservations are required at least 24 hours in advance.
It's meant to be an exclusive one on 4 dinner experience where Chef Tang creates and personally serves each of the 6 courses, reviewing their contents and answering any questions posed by guests. The menu changes nightly.
On this particular night, me and Tamika Francis, my newest foodie friend and Executive Director of theMove, enjoyed our evening of gluttony.
We started with a amuse bouche of housemade calamari chips served with an aioli of which the flavor profile escapes me.
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| Housemade calamari chips with cilatro and scallions |
I am a lover of toro (Bluefin tuna belly -sashimi- the second fattiest of three levels of tuna belly, above Chutoro and below Otoro). I enjoy its richness, its slippery tenderness, its superb fatty marbling.
The belly of most animals has a fatty marbling that is uber appealing - consider pork belly (bacon), lamb belly, and the aforementioned tuna belly.
Chef Tang offered a belly I was not so familiar with on this next dish. The belly of the swordfish, he says, is largely overlooked as a delectable portion of the fish. Most of us, of course, focus on the filet (the steak). While I prefer toro and otoro over swordfish belly. It was not served sashimi style, but I somehow expected more richness. It was treated as a ceviche would be and though I enjoyed its texture and mild flavor, it was not a favorite.
The swordfish belly was served with cubed watermelon and sliced cucumber, asparagus spear tip pesto and watermelon radish ponzu with black and white sesame seeds.
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| Swordfish belly salad |
The chocking hazard-sized jumbo oysters from Cape Cod, were wisely chopped into smaller but still plump bits of creamy textured flesh, with crispy and crunchy panko coating.
As a play on the classic Taiwanese dish-oyster omelet, the crisp oyster bits were seated upon a rich, soft egg prep with sweet soy and topped with mint puree and pickled dill all served on the half shell.
I love to hear stories behind a dish or ingredient from the chef. After bringing a simple, but delicious arugula salad that served as a side for the lamb belly, Chef Tang shared how the poached pears adorning the salad are from a Norfolk Street neighbor's pear tree. The neighbor offered them to chef as he had no use for so many pears - talk about local sourcing!
The small poached pear, arugula, and watercress salad smartly accompanied tender cuts of tea and peppercorn rubbed, lightly grilled lamb belly. Pillowy sourdough pancakes served as fantastic bases for sandwich making. Add a dollop of the red plum and ginger sauce and you've made an excellent edible.
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| Lamb belly |
Everything was superbly spare and just enough to satisfy until the congee which I happily stuffed my face with even though I thought I'd rupture.
Congee, one of my favorite dim sum dishes, that can be eaten at any meal, is a porridge-style rice dish typically served with delightful and very diverse toppings from fried shallots to veg to seafood.
Chef Tang's congee was particularly interesting- very New England with a hint of, dare I say, molecular gastronomy.
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| Lobster congee |
I literally could not stop spooning the contents of this beautiful dish into my face.
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| Chef Tang shaving dehydrated miso egg yolk onto my congee. |
Chef Tang's congee was topped with poached lobster, lobster butter, fresh sweet corn, chantrelle mushroom, puffed hominy, and shaved dehydrated miso egg yolk created by one of his chefs (hence the molecular gastronomy comment above).
It was a textural earthquake!
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| Simply amazing and addictive! |
We ended on a sweet, spicy, & savory note.
A beautiful semifreddo was served.
This semifreddo featured a fabulous flavor profile of ginger and carrot with cherry and red wine reduction and topped with toffee and slivered toasted almond.
The spice and crunch was a perfect combination.
The check came with lovely peanut and sesame cookies.
Thanks to Chef Phillip Tang and his entire team for such a lovely dinner and for endulging out late night stay!
I will definitely be back for more!
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