Social Media that’s actually Social

Another solo lunch; I poked at my plate, mixing the green beans into the risotto and wished for my wife’s company.  For seven years we shared lunch at our tiny, dinner-only restaurant.    I always cooked extra because even in a small restaurant, there were plenty of visitors: wine reps, food brokers, friends or other chefs […]

Puffball Tacos

Let’s make this perfectly clear.  Eating the wrong wild mushroom can KILL you.  Not quickly like Clint Eastwood’s creepy Union soldier character in The Beguiled but over the course of a few painful weeks by destroying your liver.  So DO NOT read this then strut into your neighbor’s artificially bright Chem-Lawn yard, pluck ANYTHING out of the […]

Hand cut Fries for Amy

My wife loves French fries (OK we all do) but we rarely eat them.  When we do, they’re usually homemade.  Ever had soggy fries from a burger joint that makes their own?  Yeah, they can be pretty worthless if done improperly.  Making fries at home isn’t hard but it can be a bit time consuming […]

Would you like Cheese Puffs with That?

A few weeks ago we made Parisian style gnocchi to serve with a steak dish.  These are made from Pate Choux (cream puff or eclair style dough) that has been flavored with aromatic herbs and Parmesan cheese, then pushed through a pastry bag with a straight tip into boiling water, poached for about two minutes, […]

“Chef, what if you don’t have an Iron?”

New Orleans in August is damn hot and the air-conditioner in this 40 year-old building was struggling.  There were 45 of us crammed into a class room designed for 30.  Eager, arrogant, excited and cocky but most of all we were sweaty.  The first day of culinary school at Delgado Community College, dressed in our […]

May-Lick or Mah-Lick?

Back in the summer of 2001, Fox & Friends was hosting a Labor Day Cookout show and they invited three chefs to prepare outdoor recipes and somehow or another I made the cut.  So I reached out to Bell & Evans Chicken and they wanted in so I went to NY and represented Bell & Evans Chicken.  I […]

Tonight’s Special is…

“Tonight’s special is a fresh flounder filet, served on top of a mix of Roasted Vegetables from Parson’s farm including Swiss Chard, Baby Carrots, Garlic Scapes, Napa Cabbage and Sweet Onions, finished with Bagna Cauda and Fried Leeks.” This week we received some amazing produce from Daniel Parson’s farm in Clinton, SC.   Dinosaur Kale, Baby […]

Tonight’s Special is…

“Tonight’s special is Rainbow Trout, it’s two boneless filets of Sunburst Farms Trout with a Scallop Mousse filling, the mousse has been seasoned with shallots, garlic, parsley and chives then the filets are wrapped in two slices of Benton’s Ham and it’s oven roasted, served over stone-ground grits with sauteed morel mushrooms, local baby carrots, […]

Making the most of a Leg of Duck

Jason Scholz, Chef/Owner of Stella’s Southern Bistro loves a good fried green tomato, and we serve plenty of them.  It’s a year-round staple because it’s what the customers want.  Yet Stella’s also serves the finest charcuterie in the South.  You heard me, the South.  Charcuterie is the process and technique of grinding, curing, smoking and […]

Chicken Sausage Enchiladas

    Every day, every shift, we make a meal for the staff.  It’s usually made from scraps, leftovers and tidbits and it’s always delicious.  It better be because in a busy restaurant where teamwork is paramount, everyone needs to know that they are important to success.  One of the ways that’s done is through […]