Gary And Amy Moran Plan Their Next Move At Wimauma [Life After Knife & Co.]

Posted Dec 12, 2011 by Jeff Houck

Updated Dec 12, 2011 at 08:26 AM

When we last saw chef Gary Moran and wife Amy in early November, they were walking away from the Knife & Co. restaurant they helped open.

The big news wasn’t that they had left, but that they had done so during service just four days after its opening.

Even as they left, they were promising to open another restaurant, possibly on Davis Islands.

During the subsequent weeks, the couple took off for Thanksgiving and scouted new opportunities. Knife & Co. moved on, elevating Allison Beasman to executive chef and letting Kitchenbar use its space for the month of December as a pop-up restaurant.

I heard from Amy over the weekend. They’ve taken the keys to the space on South MacDill formerly occupied by Delizie Bakery.

The new restaurant’s name: Wimauma.

Unlike Knife, which played with rustic southern flavors, their menu this time will emphasize fresh, local, Florida ingredients.

Plans are for a “pre-construction pop-up” opening this weekend.

A pop-up in south Tampa to go up against the Kitchenbar pop-up? Stay tuned for more details.

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Where Would You Go If You Only Had 24 Hours In Tampa? [We Do Bourdain’s ‘Layover’ Here]

Posted Dec 8, 2011 by Jeff Houck

Updated Dec 8, 2011 at 07:51 AM

=I caught Anthony Bourdain‘s new series “The Layover” the other night.

The concept: Tony spends 24 hours or so between connecting flights in cities around the worlds that are airline travel hubs: Singapore, Montreal, Los Angeles, San Francisco. That sort of thing.

Think of it as another way for Travel Channel to squeeze more out of their signature star between episodes of his popular “No Reservations” series.

I dug the episode he shot in his hometown of New York City, where he chowed on fried mayonnaise hot dogs at Crif Dogs on the Upper East Side and hibachi beef cheeks at Taskashi in the West Village.

“As with most of my travels, I tend to eat my way through a city,” he said on the show. “New York is no different.”

It got me thinking about where I would tell people to go in the Tampa area if they only had 24 hours to get a glimpse of what the city has to offer.

The list is harder than it seems.

First, you don’t want to bog people down with a long meal that will swallow a majority of their time. So, as much as I’d suggest a Flintstone-thick porterhouse at Bern’s, I’d probably advise them to skip it this time.

In keeping with Bourdain’s premise, I’d want to direct them to places that are accessible by taxi for a fare that costs less than a month’s rent. That rules out spots such as Ted Peters Smoked Fish in Pasadena or Campbell’s Dairyland in Brandon. I’d aim for diversity and texture and uniqueness over glamour and style. Because, let’s face it, we’re short on glitz anyway.

So here goes. Feel free to dispute

The Hub, 719 N. Franklin St., Tampa

Who doesn’t love a dive bar? As I’ve said before, this is the kind of place to go after donating plasma, after getting off probation or before getting on a cross-country bus. The cocktails are stiff, the bartenders are friendly, the lights are low, the jukebox is crammed with good tunes. What more could you want?

Kaisen Sushi, 14841 N. Dale Mabry Highway, Tampa

Walk in, sit down, put two crisp $20 bills on the table and then say the word “omakase.” There’s no telling what you might eat. Could be vinegar sushi salad. Might be sliced squid adorned with daikon radish. It might well be the freshest sushi and sashimi you’ll eat in Tampa. Whatever it is, just eat it and enjoy letting the masters drive the bus.

Pierogi Grill, 1535 Gulf to Bay Blvd., Clearwater

Although rare in the Tampa Bay area, pierogies aren’t the most exotic of foods. Serve them in an Egyptian-themed restaurant, and you have our attention. That’s right. Eqyptian. Don’t ask. Just eat the pyzy dumplings and enjoy.

Acapulco Mexican Grocery, 1001 N MacDill Ave., Tampa

Past the aisles of Mexican foodstuffs, beyond the shelves with the knock-off piñatas, you’ll find a taco counter that serves amazing carnitas, al pastor and chicken tacos. The salsa verde is a revelation. This is like finding a delicious, hidden oasis in the back of a secret chamber.

