FALL 2009 MENU TASTING
Click Here to view highlights from our FALL/WINTER 2009 MENU!
Department stores roll out fall clothing - tweeds, woolen garments and sweaters. At Great Performances, we begin to sample fall menu items in preparation for parties and events that will start to book in the weeks ahead.
Innovation? Doesn't everyone introduce a fall menu? Yes - but we do it with a few special ingredients: Our team of almost 18 planners who write menus (company-wide) bring passion and opinions to the table! Our commitment to sustainable food means more farms and local growers will appear on our menus. It is a family affair - kind of like Passover or Easter Dinner and everyone has an opinion and wants to be heard.
One needs great stamina for a GP tasting - there are about 16 different plates to sample (which includes dessert). And they are typically so tasty that it is useless to try to limit one's intake.
Chef Christopher and the culinary staff rolled out a feast that began at 11:30 and concluded at 1:30. The sales teams from Great Performances and The Plaza were in attendance.
Here are some of their comments:
Linda Abbey:
"Tasting and understanding all ingredients of a dish definitely helps to sell an item. After all, customers often buy based solely on the verbiage on the page and our ability to bring this description to life.
Our food focuses more than ever on ingredients that are in season.
The best part was the way that Chef organized the experience - it was like watching a cooking show and his passion for the process and ingredients was evident. This is contagious!
Our clients are looking for delicious fresh food presented in a restaurant-quality fashion. They also want us to educate them and can be easily guided when we know what we are talking about."
Executive Chef Christopher Harkness:
"The fall menu is really about how we take what is the current climate and apply culinary style to it. It's looking at seasonal ingredients and having fun with them, remembering that pumpkin and apples are ample and fantastic together. Also what is better than Roasted Chicken? My food personality has matured and seeing local, sustainable food in my everyday thinking makes the fall menu a no brainer. The Fall tasting menu items are comforting and hearty, appealing to our customers desire for basic, delicious meals that provide a sense of certainty and value."
Rob Arango:
"I think it was well orchestrated more than past tastings. With that said, I believe our customers want pretty-(I still think they buy with their eyes first)-savory-local-clean and simple food with hints of unexpected bursts of unique flavor combinations."
Arielle Solowiejczyk:
"Chef Chris Harkness presents his food with the dedication of a master builder layering local ingredients with elegant twists - never forgetting to share some of his own family cooking secrets with each dish.
I found yesterday's tasting a great informational tool for the sales team. Having the Chef talk us through his thought process in creating the upcoming season's dishes adds a unique level of depth and knowledge about the menu.
I was very impressed by the simplicity of all of the dishes, yet many of them had exciting flavor profiles. I was also very happy to see the use of color on each of the plates. The fall/winter dishes tend to be monochromatic in the brown tones due to seasonal ingredients, however there was a well thought out use of color in all the dishes.
The Chef mentioned wanting to give clients comforting simple food during this scaled back time, without serving something as cliched as meat and potatoes. I think that the menu reflects this sentiment, case in point the Whipped Apples and Turnips and the Roasted Chicken Potatoes: two of my favorites from yesterday."
Nancy Isa:
"Our food reflects the season. Ingredients are cognizant of what a Fall harvest can provide in New York State."
Lauren Tregor:
Does it help you sell? "Yes, to see the chef composing the plate and explaining every component and why he chose those is invaluable. Much better than just seeing it made and trying to understand it."
What does it say to you about the direction of our food? "You can see the freshness and simplicity right off the bat. Chef chose the best flavors and combinations that hopefully will meet the clients needs in these times."
What did you like most? "The twice roasted chicken, slow roasted short ribs and pan seared cod (it was really the giganta beans that got me!). all comfortable and delicious and local!"
What do you think our customers are looking for? "Delicious, beautiful and cost effective (good value) menus along with great service."
Corey Sandlofer:
"Slow Cooked Short Ribs with Roasted Butternut Squash Puree, Arancini, Roasted Chestnut Sauce
Really liked the Arancini... Way to go Mamma Harkness!!!!
Coffee Dusted Filet Mignon with Hazelnut Risotto Cakes, Sauteed Spinach and a Mocha Demi
LOVED!!!!! And was so awake after!!! ;-)
Lamb Loin en Croute over Minted Casha, wilted Kale and Walnuts
The new Wellington!!!! Really liked it... think it might be better for a lunch then a dinner??
Slow Roasted Turbot, Warm Poached Butternut, Blood Orange and Frisee Salad with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds and Beurre Rouge
I REALLY Like it!!!! Wasn't crazy about the frisee
Twice Roasted Organic Chicken with Braised Figs and Shallots, Roasted Chicken Potatoes, Natural Jus
YUM YUM YUM!!!!! SOOOOOO much better then 2 Crowns!!!!!
Porfi Figueroa:
"The visual process was extremely helpful. In observing the plates coming together, it created images that will be useful in describing to clients how the flavors combine. As far as the direction of the food, knowing that we can always talk about good seasonal items can only be to our advantage. I think it's one of the key reasons people call us."
Artie Thompson:
"I like that Chef Chris constructed each dish in front of us. The art of speaking with clients is describing a dish and how it's made. The more I can see the picture, the better I can verbalize the product. Being able to paint the picture, that's the key."
Mike Warren:
"It goes without saying that experiencing the food helps you communicate with clients because you are able to describe the tastes, flavors, and textures. It also helps to have a forum where we can give feedback on the food. In the tasting, I got a sense of the direction of the food – simple, fresh, and in some cases a little rustic. I thought the twice roasted chicken with the whipped potatoes was amazing. Simple with intense flavor. People communicate better around food. Having the entire sales team together in the kitchen tasting and talking about food, which is our common interest, we all get to know each other a little better."
