ANDREW.MERELIS.COM ----DECEMBER 2004-----> BACK TO MAIN MENU

01/26/05 Richard Cooks for the House:

This evening, I got and opportunity to gain new insight into the way that Richard likes to conduct himself in a kitchen. When I lived at 88 Greenwich, and as Richard found he had a passion for cooking in the first place (when we successfully poached an egg using the swirling pot method), I became accustomed to his culinary style, with little to compare it to.

When we moved to 59 St. Marks, Peter, David and sometimes Natalie mostly took the cooking role, and because almost everything was new and different, I kind of got to know their culinary styles in a vacuum of its own.

But tonight, at 59 St. Marks, in a controlled environment, scientific-method-ly speaking, Richard took the reins, cooked us all a meal, and I got to see true contrast that should have been obvious to me already but somehow wasn't.
















Richard has developed a particular style. He aspires not to make a great, quick, cheap, but fantastic-tasting home cooked meal, instead attempting to emulate restaurants and traditional recipies (plated for fancy restaurants) that he enjoys. Whereas Peter, David, and Natlie generally put all the food on the table at once, Richard throws his entire soul into one dish at a time, creating a meal that requires a kitchen-full of people, by himself, over the course of 5 hours.



With Richard, the accessories to the meal are just as important to making the meal-eating experience as the food itself. Table cloth, cloth napkins, fine wine (in this case just for himself), and garnishes, that are usually (but not always) absent from the cooking of the others.



Peter gives the wine a try:

1. The Sniff.



2. The insight.



3. The affirmation.



4. The condescension.



5. The double-check.



So, we ate the first course. And now Richard returns to the Kitchen while we... wait for more food. Richard did this all the time at 88 Greenwich. I was used to it. I'm not surprised now. But... it's interesting to see this process as seen through the eyes of others. It was cute.





The second course is one of my Ricahrd-favorites, and it's always worth the wait! Mint pasta with ricotta.





Then Richard really got the kitchen going with a large fillet of Salmon.





Natalie came home from her dinner and hanging out with her friend Shaan, when Rich was busy in prep for the main course.







A hearty, enjoyable, unique meal... in three acts. And I really thoroughly enjoy both styles of cooking that comes out of my kitchen, and I only wish that I had the time or the patience/skill/concentration necessary to offer a culinary style of my own to this group... other than my current "I'll cook that!... I made a mess!!!.... how do I do this, help me!!!"