The Fish House, 1902 W. Shell Point Road, Ruskin

Face it: Food just tastes better when you’re sitting on a picnic bench outdoors. When it is fried fish, shrimp, oysters, clams, scallops and soft-shelled crabs, well, that makes a special roadside fish shack now, doesn’t it? How much do I love this place? This is where my family goes to celebrate birthdays. No lie.

Wat Mongkolratanaram, 5306 Palm River Road, Tampa

Say two words to any Tampa foodie: “Thai Temple.” Then stand back and watch the reaction. Those who have been to this riverside Thai buffet on Sundays from about 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. will roll their eyes and mumble something about deliciousness and freshness and red pork curry and ohmygoodnessthatwasincredible.

Oceanic Supermarket, 1609 N Tampa St., Tampa

Perched on the northern edge of downtown Tampa, just above the ribbon of I-275 that cuts through town, you’ll find some amazing, fresh-roasted Peking duck. Sure, you can find dragonfruit and pork uterus and everything else that Asian cooks use to make amazing meals. But what you want is Peking duck to go. Trust me.

West Tampa Sandwich Shop, 3904 N. Armenia Ave. Tampa

When I want to show people what eating in the heart of Tampa’s Latin community tastes like, I take them here. Why? Because someone did that for me once. I like to pay it forward. More frequently than I care to admit, I jones for the insanely inexpensive garbanzo bean soup, the devil crab and the Cuban sandwich. Plus, you can’t beat the neighborhood atmosphere. Oh, and bring cash. This shop is too good for plastic.

Okay, now it’s your turn. What did I miss? What places would you take friends if they were laying over at Tampa International Airport? E-mail me at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

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Mario Batali Is Coming To Town [Celebrity Chef To Demo Italian Food At Pepin Hospitality]

Posted Dec 7, 2011 by Jeff Houck

Updated Dec 7, 2011 at 03:14 PM

Just saw on the Publix Aprons Cooking School schedule that celebrity chef Mario Batal is scheduled to come to Tampa on Feb. 24 to throw around some olive oil and sign some copies of his latest cookbook, “Molto Batali,” at the Pepin Hospitality Center.

Tickets, which list for $95, go on sale Dec. 12.

Here’s the description of the event:

You’re invited to have your tastebuds tantalized by Mario Batali—a chef who believes that olive oil is as precious as gold, shorts are acceptable attire for every season, and food, like most things, is best when left to its own simple beauty.

Mario, together with his business partner Joe Bastianich, create magic night after night in his many twelve hotspots in New York City, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas. Their flagship restaurant is the award-winning Babbo Ristorante e Enoteca in Greenwich Village; however Mario is also the chef/owner of six other enormously successful restaurants in New York City. But his success isn’t limited to there. Along with a recent venture—a trattoria in Port Chester, New York— the duo has made several west coast ventures, including restaurants in Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

Mario is the recipient of many accolades, including those from GQ Magazine, the James Beard Foundation, and D’Artagnan Cervena Who’s Who of Food & Beverage in America. He’s authored Simple Italian Food; Mario Batali Holiday Food; The Babbo Cookbook; Molto Italiano: 327 Simple Italian Recipes; Mario Tailgates NASCAR Style; and Mario Batali: Italian Grilling. He also has a PBS series, Spain…On the Road Again, with co-stars Mark Bittman, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Spanish actress Claudia Bassols. The show follows the foursome’s adventures as they travel and eat their way through Spain.

This evening will include a buffet of Mario’s recipes, a book signing, and a cooking demonstration by Mario.

Does Mario need the coin? Unlikely, since he’s on ABC’s “The Chew,” is a Cooking Channel cornerstone and utilizes a hefty chunk of Manhattan real estate for culinary purposes.

My guess is that he’s using the event in part to raise money for his Mario Batali Foundation.

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Bistro Bleu To Close After Saturday Service [Love On Your Favorite Restaurant. Soon.]

Posted Dec 7, 2011 by Jeff Houck

Updated Dec 7, 2011 at 07:20 AM

Sad restaurant news to report: Bistro Bleu on south MacDill in Tampa will close after their service Saturday night.

A note from co-owner and chef Tina Hurless last night shared the bad news.

We are closing this Saturday. We have tried to find ways to make it work in the new location, but the economy seems to be against us. With all restaurants being down some these days, we just don’t have the financial backing we need to hold on through the next year or so it’s gonna take to get everything turned around to some sense of normalcy.

We are thankful to have had such a great run at this as a bistro, but our time has come.

