Results tagged “geoffreyzakarian”

There was some surprise when Geoffrey Zakarian’s three star restaurant Country (pictured) was shut down by the Department of Health last Friday. But it turns out that fruit flies, mouse droppings and a fly in the Maker’s Mark were the least of its problems – the main infraction was the restaurant’s unapproved sous vide method, which Country utilizes to vacuum-seal raw meat in plastic for slow cooking at low temperatures.

A bit of breaking food news: Doug Psaltis has left the Executive Chef position at Country restaurant after three years. Word has it that the 33 year-old chef has parted ways with chef/owner Geoffrey Zakarian to pursue other restaurant plans. While there’s no official word from the chef yet, chances are his next kitchen won’t be doing molecular gastronomy: Psaltis told Metromix in September that “I think we are getting too far away from our...

What’s worth watching, food-wise, on TV this week?

Earlier this year when Gothamist visited executive chef Doug Psaltis at Geoffrey Zakarian’s Country, we learned that French Laundry vet Hsing Chen had just been named Executive Pastry Chef for the fine-dining restaurant upstairs, as well as for the downstairs, more casual Cafe. “My focus is more on light, fruit based desserts, with different textures and temperatures,” Chen told Gothamist. She also mentioned her desire to locate, soup up, and outfit a dessert cart from Country’s vast arsenal of fine dining service ware. Laden with sweets and confections, the cart would make after dinner stops at every table upstairs at Country; customers could pick and choose anything from lemon macaroons to miniature pots de crème, in addition to the regular dessert course.

Doug Psaltis wants to cook dinner for you at Country, especially if you happen to be dining by yourself. “The minimum for a chef’s tasting menu is one person,” he says. “If you come in here, I will cook for you.” It sounds like a threat. Psaltis explains: “It happens once or twice a week. I’m excited for single diners; they’re not here for the company, they come here for the food and wine.” He leans back and thumbs the collar on his chef’s jacket. “The first thing we do is approach them and ask how they’d like to eat,” Psaltis says. “From there it goes anywhere from three to thirteen courses.”

Gothamist Cooks (Kind of) by the Book

As anyone knows from reading Kitchen Confidential, teasing and macho posturing are part of the kitchen life and people need to be tough (like the lone female chef in the kitchen, being harassed by a guy, who then turned around and grabbed the guy's balls). But this - this sounds insane. Can anyone people who have worked in restaurants (and their kitchens) tell us about what goes on?