As I progress in years I have to say it is amusing to stumble across an old video like this one via the link. Maybe it is more than amusing. Maybe it is bittersweet. But thankful is also part of it. I spent years working at those wood burning behemoths…
Category: Posts
Traveling in Europe and a Lunch with Lulu
1998 April 1st: Janet, Justin and I flew to Paris. We met with Proal, Connie and the children Rebecca and Matthew. A Family Vacation!! The first night we dined at ‘L’ Ami Louis’ on the 2nd. It was coming down in sheets when we arrived and knocked on the locked door….
TREASURE BOOK; TASTE OF THE FAR EAST, MADHUR JAFFREY
Part of why I do my ‘Treasure Books” series is my deep appreciation for them and also to keep their works in the consciousness of the public who is bombarded only with the ‘hottest/hippest/latest/trending’ names and faces that are almost certainly not going to have the gifts and stamina of…
MARCELLA HAZAN
As the video will show I have a flat out crush on the cooking of Marcella Hazan. Though I’m not known at all for Italian food I believe that whomever is cooking great food is someone to learn from. She was born in 1924 in the Emilia-Romagna and earned a…
‘Love, Charlie’. Now on Netflix
For those who have yet to know the background let me give it as briefly as I can. Charlie graduated from college in Madison, Wisconsin and took a job working as a busboy in a restaurant in Lake Forest, Illinois where I was the Executive Chef. It was the fall…
FLAVORS UNKNOWN; A Podcast Interview with Chef Norman Van Aken
Hello Everyone! I am pleased to share the new podcast hosted by Emmanuel Laroche. (Linked here). Emmanuel has had many fine guests on including Nina Compton, Sean Brock, Will Guidara and more. He is very experienced in the art of the interview from having done this for years. I plan…
THE INFATUATION; ORLANDO’S BEST!
The best restaurant and bar guide in Miami for me is not Yelp. It is called ‘The Infatuation’. I don’t agree 100% of the time but it is the most interesting. And they are not swayed by the $$$$ silly places that abound as of late. The Infatuation is also…
‘GET COOKING’ ON WESH-TV
Courtesy: WESH-TV
Our non-profit mission ‘Get Cooking’ was just featured by Orlando news station WESH-TV and news journalist Megan Mellado. My partner, Stacie Archer and I are very grateful and want to share it with you. For background ‘Get Cooking” works with food insecure families to teach them how to budget, shop…
BACKSTAGE AT NORMAN’S.
Hi Everyone. I am happy to share the newest episode of my streaming series now out on Blackstone’s YouTube Channel. And I love reading viewers reactions to this way of taking the Blackstone Griddle experience through my lens. This is a project of love decades in the making. I joined…
ON COOKING ‘FLOW’
Recently I finished reading a book that had been quietly, mystically ‘waiting’ for me on a bookshelf in our home. Do you have that happen to you? It is a kind of silent conversation between the author and some intuitive part of the unconscious that relies upon what seems to…
‘Our Homage to Spain’
At NORMAN’S every 6-8 weeks we debut a new ‘Tasting Menu’. I have loved doing them since the late 1980’s while still working in Key West at MIRA within the very pretty Marquesa Hotel at Fleming and Simonton Streets. With our ‘a la carte‘ menu guests choose an assortment of…
Norman’s Florida Kitchen, Episode 2
Hi Everyone. I am very happy to share the second episode of my streaming series now out on Blackstone’s YouTube Channel. This is a project of love decades in the making. I joined forces with Video Content Creator/Director Nathan Lippy a few years ago to lay down the foundation and…
“Norman’s Florida Kitchen”. Season One. Episode One.
Hi Everyone. I am very happy to share the first episode of my streaming series now coming out on YouTube. This is a project of love decades in the making. I joined forces with Video Content Creator/Director Nathan Lippy a few years ago to lay down the foundation and it…
An Interview w Norman Van Aken
I sat down with a young videographer who asked me about ten questions. Here is the interview….
BEST FINE DINING IN EVERY STATE
This article was written by multiple James Beard awarded journalist-author Colman Andrews. Mr. Andrews is well known in the world of food and beverage due to his long work and dedication as an expert in a variety of cuisines. He also was one of the founders of the great ‘Saveur’…
ORLANDO SENTINEL ON ‘GET COOKING’!
Courtesy: Orlando Sentinel
Journalist Amy Drew Thompson deserves a medal for all of the great community work she does for Orlando. Not only is she a fascinating, fun and detail oriented food writer she also brings us news and stories about the kinds of things that draw us together in addition to food…