Benjamin Steak House, New York-where wine meets steak in harmony

by Dwight Casimere

Benjamin Steakhouse

www.benjaminsteakhouse.com

52 East 41st Street

New York, NY 10017

(212) 297-9177

New York-Gotham is famous for its steak houses and none is more renowned than Benjamin’s Steak House. Located discreetly at the rear of the Dylan Hotel in the city’s toney Murray Hill area, downtown, the restaurant has become a virtual institution in its short life. Opened in October, 2006,
Benjamin’s, with its clubby atmosphere and cozy, fireside setting, seems as if its been there forever.

With its ten-foot working fireplace, rich chocolate brown leather seating, oak wood paneling and vaulted decorative ceiling with modern brass amber-tinged chandeliers, Benjamin Steak House is a Midtown oasis on culinary excellence.

Perhaps the fact that Executive Chef and Partner, Arturo McLeod, a 20-year veteran of Peter Luger’s legendary steakhouse in New York, has brought with him an air of authenticity and creativity that is unparalled. His menu is simple, yet very straightforward. He adheres to the basics, but with his own personal stamp that makes each bite a memorable flavor and texture adventure. There is only one way to do great steak, and that is the correct way. Chef McLeod scores a winning goal with each plate that he serves. It is especially evident when the meal is served with great wine as Dwight The Wine Doctor experienced on a recent visit with he and his exceptional staff in New York.

Brought along for the culinary ride were a couple of bottles of superlative Italian wines, RoccaSveva Suave Classico 2008 of Verona ($19.99) and Frescobaldi Remole ($10.99), a joint venture of the scions of an Italian American (Michael Mondavi of Napa Valley, California) and an Italian dynasty (Lamberto Frescobaldi of Marchessi de Frescobaldi, Tuscany). The two wines paired perfectly with Chef McLeod’s cuisine.

Speaking in the delightfully lilting accent of his native Panama, Chef McLeod explained how care in preparation was the key to the dining experience at Benjamin’s.

“The secret to our steaks is in the dry-aging,” he declared. “We age our meats for no less than 28 days. I also serve our steaks with my secret sauce, which has become a landmark in New York.” Chef McLeod would not reveal the recipe, but I can say with certainty that it is absolutely delicious and like no other steak sauce I have ever had, and I have had them all! The flavor of the sauce complements the mineral undertones of the meat without overpowering it. The taste definitely warrants a return trip on my next visit to the Big Apple!

I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the crabmeat in the over-sized crab cake appetizer and the succulent quality and size of the shrimp in the traditional shrimp cocktail. These ‘starters’ provided the flavor template for the exquisite RossaSveva Soave Classico. With its inviting nose of fresh peaches, lavender and olive oil it created an almost creamy sensation on the tongue when combined with seafood. It carried right over to the sea bass, which was the largest and thickest piece of this type of fish I’ve ever had. It was also the freshest tasting. Grilled simply with a slathering of fresh, creamy butter, it was an unforgettable flavor experience. Combined with the wine, the buttery flavor lingered long in the mouth and married with the wine in the back of the throat with a combination of light almond extract and a hint of fresh minerals that made it a nice alternative to your typical summer wine. This wine really held up to the food, but still had a lightness and feminine quality that made it seductive.

Steak at the Benjamin takes center stage, like a Broadway tenor bringing the house down in the second act of Lend Me A Tenor. The Frescobaldi Remole supported the strong mineral flavor brought out by the careful aging of the steak. The texture was fork-tender and the sensation in the mouth was explosive when combined with Chef McLeod’s secret sauce. I was so overwhelmed by the flavor combination that I reserved a good portion of the steak to take back to my suite at the Affinia 50, which contained a kitchen, allowing me to attempt to replicate my dining experience with a bit of left over Remole. Bravissimo, Chef McLeod!

Gosset Champagne and Sunday Brunch at the Biltmore Coral Gables; a match made in culinary heaven

Story and photos by Dwight Casimere

Coral Gables, Florida—The stunning Andalusian fountain courtyard of the Fontana restaurant at the Biltmore is the setting for one of the most fabulous Champagne brunches in the entire nation. The extravagant buffet runs the gamut, from Petrossian caviar and blinis, to sushi and sashimi, carving stations of succulent roasted meats to made to order omelets, delectable pastas and the most sumptuous and authentic Paella this side of Valencia. Executive Pastry Chef Olivier Rodriguez tops it all off with a wall of desserts.

Adding to the Latin exuberance so unique to Miami’s tropical atmosphere are the Classical and Flamenco guitar stylings of Juan Areco who made his Spanish guitar ring with orchestral clarity with his rendition of Spanish composer Joaquin Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez (1939), which would have made the great Segovia proud.

