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New Season, New Chicken
2008-06-09 14:05:00
As the seasons change, we have to change how we rethink the menu. I’ve of course mentioned this before. We like to keep the same mix of items on the menu though, we just like to use them in different ways. For example, our grilled tuna salad has now become a light, cool ...
More About: Season , Chicken , The Story

12/13
2008-06-03 16:21:00
I guess I knew what I was getting into. There were plenty of warnings that being a chef would be a hard, tiring job. Heck, several people tried to warn me away from becoming a chef if only because it is such an incredible increase in effort. But I ignored those people since I was raised in a family that was always willing to let me know what I wanted to do with my life. While growing up, the most common phrase I heard when I thought up a new career choice (which admittedly was often) was “Oh, you don’t want to do that…” As a result of this indoctrination, I rarely listen to people’s advice on career decisions since that would only keep me from trying out new things. “And as we can see from your career profile aptitude test, you are best suited to be a priest, stand-up comic or lumberjack. Good luck with that.” Once again, it is only fair that I point out that my family was 100% supportive of my decision to become a chef. At no po...

One Year at Rustico
2008-05-19 17:49:00
Can you believe it my loyal readers? It has been a year since my first day at Rustico. (Actually the anniversary was yesterday, but give me a break, I had to work that day…) As I mentioned before, when I took this job, it was my third restaurant in one year. I was ...
More About: The Story , Year

The Real Deadliest Catch
2008-05-13 15:49:00
Sig Hansen is a hero of mine… The show on the Discovery Channel about crab fishermen in the Bering Sea, The Deadliest Catch , is a wonderful reality drama, and beings some perspective to what some people have to endure just so we can have whatever food we want whenever we want it. But being a resident of the DC area, there is another type of crab that we focus on around here - the Maryland Blue Crab. And simply put, they are not doing so well. Click for larger image. The harvest numbers have been declining year after year in the Chesapeake Bay as they are over-fished year after year for crab cakes, crab bisque, crab boils, crab dip and so many other wonderful crab creations. As a child growing up here, I remember the days when a bushel of these crabs were plentiful and cost only about $20. This year, I have seen the cost as high as $220 for a single bushel. But these incredible costs - like our addiction to gasoline - do not seem to be deterring customers. Simply pu...
More About: Real , Deadliest Catch

The Long Road to a Perfect Margarita
2008-05-05 15:15:00
Cold, lime-flavored, salt-rimmed glass… as God intended. There is nothing that says “Today is Cinco de Mayo,” to me as much as a nice, ice cold margarita. I prefer them on the rocks - to put that debate to bed early - though I will have one frozen too if that is all that is available. But as for flavor, I am all about the traditional lime. I mean really, what else is supposed to go with tequila but lime? But until recently, a great margarita was something that was only available for me at Mexican restaurants and upscale bars. And even those were frequently disappointing. I’ve tried to make margaritas myself for several years now, and the road has been one fraught with many terrible attempts and nights that (thankfully) I’ll never remember. But with 9 years of persistence and a blending of so many recipes and techniques that I’ve come across, I have finally created what I consider to be the perfect margarita. So great, that I would even d...
More About: Perfect , Long , Road

Who Knows What Evil Lies in the Heart of Cheesecake??
2008-04-24 05:48:00
It seems that the consistent need for a “bad guy” in American public has extended itself to the world of food. Just like we need a “Public Enemy #1″ to be scared of when we walk down the streets, we need a “health enemy #1″ to avoid like the plague (pun not intended) to ...
More About: Heart , Evil , Cheesecake , Lies , The Heart

Don’t Fear the Nettles
2008-04-21 20:44:00
The fun thing about being a professional chef is the ability to work with ingredients that are not only hard to find, but in many cases are ones I have never heard of. It’s the collaboration with those who are more experienced than me that make my career into a daily learning experience. Sure, I can’t wait for the day to come when I’m the one with all the answers and experience, but in the meantime, I’m of course enjoying the chance to learn everything I can so I’ll be ready. Pretty soon, every garden in Northern Virginia will look like this… Springtime is upon us here in DC, and with the return of greenery on the trees and flowers on the azaleas comes a resurgence of fresh vegetables that are once again available. Even in this modern age we are subject to some degree of seasonality with respect to what ingredients we have to surrender in the winter months. As I squeezed into our management office (read: closet) to begin my daily paperwork ...
More About: Fear

My Wife?s Sweet Payoff
2008-04-16 05:00:00
So many of you have been asking, and I’m happy to finally reveal the gift my wife received from me with the “found” $500. You all voted. I then tallied the votes. And I was too stupid to rig the results. First of all, my wife would like to thank all of you, the random ...
More About: Wife , Sweet

