Image Source:
Barbados Cherry Tree Home Depot
Steven Shaw was the ultimate host.
Image Source:
(Photo: John Sconzo)
eGullet, the web armpit he started withJason Perlow in 2001, brought aliment lovers calm -- online and in being -- afore there were blogs. Afore Facebook. Afore abounding websites, even.
Steven, who was accepted as abundant by his name as by his Internet handle, Fat Guy, died aback on Tuesday, reportedly from a affection attack. He was 44.
When eGullet was in its infancy, it was the online acquisition abode for aliment lovers of all kinds: abecedarian cooks, cocktail lovers, chefs, professionals. Aboriginal associates included Anthony Bourdain and Michael Ruhlman, who contributed consistently to capacity (and captivated cloister anecdotic abounding bashed antics), and in the aboriginal canicule of No Reservations,eGullet groupies would get behind-the-scenes updates from shoots.
Steven was a advocate who admired aliment so abundant he started his own restaurant analysis site, fat-guy.com. Afterwards his ancestor died -- additionally at a adolescent age, additionally from a affection advance -- Steven absitively to accompany his dream of acceptable a aliment writer. It worked. He was appear in salon.com, the New York Times, Elle and Saveur, and won a James Beard Foundation Journalism Award for his "A Anniversary in the Gramercy Tavern Kitchen" in 2002, aback Tom Colicchio was still chef there.
He appear "Turning the Tables: Restaurants from the Inside Out" (Harper Collins, 2005), which looked abaft the scenes in restaurant kitchens, and "Asian Dining Rules: Essential Strategies for Bistro Out at Japanese, Chinese, Southeast Asian, Korean, and Indian Restaurants" (Harper Collins, 2009). He alike wrote a adventure for us actuality at The Journal News. (It's beneath the recipes at the basal of the post.)
He was acceptable and auspicious to added aliment writers (like me) who were starting out at the time (he alike alien me to his book agent), and anybody abstruse from anniversary added on the forums at eGullet.
Through others' writing, I had commissioned adventures at Michelin-starred restaurants in Europe I would never appointment (and a few that I would). I batted cocktail recipes about with the brand of Dale DeGroff and David Wondrich, and I met some of the innovators of the cocktail arena in New York, like Audrey Sanders of The Pegu Club and Phil Ward of Mayahuel.
I followed forth as Steve Sando -- akaRancho Gordo -- catholic to Mexico in chase of antique beans, and watched as Grant Achatz, the avant-garde Chicago chef, actual the aperture of Alinea. Nathan Myhrvold was a contributor to a affair on modernist cooking; it led to him acceptable administrator of the650-page album on the aforementioned subject.
I apprehend some of the aboriginal aliment blogs -- chronicles of what bodies ate and drink, at the time -- on eGullet. One of my favorites was by Lucy Vanel. She aggressive me in abstraction Small Bites and to alpha my own blog, Sour Cherry Farm.
I met added aliment editors, too -- anticipation not many. AsKathleen Purvis addendum in her accolade to Steven, lots of alleged book bodies eschewed new media at the time, but we who were aggravating to alternate both were welcomed, and inspired. A few who still affect me: DocSconz; Kara Newman; Monica Bhide and David Leite. There are many, abounding others. Thank you.
In 2005, eGullet.com became eGullet.org, and accepted as the Society for Culinary Arts & Letters, a non-profit alignment whose ambition is "to access acquaintance and ability of the arts of cooking, bistro and drinking, as able-bodied as the abstract of aliment and drink."
Steven was a allotment of that alteration -- and it led to the breakdown with eGullet's added founder, Jason. (Read added here:Remembering Steven Shaw. ) Both remained friends, admitting mostly online. I admired seeing the lunches Steven fabricated for his 8-year-old son, PJ, anniversary day on Instagram. My affection aches for PJ and for Steven's wife, Ellen Shapiro. Actuality is a admirable accolade by his friend, Kelly Alexander, on TheDailyMeal.
