Docsconz- The Blog

Albert Adria Gets The Last Word on Art vs Craft in Cooking

If Albert Adria or his brother Ferran are not culinary artists than no one is. Here, in Spanish, he says that the question is ultimately up to the diner to answer.

 

I had filmed several other interviews, but alas, audio problems from trying to use some new equipment made them unusable. I hope that you have found this series as interesting to watch and listen to as I did asking the questions and filming. The video quality certainly could have and should have been much better, but I don't think that lessens what these individual culinarians had to say.

Daniel Patterson Discourses on the Craft vs. Art Debate

Few chefs are more eloquent and cerebral than Daniel Patterson of San Francisco's Coi and Il Cane Rosso and Oakland's Plum. Few chefs also make more beautiful, thoughtful and delicious food. He is also not afraid to say it as he sees it. Here are his thoughts about the place of Art in cooking.

 

Coming soon: Albert Adria gets la ultima palabra.

Mattias Hagglund Pours His Thoughts on Food as Art

Matthias Hagglund of Elements Restaurant in Princeton, NJ, happens to be one of the craftiest and most creative mixologists I have yet had the pleasure of meeting. His beverages are products of great thought and consideration. The net results comprise a synergy of ingredients and magical cocktails. Here, he expresses his thoughts on whether food can be art. The question unasked, but equally pertinent, how about cocktails?

 

Nils Noren Weighs in on Craft and Art in Cooking.

The other half of the creative team behind the wildly creative Cooking Issues (though Nastassia Lopez should be included there as well to make it a creative trio) along with Dave Arnold, who's response I have already posted, Nils Noren is the former Executive chef of Aquavit in NYC and current Vice President of Culinary Arts of The French Culinary Institute in NYC. He has serious chops in both the craft aspects of cooking and the creative realm. Once again, I apologize for the suboptimal focus of the video, but I think Nils' views are worth putting up with it for a brief period.

 

More Art vs. Craft in Cooking: Scott Boswell Opines

I know few chefs who plate more beautifully than Scott Boswell of Stella!and Stanley in New Orleans. Of course, in the world of food that means nothing if the pleasure of eating a dish does not at least match the beauty of a gorgeously plated dish. Boswell has that down too. In this short video he gives his opinion on whether or not food can be considered art as well as naming a chef who he considers "one of the greatest food artists of all time."

  

Art or Craft in Studio Kitchen? Shola Speaks

i don't know too many chefs who cook more artistically or better than Shola Olunloyo of the soon to open Speck and Studio Kitchen in Philadelphia. In this short video shot at the latest Starchefs International Chefs Congress in NYC, the wonderfully opinionated Chef Shola Olunloyo shares his views on whether cooking is solely a craft or whether it can aspire to art.

 

Rick Moonen's Views on Art vs. Craft in Cooking

The ever energetic Rick Moonen of RM Seafood in Las Vegas is a supremely talented chef, a bright personality and a truly great guy. Aside from being a whiz at the stove as evidenced by his second place finish on rthe 2010 Top Chef Masters, the outgoing and personable Chef Moonen is probably best known as an advocate for sustainable seafood. Here, at the lates Starchefs International Chefs Congress, he provides an opinion on the Art vs. Craft in cooking discussion. Fortunately for me, this interview did not suffer from any significant technical problems.

 

Alex Talbot's Ideas on Food: Art vs. Craft

While my technical difficulties with video at this past Starchefs International Chefs Congress continued, Alex Talbot of Ideas in Food shares his ever fascinating thoughts on Art vs. Craft when it comes to cooking. The video is short, but I think sweet. 

 

Dave Arnold Talks About Food as Art

Last fall at the Starchefs International Chefs Congress in New York City, I asked a few people from the culinary world the question that reflected the theme of the Congress, Is cooking just a craft, or can it be art? Unfortunately, I ran into some technical difficulties with my video equipment, but I did manage to record a few responses that I can share. While the quality of the video image is a tad unfocused, the perspective of Dave Arnold, the wunderkind gastroscientist of the French Culinary Institute in New York City and one of the folks behind the incredible foodblog, Cooking Issues, is just too good to not share.

  

More noma

Check out this video just put out on Vimeo by my friends at Pocketfork on their very recent dinner at noma. This is about as close as it can get to experiencing a meal at noma without actually eating it. Great job Aaron and Ligeia!

 

noma from pocketfork on Vimeo.

