From Off Duty WSJ
Meat on the Side: Modern Menus Shift the Focus to Vegetables
Anchoring a plate with a massive hunk of animal protein is so last century. But let’s face it: Vegetarianism isn’t for everyone. Increasingly, chefs like Jody Adams in Boston, Michael Solomonov in Philadelphia and Alain Ducasse in Paris are finding delicious ways to strike a balance between health and hedonism
By JANE BLACK | Oct. 31, 2014
MICHAEL SCELFO used to be the ultimate man’s cook. At the Russell House Tavern in Harvard Square, the 290-pound chef turned out all manner of charcuterie and innards, and enormous portions of everything else.
Before he opened his new restaurant, Alden & Harlow, also in Cambridge, Mass., in January, Mr. Scelfo put himself on a diet. He cut carbs and dairy, started eating a lot more vegetables and lost 95 pounds in a year. “It dramatically affected the way I cook,” he said. His menu still features a burger and a steak. But most of Mr. Scelfo’s dishes use meat as an accent, if at all. Among Alden & Harlow’s current offerings are smoked burrata crostini with fried kale, burnt honey and a thin slice of cured pork loin; crispy baby bok choy topped with a slow-cooked egg; and charred broccoli with squash hummus. “At the beginning, I’d have to send the broccoli out to people,” he said—free of charge. And they loved it. “When I see that feedback, my next question is: How do I up the ante?”
Chefs around the country, and the globe, are pushing meat from the center of the plate—and sometimes off it altogether. Trade, in Boston, serves polenta topped with fall squash, peppers, scallions and a scattering of pancetta, while at Zahav, in Philadelphia, roasted eggplant comes drizzled with lamb’s tongue vinaigrette. At New York’s Dovetail, a “vegetable-focused” menu features cured carrots with duck breast, cashews and black garlic. In September, Alain Ducasse, the godfather of French cuisine, announced that his flagship restaurant at the Plaza Athénée in Paris would remove most meat from the menu in favor of organic vegetables and seafood.
In short, an haute restaurant meal no longer has to deliver 8 ounces (or more) of meat plus a vegetable side. Increasingly, it is the opposite.
Several trends have converged in a perfect culinary storm. Awakened by the national obesity crisis, many Americans want to eat more healthfully—though perhaps not enough to leave the table hungry. The Harvard School of Public Health recommends eating red meat no more than twice a week. But chefs know that dividing the portions across many meals is a smarter strategy. Studies show that having even a little meat on the plate makes for more satisfied diners.
Read more from Off Duty WSJ >>
Meat on the Side: Modern Menus Shift the Focus to Vegetables
Anchoring a plate with a massive hunk of animal protein is so last century. But let’s face it: Vegetarianism isn’t for everyone. Increasingly, chefs like Jody Adams in Boston, Michael Solomonov in Philadelphia and Alain Ducasse in Paris are finding delicious ways to strike a balance between health and hedonism
By JANE BLACK | Oct. 31, 2014
MICHAEL SCELFO used to be the ultimate man’s cook. At the Russell House Tavern in Harvard Square, the 290-pound chef turned out all manner of charcuterie and innards, and enormous portions of everything else.
Before he opened his new restaurant, Alden & Harlow, also in Cambridge, Mass., in January, Mr. Scelfo put himself on a diet. He cut carbs and dairy, started eating a lot more vegetables and lost 95 pounds in a year. “It dramatically affected the way I cook,” he said. His menu still features a burger and a steak. But most of Mr. Scelfo’s dishes use meat as an accent, if at all. Among Alden & Harlow’s current offerings are smoked burrata crostini with fried kale, burnt honey and a thin slice of cured pork loin; crispy baby bok choy topped with a slow-cooked egg; and charred broccoli with squash hummus. “At the beginning, I’d have to send the broccoli out to people,” he said—free of charge. And they loved it. “When I see that feedback, my next question is: How do I up the ante?”
Chefs around the country, and the globe, are pushing meat from the center of the plate—and sometimes off it altogether. Trade, in Boston, serves polenta topped with fall squash, peppers, scallions and a scattering of pancetta, while at Zahav, in Philadelphia, roasted eggplant comes drizzled with lamb’s tongue vinaigrette. At New York’s Dovetail, a “vegetable-focused” menu features cured carrots with duck breast, cashews and black garlic. In September, Alain Ducasse, the godfather of French cuisine, announced that his flagship restaurant at the Plaza Athénée in Paris would remove most meat from the menu in favor of organic vegetables and seafood.
In short, an haute restaurant meal no longer has to deliver 8 ounces (or more) of meat plus a vegetable side. Increasingly, it is the opposite.
Several trends have converged in a perfect culinary storm. Awakened by the national obesity crisis, many Americans want to eat more healthfully—though perhaps not enough to leave the table hungry. The Harvard School of Public Health recommends eating red meat no more than twice a week. But chefs know that dividing the portions across many meals is a smarter strategy. Studies show that having even a little meat on the plate makes for more satisfied diners.
Read more from Off Duty WSJ >>
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