Ken Oringer feels 15 all over again!
Boston chef Ken Oringer celebrated the 15th birthday of his wildly successful, newly remodeled restaurant Clio with a slew of friends, many of whom passed through his kitchen at one time or another and went on to culinary greatness. Far-flung pals like Alex Stupak (New York’s Empellon) and David Varley (San Francisco’s Mina Group) joined forces with locals like Ming Tsai and Tony Maws for an epic 15-course meal served to 90 lucky guests. You know how it is: Some people go out for beers on their birthday, others whip up foie gras sandwiches and sorrel ice cream. To our knowledge, nobody sang happy birthday, though Momofuku’s Sam Gelman did make an “Ode to the Cassoulet.”
Caviar “Bon Bons” - (Ken Oringer / Douglas Rodrigues, Clio)
White Orchid Root, Allium Blossom, Black Cocoa
Sorrel Ice Cream - (Alex Talbot and Aki Kamozawa, Ideas in Food)
Wild Char Roe, Kasu Curd, Rhubarb Glass
Chilled Yellow Tomato and Watermelon Gazpacho - (Todd MacDonald, Villa Pacri, NY, NY)
Spicy Dungeness Crab, Avocado
Craigie Plankton Conchiglio Pasta - (Tony Maws, Craigie on Main, Cambridge, MA)
Sea Urchin, Guanciale
Ruby Red Shrimp - (Alex Stupak, Empellon, Empellon Cocina, NY, NY)
Crispy Masa, Sea Urchin Mousse, Lettuces
“Ode to the Cassolette” - (Sam Gelman, Momofuko, Toronto, CAN)
King Crab, Kalamansi, Chili
Abalone Sunomono - (Chris Chung, AKA Bistro, Lincoln, MA)
Hon Shimeji, Pickled Ramps, Freeze Dried Shiitake, Sukiyaki Gelee, Tosa Bonito Powder
Salsify and Laitue De Mer Porridge - (John Paul Carmona, Formerly of Manresa, Los Gatos, CA)
Chicken Jus, Brown Butter, Crispy Farro
Hearts of Palm - (Phillip Kirshen Clark, Demi Monde, NY, NY)
Artichokes, White Anchovy, Bottarga-Preserved Lemon and Pecorino Vinaigrette, Sweet Cicely
Island Creek Oyster Stew - (John Critchley, Urbana, Washington D.C.)
Black Roux, Coconut, Kumquat Kosho
Hudson Valley Foie Gras Torchon “Sandwich” - (David Varley, Mina Group, San Francisco, CA)
Strawberries, Chartreuse, Wild Herbs, “Inspired by Clio 2001”
Black Sea Bass - (Jason Hua, The Dutch, NY, NY)
Crispy Rice, Nameko Mushrooms
Veal Breast and Sweetbread Parmentier - (Andres Grundy, A. Juli & Ebru Restaurant Consultant, NY, NY)
Braised Fava Beans, Nasturtium
Mango Sticky Rice 2.0 - (Inspired by Rick Billings, José Andrés Think Group, Chris Cordeiro, Clio)
Bomba Di Ciliegia - (Renae Herzog, Marea, NYC)
Malt Crema, Poached Cherries, Birch Amaro Gelato
Clio Chef Ken Oringer greets guests.
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Simply Ming showed up to toast his pal.
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Only the finest glassware will do.
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Chef Jamie Bissonnette, a longtime Oringer colleague, chats with pals.
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Meanwhile, La Laiterie’s Matt Jennings shares a hearty chuckle with Ken.
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Chef Andres Grundy, a Clio alum, trekked from New York to greet old friends.
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Chef David Varley from San Francisco’s Mina Group can’t enjoy the fun just yet. First, he must plate his Hudson Valley foie gras torchon sandwich.
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Momofuku’s Gelman gives precise orders for plating his dish, the dramatically monikered Ode to the Cassoulet.
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Chef Matt Jennings intently focuses on a fellow diner. What could they be chatting about?
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Craigie on Main’s Tony Maws is busy explaining a dish to an intrigued diner.
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Stupak, of New York’s Empellon, whipped up this pretty plate of ruby red shrimp, sea urchin mousse, crispy masa, and lettuces.
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Ideas in Food’s Talbot gets a little help breaking shards of rhubarb glass from J. Kenji Alt. The glass will eventually accompany sorrel ice cream, of course.
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Plating Talbot’s sorrel dish was a hands-on affair.
Photo: Leise Jones Photography
While the chefs toiled with rhubarb behind the scenes, David Varley’s foie gras sandwich made it onto the plate.
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Craigie on Main’s Tony Maws returned to the kitchen to plate this lovely pasta, accompanied by sea urchin and guanciale.
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A refreshing counterpoint to all that urchin: Gazpacho meticulously prepared by Chef Todd MacDonald of New York’s Villa Pacri.
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It wouldn’t be a New England feast without Island Creek Oysters. John Critchley from Washington, D.C.’s Urbana infused his with black roux, coconut, and kumquat kosho.
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Ninety plates of Oringer’s caviar “bon bons” were presented to the eager crowd.
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Sorrel ice cream is plated and ready to go.
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Happy diners.
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Oringer shares a beverage with his old pal Ming.
Photo: Leise Jones Photography/Leise Jones Photography