Check out the rest of their blog for some incredible restaurant experiences.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is the universal American family holiday. It is a holiday of tradition. The exact traditions followed may vary from family to family and those traditions within a family may evolve over time, but there isn't a holiday in the United States more wrapped in tradition than Thanksgiving. From turkey to cranberry sauce to pumpkin pie to laying on a couch in a food coma to football to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and more, the traditions of the day come in many guises. For me, one of the earliest and best is watching Laurel and Hardy's The March of the Wooden Soldiers on Thanksgiving morning. I still get goosebumps when Stan and Ollie get hit with the inspiration to press the soldiers' buttons and they start marching out into Toyland. When I was a child, I was dependent on the television programming schedule, then I bought a DVD. I still have the DVD, but people today might be just as likely to stream it from the internet. It has been fun to instill this tradition into my family and share it with my wife and children. Hopefully, they will continue the tradition when they have their families. What are some of the special Thanksgiving traditions in your families?

Pipe Screams - Happy Halloween!

Pipe Screams from John Sconzo on Vimeo.

 

 

Keyboardist extraordinaire Bryan Kirk of The First Presbyterian Church in Glens Falls N.Y. plays Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor (only a segment here) on the church's wonderful pipe organ on October 30th, 2010 during the church's annual "Pipe Screams" concert in celebration of halloween. It was frightfully wonderful! Happy Halloween!

The video was taken with a Canon Powershot G11 camera.

Inside noma - A Docsconz Video

In the second half of August I had the opportunity to travel to Copenhagen and visit noma, the restaurant now considered by The San Pellegrino World's Fifty Best Restaurants as the number one restaurant in the world. Prior to dining there, I had the opportunity to visit the restaurant before lunch service and had a tour from Chef Rene Redzepi himself. We were joined by my friend and dinner partner, Chef Scott Boswell of the restaurants Stella! and Stanley in New Orleans, Louisiana. I hope this short video provides a glimpse into the inside of a truly incredible restaurant.

Inside noma from John Sconzo on Vimeo.

Dinner with The Doc & The Rock

        

Join us for a Private Fundraising Dinner & Screening

THE LAST CROP

A new film-in-progress by Chuck Schultz and David A. Ranghelli

Date and Time: September 10th     6:30-11PM

Location:  175 Fuller Road Queensbury, N.Y. 12804                            

Watch the trailer:

The Last Crop new 3 minute trailer from Chuck Schultz on Vimeo.

Multi-course “Slow” dinner to be prepared by John Sconzo & Rocco Verrigni

Wines donated by John & Kitty Sconzo

$200 per person - limited to 10 people

  Every year one million acres of farmland are lost to development

 

                                               If we have anything to do with it, our farm will be here for generations. - Jeff Main

The Last Crop tells a personal tale of a family caught in the delicate interplay between urban and agricultural space. Jeff and Annie Main’s story is representative of many farming families who confront an uncertain future as development impinges on rural areas and their children choose careers off the farm. The film captures the intractable nature of sustaining a small local farm and the stake we all have in ensuring they can survive and thrive.

                                               Sustainability is a big new catch phrase, but the true issue to me is sustaining farmers. - Annie Main

    Our 1st wish is that you join us for our dinner, screening and discussion

            Our 2nd wish is that you make a donation @ http://blueprintproductions.biz/Donate

   R.S.V.P by September 8th by commenting on this post. Comments will not be published.

Please help this important film get finished.

Bocuse D'Or USA 2010 - A Docsconz Video

Bocuse D'Or USA 2010 - A Docsconz Video from John Sconzo on Vimeo.

It has been 6 months since James Kent of Eleven Madison Park was selected to represent the United States at the next Bocuse D'Or competition in February 2011 in Lyons, France. This video featuring the likes of Jerome Bocuse, Daniel Boulud, Thomas Keller, Gavin Kaysen, Alain Sailhac, Andre Soltner, Andrew Friedman, Daniel Humm, Joel Buchman and the most recent US representative Timothy Hollingsworth, strives to give an idea of what the competition means for culinary America as well as a sense of what the competition itself was like.

"The Orange From Valencia" - A Docsconz Video from Town House

The Orange From Valencia from John Sconzo on Vimeo.

"The Orange From Valencia" is a standout dish at the standout restaurant, Town House in Chilhowie, Virginia. Chef John Shields and his team have produced a dish that is not only delicious, but beautiful, creative, evocative and fun as well.