Vinegar Redeux
2008-04-08 16:13:00
As I mentioned a few weeks back when describing my vinegar class to you all, the class was such a success, that we decided to re-run it. Well, time keeps marching on and yesterday was the day when the “re-run” became simply “the run”. And yes, the class went just fine. (Something ...
More About: The Story , Vinegar

Tuesday With Maury
2008-04-06 02:48:00
I know that the main reason that most of you read this blog is for the food-related content and how the story of my career into the culinary world is continuing to evolve day by day. And I promise that eventually this post will get to that interesting stuff. In fact, if you ...
More About: Reviews , The Story , Tuesday

Bread Pudding Soufflé
2008-03-25 22:44:00
This is a recipe I just transcribed from my recipe file for a friend. It is from somewhere in New Orleans, but I don’t know where (if anyone does, I would love to credit it properly). Anyway, it is about the best soufflé I have ever had, so I wanted to share it ...
More About: Recipes , Bread , Pudding

A Taste of the Forbidden Fruit
2008-03-24 18:22:00
Last Monday, I filled in for a fellow sous chef, which actually was my paying in advance for a day he will be covering for me. (I guess the easy way of saying that is, “We switched days.”) This was the first Monday I have worked at Rustico since my very first week ...
More About: Fruit , Taste , The Story

My Very Own ?Big Night? Moment
2008-03-10 16:28:00
A fabulous film, and of course it doesn’t hurt that it’s about Italians… For those of you who don’t understand, “Big Night ” is simply the best film ever made about what it is to be a chef. (Yes, even better than “Ratatouille”) Perhaps I am slightly biased in that it has to deal with Italian chefs, ...
More About: Recipes , Moment , The Story

A Surprise Field Trip
2008-02-26 20:48:00
Coming in on Wednesday mornings is always tough since it is my version of a Monday morning. Last Wednesday though I was greeted to an unfamiliar sight, as there was a long table set up in the middle of the dining room complete with little aprons tied to each of the chairs - all with names on them. I stared at this odd site for a minute, trying to process this oddity through the haze of my early morning sleepiness, but soon gave up as I was sure someone would explain it to me soon enough. I went about the rest of my normal morning set-up duties, dodging the questions from the rest of my line staff who all wanted to know what was up with the weird table set up in the middle of the restaurant. I just kept responding with, “I have no idea,” until they stopped asking me the same question over and over. They’re coming… Be ready! Eventually the AM manager showed up and explained that a field trip of kindergarteners was coming to the restaurant at 10AM, and ...
More About: Trip , Field

My Wife Wins It!
2008-02-16 03:16:00
Thanks to all of you who voted to see what I should do with the $500 of “found money” I came across a little while back. You all voted, and my wife was the big winner. Here are the results: What should Chef Matt do with the $500? Votes Save it! This is money to help fund your future restaurant!  22% 33 Spend the money on your wife as a reward for sticking by you.  35% 52 Go out to an amazing meal at a fabulous restaurant you  21% 32 Buy yourself a new set of top-notch knives.  22% 33 150 votes total So while I thank you for all the votes, my wife thanks you for all the votes for her. Now all I have to do is figure out how I am going to spend it on her, but I assure you, I’ll keep you all posted on that as well. Chef Matt
More About: Wife , Wins

A Brief Smile on My Day Off
2008-02-16 03:06:00
My days off are usually something I treasure for the fact that I can actually spend more than 20 minutes sitting down at a stretch. That, and I can watch shows like The Price is Right and Maury, and not worry that there is a soup somewhere that we are running out of. In short, it is a day I can forget about the worries of the restaurant and just enjoy a nice, relaxing day. Honeybees are now practically extinct in the wild in North America. Do what you can to help protect them. Though on this past day off, I was called twice for work-related issues. The first call was from my meat vendor to tell me that he was out of rabbits for now, but hoped to have them in the next day. The next call was from an apiary I have worked with in the past who wanted to know if I wanted any other specialty honeys for the restaurant. Now I’m just not the type who says to calls like this, “This is my day off, don’t bother me.” It’s not in my nature. So I too the call...
More About: Smile

The Big Game
2008-02-05 17:47:00
Enjoy the game people?… So, did you all enjoy your Super Bowl Sunday? Have a nice relaxing time watching all the pre-game hoopla? Maybe you made a run to the store for more chips and dip or called up for a pizza to be delivered while you sat on your comfy couch watching the ...
More About: Game , The Story , Big Game

Don?t Vote for Me, Vote for Alejandra!
2008-02-05 16:34:00
window.document.getElementById('post-575' ).parentNode.className += ' adhesive_post'; Mmmm… chocolate. I have asked you all in the past to vote for me for certain contests, and you have all come through huge for me. But this time, since I’m not in the contest, I ask that you vote for one of my good friends, Alejandra, and her awesome blog, “Always ...
More About: Vote

