It’s hard to believe that it’s already the middle of July as I’m sitting here writing this. Already in the middle of summer and I’ve yet to post about everything that’s going on at the restaurant!

So what have I been up to since February? Lots of planning to create lots of fun for you!

First I’ll mention our newest dinner series, which I’m sure some of you are already familiar with – the Hudson Valley Farm & New York State Beer Dinner series! We’ve done wine pairing dinners and other similar events in the past… but for me this dinner series is especially exciting because it focuses on LOCAL ingredients. Local products to create a delicious menu paired with only the best of New York State Craft beers by the Bev Man himself, Chris Carbone. The inaugural dinner planned for July 22 sold out within a few days, but not to worry, an August dinner is in the works. The July dinner is featuring a lot of great farmers who we work with on a regular basis – Migliorelli Farms (http://www.migliorelli.com/) will provide many of the vegetables or fruits, including peaches, arugula, squash blossoms and cherries; Old Chatham Sheep Herding Company (http://www.blacksheepcheese.com/) for camembert; Sprout Creek Farm (http://www.sproutcreekfarm.org/) for Toussant Cheese; Northwind Farms Chicken (http://northwindfarmsallnatural.com/); and Hudson Valley Fresh (http://hudsonvalleyfresh.com/) dairy products. I really support these local farmers and their products, and even if you can’t make it to our farm dinner, I’d encourage you to try their products. Farm to Table can happen in your kitchen too! And don’t forget to grab a great New York State beer - that’s half the fun!

Keeping with the theme of local goodness – the Hudson Valley Green Festival on September 4th that I mentioned back in February is in full swing! You can get your tickets now through the website, www.hudsonvalleygreenfestival.com. We were able to get a great line up of bands including Blues Traveler, Donna the Buffalo and Amos Lee, as well as some local stars (Voodelic, the Lindsey Rakers Band… check the website for a full list). More than just a music fest though, the festival will have a full farmer’s market featuring all local products on site, as well as over 20 vendors with Hudson Valley products. There will even be a pavilion for Hudson Valley companies who work with alternative energy. So bring the family, come to eat, drink and have fun, but don’t forget to take a minute and check out some of the local resources we have to live a little bit greener and support the well being of the Hudson Valley.

And that’s just some of what’s been happening at Terrapin, but I’ll save more for another post soon.

Chef Kroner

Best Food Cities

I love to travel and I love to eat great food. I was thinking about the best cities for food and I’ve decided to throw out my top 10:

1. New York – The best restaurants and best ethnic food hands down!
2. San Francisco – #2 to NY in restaurants but better Asian food
3. London – Amazing Indian restaurants
4. Paris – Best place to get a 10,000 calorie lunch
5. Rome – Or any other city in Italy
6. Bangkok – As much as you might like Thai food in the US….
7. Los Angeles – Asian and Latino food paradise
8. New Orleans – A beautiful blend of original food and culture
9. Singapore – Food is the thread that holds this multiethnic city-state together
10. Tokyo – Because I love sushi

I’m sure my list is different than yours; tell me what you think!

Cookbook excerpt

My book incorporates stories of the influences on my life as a chef. I'm serving you up a slice:

In 1928, Giaccomo Bartholemeo Giaccone, my grandfather and a French trained chef, was on shore leave in New York City from the Italian Merchant vessel “Chevaliere Ciampa”. At the time, there were over 100 “taxi dance halls” in Manhattan. These were extremely popular spots where male patrons would pay ten cents to dance with pretty women hired by the club. Though it does kind of sound like a precursor to today’s strip clubs, it was different time. Many of the dancing girls did this just to meet men; as was the case with my grandmother Felicia Marino. Well as the story goes, Giaccomo (or Jack as he was known) jumped ship, got a job as a chef in Manhattan and started his life with a pretty taxi girl. In 1948, with two kids: my mama Louisa, 12 and uncle Vinny (yes the same Uncle Vinny as the popular pasta dish on my menu), 7, they moved out of the Marino family home in Bay Ridge Brooklyn and moved upstate to Brewster, NY to start a restaurant. History repeated itself fifty years later when in 1998 I also moved from the city to upstate New York to start a restaurant.
Chef Jack’s restaurant, The Elms, was a trendsetter. The restaurant was extremely popular and even received a glowing review from Gourmet magazine. Jack was a passionate and fiery Italian, serving up the traditional southern Italian dishes that Americans were accustomed to, but also incorporating foods from his native Liguria such as pesto and risotto. One of my favorite stories happened one night when one of the customers complained about the seasoning of their dish. Jack stormed out of the kitchen to help educate to poor soul on the flavors of Northern Italy. The patron feeling attacked reacted defensively. The room of 80 or so happily feasting folks seemed sympathetic to his plight and random voices called out for mercy. Jack would have none of this: “All right then!” he said in his heavy Italian accent, “EVERYBODY OUT! What are you laughing at? Put-a down that fork and get the hell out of my restaurant!!!” They all eventually came back; there was nowhere else to get food like that.

Chef Kroner returns to the blogosphere

That right folks, I'm back! I’ve been busy with a growing array of new projects and I'm here today to share the details. First on my plate is my long overdue cookbook. This is something I've been tossing around for a while, but I’ve got the ball rolling full speed now. I’ll be publishing samples of various sections and recipes here in my blog regularly so stay tuned for those posts.
This is something I'm really excited about.. We’re currently planning a festival slated for Labor Day weekend that will showcase green products and services of the Hudson Valley as well as some of the best national and regional musical artists you know and love. Our full lineup of talent for the big stage will be announced soon!! The event will not only promote the green movement in the Hudson valley, but will also be a fund raiser for a local charity (TBA - tune in for details!).
As if I don't have enough to do already, I'm also planning an expansion of Terrapin Bistro into New York City (and possibly Rome as well!) No problem right!! ;) I am however committed to documenting this insanity weekly right here so check back frequently for updates!!! See ya folks… Josh