I will regroup and probably open something in another year or two, but for now I need to get my feet back below me… and some long earned stress-free sleep.

This is bad, folks. Beyond just a restaurant closing.

Hurless and her former business partner Jessica Raia-Long started Bistro Bleu as NoHo Bistro in West Tampa at a time when it wasn’t exactly fashionable to do so in that part of town. Earlier this year, the business moved from north of I-275 on Armenia Avenue to South MacDill Avenue after Raia-Long sold her half of the business to co-worker Tomas Carrasquillo, who assumed front-of-house responsibilities.

The former location had a good lunch traffic and the business built a catering side business to supplement the bottom line, but the quaint eatery wasn’t exactly visible to south Tampa diners who rarely go north of Kennedy Boulevard. The new location, which had to compete with restaurants like Datz Deli, Restaurant BT and other better-established South Tampa spots, never really took off after the name changed to Bistro Bleu, despite going to great lengths to tell customers that the restaurant had ties to NoHo.

I loved the food. It kind of became an inside joke that I couldn’t resist the Bison Burger. Still can’t.

I had lots of company. Food critics dug the place, too. Back when it was NoHo, former Tribune dining critic John Allman gave the restaurant a glowing review in 2008:

TAMPA - It’s one thing for a dining critic to tell you how much he or she enjoyed a meal somewhere.

It’s just one opinion, after all. That’s why we often take other people with us to serve as a backstop - an unbiased sounding board.

This particular trip was no exception. Four very opinionated, discriminating palates all reached the same conclusion: The NoHo Bistro delivered one of the best meals each of us had eaten. Ever. From preparation to presentation.

This quietly confident restaurant in Tampa’s evolving North Howard-Armenia corridor has a handful of tables, hand-painted wall murals and a dinner menu to rival the city’s most revered and recognized dining destinations.

After several years building its reputation with a well-regarded lunch, NoHo’s owners have finally expanded to offer a four-day-a-week dinner service that truly must be tasted to be believed.

Hurless and Raia-Long were active in local business advocacy groups and championed the independent business community. They networked and did all the things small-business owners do when they’re trying to make a dent in the community.

But the economy never cut them a break. In 2009, I wrote:

TAMPA - At the intimate West Tampa restaurant NoHo Bistro on a recent Monday, there were 12 customers for lunch.

Usually, someone will order tea or a diet soda with their meal at the North Armenia Avenue restaurant. Occasionally, they’ll sip a glass of wine. On that Monday, everyone asked for a glass of tap water.

There’s no such thing as a free lunch. Or a free beverage with that lunch.

“I’m now giving them free water with lemon in a glass that cost me 16 cents,” co-owner Jessica Raia-Long says.

The economic recession has made life tough for restaurants. This past summer, the food-service industry experienced its fourth consecutive quarter of traffic declines, according to The NPD Group, a market research company.

Total restaurant traffic dropped by 3.6 percent during June, July, and August versus the summer quarter last year.
 
With such a slowdown becoming the norm, even something as small as a slice of lemon in a glass of water makes paying the bills more difficult.

No matter the size of the business, local restaurants have been forced to adapt in ways they never anticipated. Some are using the downturn to take advantage of better real estate deals. Others are getting by through creative management practices.

Raia-Long and her business partner, chef Tina Hurless, supplement their bottom line by working a tent at the Tampa Downtown Market on Fridays. While selling slices of Quiche Florentine for $3 each or entire pies for $12, they also advertise their catering services and an upcoming Thanksgiving meal on a chalkboard. A recent Friday’s sales brought in $220.

Then earlier this year, the restaurant got bit by the Groupon snake. I wrote about Bistro as a cautionary tale for restaurants who were considering discount coupon services as a way of generating foot traffic:

Bistro Bleu on South MacDill Avenue in Tampa, formerly NoHo Bistro, gave the Groupon thing a try last year during the summertime dead zone, from March to September.

All went fairly smoothly for the first few months. Customers bought their Groupons for $15 and tended to spend more than the $35 covered by the discount. Some booked parties at the restaurant after discovering it through the offer. A few became regulars.

Then the tsunami hit.

Toward the end of the six months, Groupon began reminding buyers that their time limit was about to end. Customers with discounts in hand flooded the restaurant. Only now, they weren’t going over the $35 limit. And the $15 that the restaurant was splitting in half with Groupon? The restaurant had to eat the service charge every time a customer used a credit card. And seats occupied by the Grouponers nudged out the full-paying,established clientele.