Gosset premium Champagne ($29.99) from Ay in the heart of France’s Champagne region provided the grace note throughout the afternoon’s culinary adventure. A Grande Marque champagne with only 50,000 cases produced annually, Gosset is the first choice of true Champagne connoisseurs. Having made champagne since 1584, it is the oldest currently operating wine producer in Champagne.

Gosset champagne has a flavor profile that makes it perfect with food. Brut Excellence is composed of 42% Chardonnay, 45% Pinot Noir, which is all from Grand and Premier Cru vineyards, and a small amount of Pinot Muenier, to give it softness and elegance. Winemakers add an additional 24% of reserve wines from two vintages to give it complexity and balance. The blend is both exotic and layered with richness. Peach notes and a unique floral characteristic made it sing in the back notes when accompanied with sushi. When tasted with Paella, its flavors danced with the nimbleness of flamenco dancers. Its long, light finish and light toast bristled the tongue like the sound of castanets to the ear.

Cappuccino was the perfect foil to a cascade of mouthwatering desserts, including a Bombay of peach and banana and a specially constructed chocolate ice cream blossom ensconced in a dark chocolate ‘nest;’ which was presented in honor of Dwight The Wine Doctor’s recent birthday. It was a touching end to an exquisite dining experience.

The Biltmore Coral Gables is a landmark in the Miami area and its most diverse dining destination. Constructed in 1926 by the legendary developer George Merrick, it approximates the grandeur of a Moorish castle transplanted from the heart of Grenada, Spain. Through its lavish restaurants, the Fontana, which features Italian cuisine and the top-rated contemporary French restaurant Palme d’Or and its headline-making Culinary Academy, it has become the gastronomic Mecca of South Florida. For more information on the Biltmore Coral Gables and its outstanding restaurants, visit www.biltmorehotel.com.

Florida International Wine Challenge puts wine lovers to the test

Story and photos by Dwight Casimere

Miami Beach-A dizzying array of wines greeted participants in the 6^th Annual Florida International Wine Challenge held in the lavish setting of The Palms Hotel & Spa on Miami Beach.

As the advent of a perfect full-moon lit tropical night ascended over the horizon, more than 150 lucky oenophiles had an opportunity to sample 400 world class wines from virtually every corner of the globe and many states in the U.S. Did you know that wines were produced in Slovenia or in Georgia? Well, they were there to be judged and tasted in the two-day event, which is the largest of its kind in Florida and certainly among the top-rated competitions in America. In all, red, white and rose wines from 18 countries were sampled at the tasting.

Judges rated the wines in gold, silver and bronze medal categories based on a pass/fail system. The top wine is to be awarded Best-In-Show honor. As of press time, the judging was still underway.

Wine judges blind tasted the wines during the daytime and then scored them. In the evening, they attended the tastings right along with the general public and had the opportunity to hear their reactions first hand. to the wines.

Tasters were not without their strong opinions. Among the collection of assorted sparkling wines, one taster was heard to mutter, “the whole lot of them give a bad name to the winemaking industry.” Yet another praised the very same sparklers for their “fruit-forward complexity and Champagne-like character. One that drew the Wine Doctor’s attention were the sparkling rose and the sparkling brut from Gruet vineyards near Albequerque, New Mexico. The wines are made in the traditional champagne method and display a surprising brightness, small bubbles and a residual soil taste in the back of the throat that recalls the limestone ‘terroir’ of Champagne, France.

Many were also surprised, to find stellar wines among the many new offerings from Chile and Argentina. The reds in particular were showing extremely well against more established names from the Rhone Valley and Le Bordeaux. Spanish wines, particularly those made from old vines Temperanillo, were quite pronounced in their level of depth. Tasting them side-by-side with wines from the Napa Valley and Burgundy, the showed an uncanny finesse.

There were many experienced wine lovers at the public tasting event, which benefited two local charities, Florida Breast Cancer Foundation and Melanie Finley Ovarian Cancer Foundation. Challenge Executive Director Michael Schaefer told the Wine Doctor that the event is unique because “it has such a wide range of wines in terms of areas, styles and grapes. There’s no event in the country quite like it because of its scope. This is the only place where wine lovers can experience such a diverse wine competition.”

The evening concluded with a special tasting dinner at The Palms Hotel & Spa’s Essencia restaurant. Each patron was allowed to bring two bottles from the competition to pair with their meal. Corkage fees were waived at the restaurant for the evening and 10% of revenue from the dinner was donated to the Cancer charities of the evening.

