#dave beran

[questlovesfood]

Questlovesfood Salon Ep. 2 | Featuring Daniel Patterson, Dave Beran, and Christina Tosi

[oddepia]

Chef Dave Beran Talks Dialogue, His Inventive New Santa Monica Restaurant Chef Dave Beran spent 10 years cooking at cutting-edge Chicago restaurants Alinea and Next, where he racked up awards and recognition for modern cuisine in the molecular vein.

[questlovesfood]

Quick trip to ‪Chicago‬ - stopped in to BOKA with Dave Beran, Executive Chef Lee Wolen is up for a James Beard Foundation award this week and after our dinner, I understand why.

[questlovesfood]

I have never heard a more suitable name- Dave Beran’s ‪‎Next‬ brings “the next” face of the restaurant every 3 months. You may be experiencing a‪ ‎Chicago‬ steakhouse one month, and come back to explore Modern Chinese a few weeks later.

What to expect right now? A trip to The Alps… 📷 @johnhess Northern Italian salad with a liquid nitrogen frozen vinaigrette and fermented berries.

[questlovesfood]

‪Chicago‬

Everytime I end up in Chicago I feel like I shouldgo here more. Taking the ‪‎James Beard Awards‬ out of ‪NYC‬ is a huge statement in food – and Dave Beran backs it up.

‪SomethingToFoodAbout‬ Preorder where books are sold! http://amzn.to/1ZusfYN

[jasmined]

... heated stones turn artichoke and eucalyptus leaves into an aromatic hike through the Northern California woods. Centered in the dish, an egg cup holds artichoke puree, sauteed snails, miniature dices of fried basil baguette and snail caviar; the "if it grows together, it goes together" dictum has never been so persuasive.

Review: Next restaurant's Terroir menu is all about the wine - Chicago Tribune

[humbleriot]

We teamed up with our brother Questlove and Dell to bring his AMAZING Food Salon to Art Basel In Miami. The meal was prepared by some of the best chef's in the world, Dave Beran from Next In Chicago, Daniel Patterson from Coi in San Fran, and Christina Tosi from Momofuku Milk Bar in NYC. The crowd was filled with amazing luminaries from the art and creative worlds such as Frank Thiel, Jeffrey Deitch, Daniel Arsham from Snarkitecture, Hugo McCloud, Aerosyn - Lex and friends Gabrielle Union and numerous others. It was an Incredible night and you can checkout our feature that just went live on Vanity Fair to see what went down. You can view the video HERE.

#humbleriot

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I've got a story for you....

Friday, December 28, 2012 was one of the best nights of my life.

Top 5, to be sure.

It was our New Years Eve.  New Years Eve (Observed) Simon and I went on a double date with my sis El and her Husband to NEXT to catch the final week of the Kaiseki Menu.  I know you have heard my NEXT stories before, but this one is something else:

We brought beer for the kitchen and in the box of treats, we put some party hats and noise makers - tonight is a night for CELEBRATION we informed the staff. No one argued.

I've got to admit, I was a little nervous before the meal. I wanted my sister to LOVE NEXT. But more than that, I wanted her to understand why we love it there as much as we do. (Not unlike our days in high school, I suppose....where I would get us 2 front row seats to every musical and drag her to countless stage doors just so I could share my excitement.)

I had no cause for concern because the next 6 hours 19 courses Were filled with magic moments (so cheesy, I know!  But it's true)

And there was one...one moment that I will forever point to as the anecdote that captures the JOY of fine dining for us, That embodies why NEXT is my favorite restaurant in the country.

Chef Dave and his team outdid themselves.

We ate duck heart out of a 250 year old lacquered duck serving dish We ate crunchy shrimp heads off of skewers and abalone with sea grapes. We got a preview of dessert from the upcoming HUNT menu - syrup poured in snow, rolled into taffy on a tree stick.  (wow!)

At one point, a cage of crickets was placed on our table - a nod to the Japanese tradition of paying homage to seasons past.  These were the last crickets of summer.  (Once we were informed that we would not be eating the little critters, we lovingly named them: Fast Eddie and Flo.) 

El and Dan were all in. As the sake pairings flowed, our 4 top just kept getting more and more excited. More in love with everything that was unfolding around us

and then, when things couldn't get any better: 

11:58 Which was a surprise to us. We had long since lost track of time. Manager, John Schafer, approached our table with 4 champagne glasses  He popped and poured from a bottle of 2000 Dom Bubbles for Midnight, he explained. (I couldn't make this up if I tried.) 11:59 Manager, Bradley Gene Smith held up his iphone and on it, a countdown to midnight.  We counted along as the seconds ticked by:

10...9....8.... Happy New Year!!!!

There were cheers and kisses.  The chefs came out of the kitchen and everyone was hugging everyone.  The energy was infectious - and in that moment, at that restaurant, it WAS the start of the new year with all of the hope and joy and newness that comes with it.  You could just feel it.

As I squeezed my husband, sister, brother and friends I was positively overwhelmed with gratitude.  Thankful that I have this passion and that I get to share it with the people I love most.

NEXT suspended reality and gave us a holiday together... Pretty incredible, right?

The crazy part is that Ellen & I have celebrated NYE together our whole life - from scavenger hunts in the north woods to bartops on top of mountains to boats sailing the carribean to sketchy ass clubs somewhere in cancun.  We adore NYE, but this was, unlike anything we have ever done together. (Even if our overhang the next day was all too familiar)

It was the best possible start to a new year. By the best possible team. 

The thing that I didn't know before becoming a food enthusiast is that NEXT is not just in the business of serving the finest meals, they are in the business of blowing minds.

Mission Accomplished! 

You can read Phill Vetel's 4 star review of Kyoto here And look through Ulterior Epicure's photos of the meal here.