PastryWiz Books : Alfred Portale's Gotham Bar and Grill Cookbook
 

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Books : Alfred Portale's Gotham Bar and Grill Cookbook
by: Alfred Portale



Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 641.5097471
EAN: 9780385482103
ISBN: 0385482108
Label: Broadway
Manufacturer: Broadway
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 400
Publication Date: October 13, 1997
Publisher: Broadway
Release Date: October 13, 1997
Sales Rank: 576877
Studio: Broadway


Editorial Review:



Related Items:
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:  out of 5 stars

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - Truly an excellent cookbook
This cookbook is beautifully done. Steps include tips and photos. Complicated recipes are explained well. Great restaurant, great chef, great addition to my kitchen



Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - Alfred Portale Shares His Secrets
I am a current Culinary Arts Student, and recently just bought this. It is amazing. Nice pictures of the food and a real nice insight into what got Alfred into the business. I really loved how he showed "The Gotham Presenation", basically the exact way he serves his plates in his restaurant in NYC. The only real drawback of this book ( On a basis that I have a passion to cook) is that he doesnt go too in depth into fancy garnishes and how Gotham Bar and Grill continues to shine on a daily basis.
Trade secret, probably. Anyways an excellent book, you can never have to many. I would also recommend, Thomas Keller's French Laundry, and Bo Friberg's book on Pastries, plus Sarah Labensky's Revised text "On Cooking"<<<<<< A must have for any1 who really wants to learn how to really cook. Thanks



Rating: 4 out of 5 stars - Some recipes are daunting, but a few marvelous gems!
Some of the recipes in here are beyond the scope of everyday cooking, to be sure, however, this has become my favorite cookbook for holidays and special company. The recipes will stretch your cooking skills, and be worth all the effort. There are two absolute gems: the seafood risotto and the chocolate bread pudding are to die for. Your guests will rave and rave and rave.



Rating: 5 out of 5 stars - A keeper with crucial techniques and insight
Portale is not trying to train you to step up to the saucepan at Gotham and will not have you spending your Saturdays peeling grapes a la Thomas Keller's "French Laundry" cookbook. He's also not trying to give you a complete course in basic techniques a la Julia Child's "The Way to Cook". Instead, what you get is more of a philosophy and a sketchbook. The introductory essay, titled "Cooking Like a Chef at Home", is both insightful and inspiring. The recipes, which are presented in their basic form and presentation are sometimes followed with "flavor building" tips (usually additions, like roast shallots for lamb), "variations" (usually substitutions, say of sea bass for red snapper), and sometimes "Gotham Presentation". Given Portale's trademark towering presentations, it's disappointing that there's not more detail in the book (though he does let you in on how the seared tuna with papardelle and red wine sauce is put together in the restaurant, which is one of my all time favorite dishes). Judging from the end of the introductory essay, Portale's just tired of people focusing on presentation more than flavor.

The terse writing and lack of meticulously detailed instructions is a huge contrast with my three other favorite cookbooks named after restaurants: Deborah Madison's "Greens", Alice Waters' "Chez Panisse", and Barbara Tropp's "China Moon". I typically consult all of these books and a few more when I cook something to triangulate both technique and proportions. For instance, consider Portale's recipe for mashed potatos (half of page 206). There are two fundamental clues in this recipe that have transformed my spuds. First, after boiling the potatos, Portale has you return them to the pan to evaporate extra moisture. The critical idea is that the potatos should be dry before you mash them. (Also important for making light gnocchi.) It's the idea and goal that are important -- other chefs get dry potatos differently, say by not peeling or quartering the potatos first. Second, use a potato ricer. The difference between that and blending or using a masher is amazing. You'll have to read other cookbooks to learn that you shouldn't overmash your potatos or they'll become sticky. Ironically, the potatos at the restaurant are not riced, at least with the lamb chops, although I imagine they might be with other dishes; the point is that once you know what's going to happen, you have control. Sadly, Portale doesn't provide photos or instructions on the Gotham presentation, which is in a large scoop set atop a carved-out baked potato with the trademark flying herbs.

In the interest of full disclosure, I must admit that I live a block and a half from Gotham Bar and Grill and it's one of my favorite restaurants in the world. If you go there, you can get a copy of this book signed along with a nice little ink illustration of a simmering dish by the chef.

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Alfred Portale's Gotham Bar and Grill Cookbook

 

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