Death in the Kitchen
2008-01-28 16:23:00
No, please rest assured dear readers that all of my kitchen staff is alive and well. Nor is this title in reference to the many animals that are killed in order to bring about the delicious food we serve. If you want that type of propaganda, please go visit some other silly site. The death in question is rather in reference to some of my beloved equipment that has shuffled off this mortal coil after incredible service to me and my restaurant. First, there are my shoes. If you can still call them that. I bought a pair of slip-resistant work shoes back when I was working at Vero that were light weight, comfortable and really affordable. I have worn them every day since. Sure the leather coating was starting to peel a little here and there, but as is the case with all shoes, the more I wore them, the more comfortable they got. I just couldn’t bear to give them up. Yeah, I actually wear these out in public… The other day, chef looks down at my feet and says, &ld...
More About: Kitchen , Death

Another Restaurant Week Gone By
2008-01-22 16:16:00
Since I live near a major metropolis, I?m able to partake of the grand tradition of restaurant week. It?s a wonderful tradition that allows people like me - who live on a chef’s salary or it?s equivalent - to enjoy three course meals on the cheap. Lunches for $20 and dinners for $30 ...
More About: Reviews , Restaurant , Week

Beer Dinner
2008-01-22 00:48:00
“We’re starting up our beer dinners again this month Matt, and I want you to come up with this month’s menu Matt.” Normally requests like this from Chef inspire me, and I’m always thrilled and honored to receive such a responsibility. But this time his request was accompanied by a touch of trepidation. Beer ...
More About: Dinner , The Story

The $500 Run-Off Vote
2008-01-07 15:32:00
OK, so the first set of options I gave you all resulted in what I consider to be a 4-way tie. Some options really jumped out, while others have faded away. (I was kind of hoping you’d pick the lottery tickets, but alas, that was a no-go.) Anyway, here is your all’s run-off vote ...
More About: Vote

Truffle This!
2008-01-02 05:05:00
= It seems that this country goes through periods of culinary stagnation wherein one ingredient is seen as the magical cure-all for whatever it is that someone is cooking. It is the epitome of culinary stagnation, like some collective “writer’s block” that all chefs suffer from simultaneously, and they collectively fill that void in ...

Heaven and Hell
2007-12-31 18:26:00
Pure Heaven . A thought occurred to me today as I made breakfast for myself and the wife. Every morning in heaven, you are served hot, sunny-side-up fried eggs cooked in fresh bacon fat. Runny yolks, buttered toast, perfectly seasoned. Every morning in hell you get cold scrambled eggs cooked in butter. Chef Matt
More About: Hell , Heaven and Hell

Found Money
2007-12-24 17:08:00
This is one of those oddly true stories that makes no sense to me, but all the same results in an unique opportunity for you, my loyal readers. So my wife and I were going through piles of old papers and so forth that had collected over the past few months when my wife ...
More About: Money , The Story

The Definition of Frustrating
2007-12-16 02:40:00
All of the sous chefs in a kitchen are in constant competition to prove themselves to the head chef. It’s like a bunch of children competing for their parents’ love, and in that way it is admittedly kinda dysfunctional. It almost seems that each one of us wants to appear to be the brightest, or have the best skills or ideas so we can be the main #2 guy in the kitchen. It’s not like such a position would really mean much of anything in the long run, but it is a way we can all compete I guess to make ourselves better at what we do. That’s what I’m talkin’ about baby! With the upcoming holiday party at our restaurant, chef had me bring in a whole pig so he could cook it for the crowd that’ll be on hand tomorrow night. He took the meat off the bones, holding the body of the pig all in one piece so he could stuff it with rice and olives and so forth. He then had Andrew (one of the other sous chefs) cook the stuffing, but Andrew over-cook...
More About: Definition

The Venison Dinner
2007-12-15 04:07:00
Sure, I cook a lot in my kitchen at work, but people are always wondering if I still cook at home. I have answered before, that indeed I do, and I feel like this might be an example of what I do on my “own time” in my kitchen. It all began with some friends ...
More About: Dinner

Finishing Up a Saturday
2007-12-11 17:32:00
I had dinner reservations this past Saturday with some good friends from college, and I knew that since Saturday nights usually get started fast and furious, I would have to make the reservations for later in the evening. I booked us a table at Corduroy for 8:30 which I figured would be plenty of ...
More About: The Story , Nish

Catching Up
2007-12-04 18:57:00
Wow, so little writing as of late. I know my fans are disappointed - all 12 of you - so allow me to bring you up to speed on some of the things that have been going on, and perhaps this will lead me back into the world of regular posting once again. Disney World. ...
More About: The Story

A Thanksgiving Story
2007-11-22 04:07:00
So I am sorry I have not written in so long. It’s not for lack of stories, but the muse has not been hitting me as of late. I just haven’t felt in a “writing mood”, and I don’t think I should be bloviating for the sake of staying current if I think ...
More About: Story , Thanksgiving , The Story , Hank