Best of the Buzz : News

Chefs Place Their Bets at the Borgata

BuzzEditor — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:22:00 GMT

Photos: Hernan F. Rodriguez

Celeb chefs and 700 food fans gathered at The Water Club in Atlantic City this weekend for the second-annual Savor Borgata event. Wolfgang Puck worked his station for over four hours straight, serving up pad Thai, grilled shrimp, steak and scallop skewers, and Chinese chicken salad. When the Buzz asked the super chef if he was a gambling man, he responded that he used to be but since opening restaurants, he rarely gambles: “Opening a restaurant is a gamble in itself because of the investment of time and money. But unlike blackjack, if people sit at our table at least they get something for their money!” Puck also responded to rumors of opening an NYC spot, “It hasn’t happened yet, because I am very difficult, but it may finally happen.”

Bobby Flay took some time between assembling surf ‘n’ turf skewers to tell the Buzz about his recent visit to the White House to film an episode of Iron Chef America. “No matter what your politics are, I just found the Obamas so impressive as people. And the White House seemed to be a house in every sense of the word. The first lady can go from being as professional as she could possibly be as first lady, then spin on her heels and become mom two seconds later. The President made me feel so comfortable, he made me feel like I knew him 30 seconds into it.” When Olympic gold medalist Peggy Fleming came by to introduce herself, Flay was so awestruck he asked the Buzz to take a picture of him with the famous figure skater-turned-winemaker (her label Fleming-Jenkins provided wine for the event).

Geoffrey Zakarian, who is the culinary consultant for the hotel, served beef tartare with mostarda and pickled chanterelles. The chef said even though he’s not by nature a gambling man, his biggest gamble in life was leaving business school for cooking school. He confided to the Buzz about being a Chopped judge, saying, “There is certainly a lot of nonsense in reality TV because everyone wants to be a star, and everyone wants to think they are a chef. But in the real world, in a restaurant, we have to find competent people who understand what's on TV is not real. You can cook in 30 minutes but can you run a kitchen day after day? Can you make your money back to investors? The people who can't cut it get ground to the dust very quickly.” Zakarian also confirmed that his new NYC spot, The Lamb’s Club, his “luxury bar and grill” in Midtown’s Chatwal Hotel, is on target for a spring opening.

Other chefs in the house: Fornelletto's Stephen Kalt, who said that his recent opening in Atlantic City foreshadows a return to NYC; izakaya’s Michael Schulson; and SeaBlue’s Michael Mina.

– Kathleen Squires

Shining a Spotlight on Harlem

BuzzEditor — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 21:53:00 GMT

Bill Clinton teamed up with the Zagats to release the new Spotlight on Harlem guide.

This morning, former President Bill Clinton joined our own Nina and Tim Zagat to unveil the first-ever Zagat Spotlight on Harlem guide, produced in partnership with the Clinton Foundation’s Economic Opportunity Initiative. The guide – available by request at www.clintonfoundation.org – features 323 restaurants, nightspots, shops and attractions and includes a brief overview of Harlem’s history.

Devoting a guide to the riches of Harlem has been a longtime dream for Tim Zagat. “The Clinton Foundation gave us the edge to do it,” he said, noting that, “My family comes from Harlem. My mother grew up in Morningside Heights, and my father lived on 117th Street and Lenox Avenue. And my parents got married at Butler Hall.”

Mr. Clinton called the guide a “tribute to the hardworking men and women who have cultivated” small businesses in the area. He said he hopes it will “spark the creating of even more locally owned businesses” in Harlem, adding that the neighborhood is a “great place for business and a great place to call home.”

Tim Zagat echoed those sentiments in praising the businesses included in the guide. “These establishments reflect the rich culture of Harlem and are evidence of the hard work and determination of local leaders and entrepreneurs over the years,” he said. “I don’t need to tell anyone here that Harlem is a great cultural and historic destination, but it is our hope that our guide will draw many people who don’t know that.”

Before introducing the Zagats, Clinton noted that “Tim and Nina are the only couple that I know well from around here who also went to law school at Yale together.” Tim Zagat countered, “We were a couple of years ahead of the Clintons in law school…and that was the last time we were ahead of the Clintons!”

The guide will also be distributed at local businesses and through sponsors such as Carver Federal Savings Bank, Citibank, Empire State Development Corporation and the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone.

– Kathleen Squires

Shout It Out

BuzzEditor — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 19:33:00 GMT

Chefs at Inakaya yell out your order.

Photo: Ryan Charles

Upon entering Megu in New York City's TriBeCa, you're met by a demure hostess who leads you down clay-tiled steps past flowers and temple bells. But just as you hit the bottom landing, you're jolted out of your serene state when your escort shouts at the top of her lungs, “Irashaimase!” As if you’ve entered the set of some bizarre musical, the waiters and other staff stop mid-action, execute a choreographed turn toward you and echo back the Japanese welcome: “Irashaimase!” Other diners turn and stare, and the more exuberant ones shout along. It’s clearly not the best dining destination for an illicit affair.

Bond Street, kitschy Ninja, ramen shop Ippudo and even pricey Kuruma Zushi in Midtown have all adopted the Japanese practice of shouting greetings and sometimes, as you exit, “arigato gozaimasu” (“thank you very much”). And the new Inakaya, which opened at the end of February in the New York Times building, takes the concept one step further by yelling out a customer’s order when it's given – woe be to the cheating dieter. “This is not typical; it’s something we created,” explains Yu Koyama, the restaurant’s general manager. “It began at our restaurant in Japan, where the waiters have to relay the order to the robata chef, and we are trying to duplicate that here. Yelling generates energy.”

According to Shingo Yonezawa, owner of the popular Union Square sushi spot Japonica, spirited shouting is a way of letting diners know you are busy, and to give the impression that your seafood is fresh. But, it's not just for the customers. “It’s also a way to build up the morale of the staff,” he says.

In case you're not sure what your role is in this choreographed scene, the answer should come as a relief: you are basically a prop. “Just smile, and don’t say anything,” suggests Yonezawa.

Not all Japanese restaurants are in line with the zealous vocal approach, however. “Many restaurants in Japan welcome you with cheers so that your spirits are lifted and you can enjoy your meal in happiness,” says Kiyoshi Nogawa, general manager of Sushi Zen in the Theater District. “Yelling 'welcome' also signals to the staff that they should be ready to serve a new guest. However, we prefer to welcome our guests with a traditional Japanese phrase that is spoken rather than yelled. We are pursuing a more luxurious and upscale experience, and feel we can use this quieter welcome to strike a friendship with the guest and alert our staff without disrupting the Zen-like atmosphere of our restaurant and food.” And for that, those who favor quiet ambiance might whisper, “arigato gozaimasu.”

Best of the Buzz : News

Chefs Place Their Bets at the Borgata

Photos: Hernan F. Rodriguez

– Kathleen Squires

Shining a Spotlight on Harlem

Bill Clinton teamed up with the Zagats to release the new Spotlight on Harlem guide.

– Kathleen Squires

Shout It Out

Chefs at Inakaya yell out your order.

Photo: Ryan Charles

– Beth Landman