The customer profile changed as well. Those who came for dinners at the beginning of the offer instead started showing up for less-expensive lunches. And when their bill didn’t make it to $35 limit, they’d order a cookie. Or two. Or five.

“We used to go through three dozen cookies a week, offering them as a nice touch with the meal,” co-owner Tomas Carrasquillo told me. “We started going through three dozen a day. I had a prep guy spending three hours each shift just making cookies.”

It didn’t end when the offer expired. Groupon customers begged Carrasquillo to let them still use their coupons in the days and weeks after it ended.

“At first I said yes,” he said. “I recognize that there’s a certain value in not angering people.”

That didn’t satisfy the penny-pinchers.

Not even eight months later, after the business moved to South Tampa and changed its name. People still came begging for a markdown. One customer who got upset about the Groupon not being valid with a half-off bottle of wine offer went online to spew on Google Reviews.

The bottom line: Independent businesses are getting crushed right now. Fuel costs aren’t dropping significantly, which means food costs aren’t dropping. Which means profits for mid-tier restaurants are thin at best, if existent at all. Luxury restaurants and bargain eateries are making money, but the ones in the middle are getting pounded.

If you love a restaurant, go have a meal. Or two. They could use it right now.

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Bacon And Maple Syrup Sundaes, Mimosa Cupcakes and Duck Confit Salad [This Week’s Weekend Eats]

Posted Dec 5, 2011 by Jeff Houck

Updated Dec 5, 2011 at 12:16 PM

Joan Nova, who follows me under the name @foodalogue on Twitter, writes and photographs for a beautiful blog by the same name.

The dish above is a compote made of winter fruits and served with a side of pancake muffins.

She writes:

I associate compote with my maternal grandmother. It’s not that I have a specific recollection of her making it for me…but, somehow, when I think of compote I think of her, so there must be a connection somwewhere in the recesses of my childhood memories.

I think she would approve of my recipe.I have to say at the start that I’m not a big fan of winter fruit, but I love this! Hand-held winter fruit just doesn’t have the same appeal to me as grabbing a juicy black plum or a sweet peach and biting in. But…an apple or pear that is accompanied by a good cheese and a glass of wine…or has been baked, stewed or otherwise altered…well, then, now we’re talking.

For this delicious seasonal recipe and the beautiful photo she took of it earned her this week’s first-place prize for Weekend Eats:

“The Food 52 Cookbook” by Amanda Hesser & Merrill Stubbs. It’s a great, great read with lots of fantastic recipes perfect for your gift-giving needs.

Other fantastic contributors this week include:

@amoretogo - @ventsbyAmore we catered in Gainesville and had some crazy good Arancini with pea & mushroom, along pink champagne

@kitchenmage - Taste of organic, raw evaporated cane sugar, aged 32 months. (10#/30 beans) #swoon

@otmdish - Lovely mashed carrots & rutabegas with truffle butter!! also luscious swordfish belly.

@sekimori - Shingetsu sushi, NY style pizza and thai chile sauced mahi….and not one bloody picture taken.

@bergus - Duck confit salad, and rack of lamb and risotto at a surprisingly classy community college restaurant.

Shirley Steele - Chicken pepper pasta made with fresh red and yellow peppers and grated aged parmesan cheese. What made the meal that much more delicious is my fiance and I cooked it together!

@SaintPetersblog - Bachelor Party in NoLa, so Oyster’s at Felix’s and lots of Emeril, whose restos still deliveri excellent food.

@PhoebeDiane - Mama cooked up @Mariobatali’s paella recipe for my boyfriend’s “meet the parents” dinner. I think it went over well.

@LynnATL - Caldo de quinoa - Chicken broth with quinoa and fresh vegetables from Tierra in ATL. Delicious yumminess.

@HeatherHAL - Freshly caught local Dungeness crab at the Wharf & Irish coffees at the Buena Vista #Crabonanza

@mimijohnson - Boeuf Bourguignon from Le Select in Toronto. A gift from heaven.

@heatherdd93 – Oh, so sinful mimosa cupcakes! Of course there’s champagne in there!!!

Here’s this week’s droolworthy gallery. Click on each photo to get a description:

 

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