Prior to service, I had the opportunity to video Town House Sous Chef Matt Edwards preparing the orange "skins" used for the dish. This won't be freeze the eyes to the screen of anyone already solidly grounded in techniques using liquid nitrogen, but for those who are not and who are intrigued, it should be pretty cool. I apologize in advance. For some reason the focus in the video is not quite as sharp as I would like, but without the opportunity to re-shoot, I think it is still too interesting to not have used.

Thanks to Chefs John and Karen Urie Shields and their Town House team for allowing me into their kitchen with my cameras and thanks to Matt Edwards for graciously and patiently explaining the process for the camera.

Ed Mitchell Talks About the Pit

Ed Mitchell was one of the founders of the Big Apple BBQ Block Party and has been there all 8 years. He specializes in vinegar based North Carolina style whole hog barbecue made from Animal Welfare Approved (AWA) humanely raised hogs. He too, along with his brother Aubrey, has attained legend status. Their stand at the Big Apple BBQ Block Party, located in his familiar spot on the corner of 26th St. & 5th Avenue, always draws early and long lines. Tangy, deeply flavored and eminently satisfying,  their whole hog pulled pork is some of the best I have ever had. In this video, Ed tells me about his restaurant, The Pit, located in Raleigh, N.C. It is not your typical barbecue place.

Ed Mitchell Talks About The Pit from John Sconzo on Vimeo.

Mike Mills - Barbecue Legend

While at the Big Apple BBQ in NYC, I had the chance to chat with BBQ legend Mike Mills of the 17th St. Bar & Grill of Myrphysboro, Il and his daughter, Amy Mills Tunnicliffe. This video gives a sense of what they are all about.

 

A Chat with Mike Mills & Amy Mills Tunnicliffe from John Sconzo on Vimeo.

A Bite of History with Kenny Callaghan - A Docsconz Video

A Conversation with Kenny Callaghan from John Sconzo on Vimeo.

Kenny Callaghan, the Executive Chef and pitmaster of Blue Smoke, was there at the beginning, at the conception of The Big Apple BBQ Block Party. When The Union Square Hospitality Group opened Blue Smoke, they wanted it to be an oasis of barbecue, putting out topnotch versions of the best regional barbecue from around the country. In order to do that, Danny Meyer and his crew had to find the best examples of regional barbecue from around the country and traveled to all corners of the United States for that purpose. Based upon what they found, Meyer had the idea to bring some of the best to New York City to help the City learn about good barbecue and the different styles of it and to promote his new restaurant.  Amongst the people and styles they discovered, they brought Mike Mills of the 17th St. Bar & Grill in Murphysboro, Il and his pork ribs; Ed Mitchell of The Pit of Raleigh, N.C. and his whole hog N.C. style pulled pork; Chris Lilly of Big Bob Gibson's of Decatur, Al and his pulled pork; Michael Rodriguez of The Salt Lick from Driftwood, Tx and his beef brisket, and of course Kenny Callaghan of NYC's own Blue Smoke with a little bit of everything. Together these five pitmasters along with Danny Meyer, co-founded the Big Apple BBQ in front of Blue Smoke in 2002. Eight years later the list of barbecue pits represented has swelled to 18 (including Rodriguez who had to cancel this year due to a broken leg) with about 60,000 visitors per day!

Burgoo and Mutton BBQ - Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn

There are no slouches serving BBQ at The Big Apple BBQ Block Party. The best of the best serving various regional styles come to represent their genres and regions. Most of the stands have been making this an annual tradition. New to the Block party this year and a stand-out for both the quality and uniqueness of their Q was Moonlite Bar-B-Q Inn from Owensboro, Kentucky. Mutton BBQ is big in Kentucky, more so than anywhere else, while burgoo was recently named the state dish of Kentucky.

I happened to be visiting the Moonlite Bar-B-Q booth at the same time as Danny Meyer, the CEO of the Union Square Hospitality Group and the founder of The Big Apple Barbecue Block Party, which this year celebrated its 8th year. Mr. Meyer graciously let me record his conversation with Moretta and Ken Bosley of Moonlite. Thanks to all three, with this brief video, I hope that you will learn a little more about these wonderful regional foods and the most well known maker of them.

Moonlite Bar-B-Q at The Big Apple BBQ from John Sconzo on Vimeo.