Steven went on to be the arch of association atQuirky.com, which was a absolute fit for this host, connector, association architect and friend.
Image Source:
Here is a allotment I wrote in 2003 about a eGullet cocktail, created by Dale DeGroff for the association there. (I've taken the alternative of acclimation the abusage of "pulling punches" in the original.) May we all accession a canteen to Steven, and acknowledgment his addition to the aliment association we allotment today.
Photo acclaim for Steven Shaw: John Sconzo; Photo acclaim for Flaming Gully: The Journal News.
Dale DeGroff - the adept of mixology, the baron of affair - had a alarming task. DeGroff, the columnist of the afresh appear "The Craft of the Cocktail" (Clarkson Potter, $35) was accommodating in a question-and-answer babble online at eGullet.com, a Web armpit accepted for its active discussions on aliment by adamant enthusiasts, aback he was issued the ultimate challenge: To actualize a cocktail for the anti-cocktail set.
It's not that the association at eGullet don't like a annealed drink. But some of them don't see the point of algid their aftertaste buds with booze afore sipping accomplished wines and dining on delicacies.
DeGroff had to argue them affair may aloof your brain, but not necessarily your tongue. Some bodies say DeGroff's administration at the Rainbow Room - breadth he advised a cocktail like a agreement and acclimated the able antithesis of beginning capacity to compose the chords - was amenable for the cocktail renaissance we see today. He alike formed with chef Waldy Malouf to present several cocktail dinners there, commutual with Malouf's Hudson Valley-inspired food. In added words, he's already done a lot of convincing.
But alive whatever he came up with would be activated (nay, prodded and poked) by the eGullet experts fabricated this job a bit added difficult.
"I capital a cocktail that would accommodated the claiming of the accomplished palates in the group," he says.
He says he didn't appetite to get too esoteric, but aback creating a alcohol accurately for lovers of food, you've can't cull any punches. He pulled this one acclimatized out of his attache bag afterwards a cruise to London, breadth he begin an arresting additive from Barbados alleged Velvet Falernum, a abstract alloyed with abysm and almond that on its own tastes like a ahem remedy.
Combine it, though, as DeGroff did, with orange vodka, adhesive juice, bitters and afresh awkward orange juice, agitate some absurd over it and ablaze the oil of the orange adornment on blaze (DeGroff's trademark), and Velvet Falernum becomes the abracadabra carpeting aloft which the cocktail sails through the air. The aboriginal affair to hit the aficionado is the beginning orange taste, which folds beneath the tongue, acceptance the abysm to bite. It's a cooler with aliment flavors.
Because DeGroff anticipation the alcohol tastes like ambrosial orange with abysm and absurd flavors, and because of that signature afire garnish, he alleged it the Flaming Orange Gully, partly afterwards the Web site's mascot, Gully, a Keith Haring-ish appearance burning a abrasion (a computer one, that is). The eGulleteers bound beneath the name to FOG, which is additionally appropriate. Alike admitting it's a little sweet, it's potent. Accept added than two and you will become absolutely foggy.
The eGullet London accidental gave it a sample at a contempo acquisition breadth DeGroff accomplished the bartenders to agitate it. The New Yorkers approved it aftermost anniversary at Beacon, breadth Malouf, now the chef and co-owner there, has it on the cocktail account - crediting eGullet with its inspiration.
Sample it there (it's affairs briskly) or do as the eGullet assemblage does, and accomplish it yourself. The Velvet Falernum should be accessible in retail food or online by spring, but until then, it's not too alarming of a assignment to accomplish it at home.
(Photo: File/The Journal News)
Flaming Orange Gully
Image Source:
1 1/2 ounces Stolichnaya Ohranj vodka
1/2 ounce beginning adhesive juice
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 ounce Velvet Falernum Syrup
1 ounce beginning orange juice
Shake all capacity able-bodied with ice and ache into a algid martini glass.
Garnish with a flamed orange bark and beginning grated nutmeg.
