Thomas Keller

Upcoming Events: Bake Like Bouchon at Central Market

Aspiring pastry chefs and home bakers -- don't all freak out at once. Christina Tosi, award-winning pastry chef at Momofuku Milk Bar, and Sebastien Rouxel, author executive pastry chef for Bouchon and the Thomas Keller Restaurant Group, are both headed to Houston to teach one-off cooking classes at ... More >>

Chef Chat, Part 2: Bobby Matos of Ciao Bello, On Learning on the Fly in the Kitchen

Bobby Matos Ciao Bello 5161 San Felipe 713-960-0333 ciaobellohouston.com This is the second part of a three-part chef chat series. Read Part 1 here and look for Part 3 in this same space Friday. Yesterday, we chatted with Chef Bobby Matos about why he became a chef, and why he chose culinary sch ... More >>

This Week In Food Blogs

29-95: This week, take a trip out to Marfa with J.C. Reid, who heads to far west Texas in search of a Tex-Mex item rarely found this far east. What is it? The "elusive flat enchilada," which sees tortillas and cheese stacked lasagna style and then baked before being topped with a fried egg. Looking ... More >>

Culinary School Matriarch Marie Lenôtre Awarded Chevalier Award by Daniel Boulud

It's not every day that legendary chefs come to Houston. In fact, the last time Thomas Keller visited Houston, it was 1986. For one whirlwind weekend, however, Keller, Daniel Boulud, Jerome Bocuse, and the Bocuse d'Or USA team of chefs graced Houston with their presence. First on their agenda was ... More >>

Haters, Halitosis, and Haute Cuisine: Truffles vs. Truffle Oil

I don't like truffle oil, but I don't really care what it's made of. Don't get me wrong, I think it's vaguely misleading to pitch a $15 bottle of chemicals manufactured 100 yards off the Jersey Turnpike as a stand-in for a $6,000/pound European fungus, but I also think a reasonable amount of persona ... More >>

My Trip to Napa Valley: Part I

I'm pretty sure I fell in love with Napa. It's like an alcoholic's wine lover's Disneyworld; a dream land filled with picturesque landscape, a fantastic crisp breeze and some of the world's best wine at your fingertips, ripe for the taking. And the food scene; well, it's TDF. I was lucky enough t ... More >>

Chef Chat, Part 2: Erin Smith of Plonk, on What It's Like to Be a Woman in a Professional Kitchen

Erin Smith Plonk Bistro 1214 West 43rd Street 713-290-1070 www.plonkbistro.com This is the second part of a three-part chef chat series. Read Part 1 here and Part 3 in this same space on Friday. Yesterday, we chatted with Erin Smith of Plonk about her stint at Thomas Keller's Per Se in NYC. Smit ... More >>

Chef Chat, Part 1: Erin Smith of Plonk Bistro, on Her Externship at Per Se

Erin Smith Plonk Bistro 1214 West 43rd Street 713-290-1070 www.plonkbistro.com This is the first part of a three-part chef chat series. Look for Part 2 and Part 3 in this space Thursday and Friday. There are just a handful of female executive chefs in Houston, and at 29, Erin Smith of Plonk Bistr ... More >>

Chef Chat, Part 2: Amanda McGraw of Brasserie 19 and Ibiza

Yesterday, we chatted with Amanda McGraw of Brasserie 19 and Ibiza about her times staging in Chicago, and what it was like opening a restaurant like Brasserie 19. Today, we continue our conversation. EOW: What is your official title? AM: I am the Chef de Cuisine for Brasserie 19 and Ibiza. E ... More >>

The Key to the Kitchen: Coppa's Female Executive Chef, Brandi Key, Is No Novelty Act

November 3 was National Men Make Dinner Day, one of an increasingly nonsensical line of national holidays that are being trotted out in larger numbers every year. This particular holiday was especially perplexing to those in the food industry, where men make dinner every night. A man probably will m ... More >>

Ingredient of the Week: Purple Potatoes

Photo by John SuhButtermilk smashed purple potatoes​Another discovery from last month's trip to Thomas Keller's Ad Hoc Restaurant is these little bites of purple delight. Simply prepared yet full of earthy goodness, the potatoes were my favorite thing on the dish; I raved about them even more ... More >>

Ingredient of the Week: Golden Tomatoes

Photo by John SuhSunburst tomatoes: sweet and succulent​During a recent trip to Thomas Keller's Ad Hoc Restaurant, I came across these bright yellow tomatoes on a bed of garden greens. After returning home to Houston, I was delighted to find these very same golden tomatoes at the local grocery ... More >>

Chef Chat, Part 2: Grant Gordon of Tony's

Mai PhamExecutive Chef Grant Gordon of Tony's​Yesterday, we chatted with Grant Gordon about his road to becoming a Executive Chef at Tony's. See our chat here. Today, we talk about his role at Tony's and some of of his favorite things about Houston. EOW: So what do you do here at Tony's? G ... More >>

Odd Pair: What Wine Do You Serve with Doritos?

​When asked what factors had shaped his palate and his wine collection when he first began collecting fine wine, rockstar (literally, not just figuratively) and winemaker Maynard James Keenan answered: "Mountain Dew and Doritos. Like most American kids, that's what I grew up on." This was a fe ... More >>

Chef Chat, Part 3: Frédéric Perrier of Aura Restaurant

Photos by Matthew DresdenSandwich de St. Jacques​Following our conversation, covered in parts one and two of this Chef Chat, Chef Perrier brought out a glass of Pinot Noir and a few of the dishes on his menu.

A Page Outta: Cupcake Lasagna Leftovers

Nearly as pretty as Cupcake Lasagna​I told you I was going to do this. The last installment of A Page Outta is a perfect example of why the leftovers element is so important. Recipes are great and all, but they all too frequently ask that you do inexplicably stupid things. Some recipes ask t ... More >>

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Food Critics But Were Too Afraid to Ask

I have yet to meet a food critic who looks -- or acts -- like Anton Ego.​"So many critics. Do any of them have any training?" A question posted by a chef to the Food Media section of the Chowhound forums four years ago. From the same forums, earlier this year: "How do people become food criti ... More >>

Shiftwork Bites: The Last Bite

Nicholas L. HallStation Setup​This is a bit of a bittersweet installment of Shiftwork Bites. It's only been about six months since my very first post, but I've grown deeply attached to the project. The challenges, the successes, and even the failures have been a wonderful learning experience, ... More >>

Chef Chat, Part 1: Randy Evans of Haven

​That cool restaurant tucked back off Kirby is more than a year old. This week, we speak with Randy Evans, executive chef and partner of Haven and former executive chef at Brennan's, about his past and Haven's present. EOW: Who were your culinary inspirations? RE: Number one, my mom... Her ... More >>

Robb Walsh's 100 Favorite Houston Dishes #30 Elysian Fields Lamb and Mushy Peas at Tony's

​Over the course of the next few months, I'm counting down 100 of my favorite Houston dishes. I chose some because they are such quintessential Houston creations, others for their cultural or historical significance, and others because they are just so damn tasty. Share your own nominations in ... More >>

Kitchen Recreations: Spanglish Sandwich

Actual sandwich from the movie.​If you've seen the movie Spanglish -- a mediocre 2004 film starring Adam Sandler, Tea Leoni and Paz Vega -- you surely remember The Sandwich. In the flick, Adam Sandler plays a critically acclaimed chef. One evening he makes an inspired sandwich that has engrain ... More >>

Room At The Inn

Photo by Katharine Shilcutt Canapes with house-made chevre and garden herbsAs the fourth course of the meal was set in front of me, I marveled at its elegant construction but was more struck by a far subtler thing: Every ingredient in the dish had been plucked fresh from the organic garden o ... More >>

Bryan Caswell: Houston's Best New Chef

How do i begin; excited, elated, humbled, floored, it doesnt even scratch the surface! Me? Houston? Really? (my 1st 3 words to Dana Cowin) Photo courtesy of Wholefish Bryan Caswell in his trademark Astros ballcapBryan Caswell, who was just named one of Food & Wine's Best New Chefs ... More >>

Follow Friday for Foodies

The group collective on Twitter, the increasingly popular micro-blogging and social networking platform, has developed a recent tradition called Follow Friday.  Follow Friday is part circle jerk, part honest and helpful advice from your Twitter friends on who to follow if you're new or simply l ... More >>

Tornado Burger

Ratatouille

Brad Bird does it again; health inspectors everywhere shaken to their core

Brain Food

You may puzzle over the menu at Robert Gadsby's Noé, but you'll love the clever chow

The Great Gadsby

One of Hollywood's top cooking stars is moving to Houston

Grape Escape

Paul Roberts departs for purpler pastures