Executive Chef Frank Jeannetti prepared a Prix Fixe four-course dinner that spanned the flavor spectrum. The first course featured a colorful Paradise Farms salad composed of organic baby greens that included Candy Stripe Beets, Blood Orange segments and Pickled Cucumber Threads in a White Balsamic-Lavender Honey Vinaigrette. Frei Brothers Redwood Creek Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie 2008 was Dwight The Wine Doctor’s choice for pairing with this garden cornucopia. The dry crispness of the ‘grey’ pinot and the slight grassy undertone combined with a bit of sunny citrus in the back notes perfectly framed the sweet/sour sensation of the salad.

Miso glazed North Atlantic Black Cod with celery root puree and shaved ‘Easter Egg’ radish salad forced the Wine Doctor to bring forth one of the ‘Big Guns’ from the tasting, an oak-laden Chardonnay from Concannon Vineyards in California’s Livermore Valley. Concannon has two historic distinctions besides having made wine for the past 125 years; it is the first American winery founded by an Irish immigrant, James Concannon. The winery is also the creator of the nation’s first Petite Sirah wine; whch reflects the winery’s dedication to making world-class Bordeaux and Rhone-style wines.

An Argentinean Red, Urano range Malbec 2007/8 from Eral Bravo, a new boutique winery from the Sanchez Nieto family is distinctive because of its intense flavor. Yet, it is surprisingly low in sulphites. For those who have a sensitive reaction to sulphites, this is a nice alternative. Essencia’s third course of Porcini mushroom-dusted Grass Fed beef tenderloin with Truffle scented Root Vegetable has and Port Wine-Wild Mushroom Ragout was nicely paired with this supple Argentine beauty.

Dessert was a classic Italian worthy of a Holiday dinner table, Buttermilk Panna Cotta, a Banana Almond Cake with Cherry Sorbet. I snuck in a Gallo Family favorite, a California Moscato, just like Ernest & Julio would have poured at the table when the winery was founded 75 years ago. As they say in the 'Old Country,' Abondanza!

SD26 New York, A Father, Daughter Team Reinvents an Italian Culinary Legend

Story and photos by Dwight Casimere

SD26

Madison Square Park

19 East 26th Street,

New York, NY 10010

Telephone 212 265 5959

Father, daughter team reinvents an Italian culinary legend-Story and photos by Dwight Casimere

Marissa and Tony May have reinvented a 22 year old culinary landmark in New York and elevated to the level of high art. SD26 is the reincarnation of San Domenico, a virtual landmark on Central Park South.

San Domenico inspired more poetic superlatives from the nation’s restaurant critics than the works of Michelangelo. It even played a central character in the 2008 romantic film Two Lovers, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Gwyneth Paltrow. In the film, the restaurant is shown against the melodic backdrop of Henry Mancini’s lush orchestration of Sergio Mendes’ “Soft, Hot Wind.”

When Tony May opened the restaurant 22 years ago, he set off an instant sensation with his reinterpretation of rustic Italian cuisine to accommodate modern tastes. SD 26 takes the concept one step further, paring the recipes down to their most elemental components and streamlining them to appeal to a younger, more contemporary palate. The restaurant as a whole is a singular work of art.

The idea of restaurant as art form is a theme that permeates SD26, from the sleek décor of the entrance and bar area, to the stylish, vaulted ceiling dining room that more resembles the modern wing of a major art museum that an eating emporium. Artful presentation by the chefs, working feverishly in the open gleaming stainless steel kitchen is continued to the glass and tableware, the artwork that adorns the walls, to the imported and handcrafted materials that comprise the restaurants dramatic space.

“When we bought the space here on Madison Square Park, it was hard to imagine what you’re seeing here today,” owner Marisa May confided. “When we walked in, we were confronted by a 8 thousand square foot jumble of concrete and crumbling walls. It took some real artisans to transform it into what we have now. We bought in hand-cut Italian wood for the flooring and commissioned the best contemporary artists to create a showcase on our walls. Our customers are dining amongst some of the greatest modern art around!”

The art doesn’t stop with the décor. Executive Odette Fada and Chef di Cuisine Matteo Bergamini use locally sourced and organic ingredients in imaginative ways that emphasize the inherent flavors with a judicious application of fresh herbs and Mediterranean spices. Judicious pairing with an inspired wine list makes dining a flavor excursion that transcends the bounds of imagination.

Imagine the velvety texture of a saddle of rabbit served in a reduction of its natural juices with a glass of Chalk Hill Pinot Noir or a grilled octopus appetizer paired with a mouthwatering Franciacorta sparkling wine from Lombardy. Those were only the introductions to a culinary performance that repositioned the restaurant experience as pure theatre.

Stars of Broadway, TV, Film converge at 2010 Tony Awards

Stars of Broadway, TV, Film converge at 2010 Tony Awards

Story and photos by Dwight Casimere

Live at the Tony Awards 2010!!!