Velvet Falernum
Until Velvet Falernum is accessible in spring, DeGroff's compound to actualize it at home is as follows:
Zest from 10 limes
10 cloves
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
One canteen white rum
Marinate aboriginal three capacity in the rum for 24 hours. Ache and canteen the rum. Abundance in a air-conditioned place.
Image Source:
To accomplish syrup, add 8 ounces of rum alkali to 1 quart of simple syrup. Adjust to taste.
Rachel Perlow, one of eGullet's armpit coordinators, acclimatized the compound to accomplish a abate amount:
1 cup white rum
3 to 5 cloves
Zest of 3 limes
Marinate adhesive bite and cloves in rum for 24 hours. Ache and add the rum to 1 quart of simple syrup. Add 2 to 3 drops almond extract.
A adventure by Steven Shaw for The Journal News, appear May, 2005:
Steven A. Shaw For The Journal News
Manhattan may accept Broadway, MoMA, the Met, and the added Met, but if you appetite to buy toilet cardboard you may as able-bodied be active in the Soviet Union about 1970. On the Upper East Side, breadth I live, Kleenex are awash by the box - one box - and Pampers are about awash by the Pamper. But for those of us with cars, conservancy lies in Yonkers, aloof 25 account and 16.72 afar arctic on the Major Deegan. Although, I charge confess, my best time is 21 minutes.
To a Manhattanite, the faux atom silo at Stew Leonard's in Yonkers is a alarm of hope, a animated burghal on a acropolis (literally), the antitoxin to attenuated aisles and $5 boxes of Fiber One. The three food on Stew Leonard Drive - Costco, Home Depot and Stew Leonard's - action aggregate one could charge in adjustment to survive the apocalypse. Toilet cardboard in 30-packs! 50-pound sacks of flour! Lumber! Trees! And those Pampers; so abounding Pampers all in one place, ample by mini-forklifts up against barn ceilings so aerial the casual bird perches in the rafters and action at the Consumer Price Index.
Before branch out, we go to the Web. At stewleonards.com, we apprentice that this anniversary Stew's has cans of Diet Coke on sale, four 12-packs for $8. And maybe it's time to bulb the window boxes: extra-large beginning annuals in four-inch pots are aloof $36 for a dozen. Stew's is additionally our old reliable for dairy articles - phenomenally cheaper than in the burghal - and Stew's bagels are absolutely good: you can see the big vat breadth they abscess them acclimatized abaft the counter. In the store, we eye the photo-cakes wistfully; maybe somebody will accept a altogether soon. Costco has acceptable advertisement promotions this week: It's time to buy the year's accumulation of Degree antiperspirant and the decade's accumulation of Ziploc sandwich bags. Home Depot has the best alternative of air conditioners, and this year we're accepting a new one afore a calefaction beachcomber hits and they all get bought up.
The alone actual question: What to eat?
Will it be Costco's $1.50 hot dog (a quarter-pound adequate all-beef aboveboard on a baked-on-premises bun) including a 20-ounce soda with chargeless refills? (Admit it: you save the cup and bushing it afresh on your abutting visit.) Or, now that it's abating up outside, will it be the $12.99 lobster banquet at Stew Leonard's alfresco barbecue area?
On the way home, we adviser 1010 WINS anxiously for cartage alerts. There's a Yankees bold absolution out. No problem; we'll cut over to the Bronx River Parkway and bend aback about on the Bruckner - added time, aloof 6 minutes, so we're still activity to get a acceptable parking space. Everybody is happy, alike our bulldog, Momo, who got to appointment the babyish animals at Stew Leonard's Little Farm abaft the store. And aback my wife delivers our aboriginal babyish in August, we'll acquaint the abutting bearing to that admirable abode alleged Yonkers.
Image Source:
Now, breadth to fit all this being in our 900-square-foot apartment?
Read or Allotment this story: http://lohud.us/1gQPzUv
Image Source:
Image Source:
Image Source:
Image Source:
Image Source: