Centerplate puts that question to the test—and possibly to rest—during an ‘Unconventional Chefs’ dinner at the James Beard House
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N JAN. 29, CENTERPLATE EXECU- tive Chef David Skorka, of the Dallas Convention Center, along
with four of his executive-chef colleagues —Philippe Chin,Walter E.Washington (D.C.) Convention Center; Jonathan Bar- nett, Miami Beach Convention Center; Robert Campbell,Toronto’s Direct Energy Centre; and Jeff Leidy, San Diego Convention Center—hosted an “Unconventional Chefs” dinner at the James Beard Foundation’s Beard House in NewYork City. “Thanks to their talents,
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these chefs have elevated convention- center cuisine well beyond its tired Conti- nental cuisine roots and into the realm of contemporary fine dining,” said James Beard Foundation Director of House Pro- gramming IzabelaWojcik. To demonstrate this, Skorka—who heads up convention center culinary operations for Center- plate—and his fellow chefs created a mouthwatering menu sure to impress even the most discerning foodie atten- dees. Highlights included:
Hors d’oeuvres: Chorizo-spiced duck with green plantains, avocado, green peppercorns, and Valencia orange Dungeness crab bisque shooters with vanilla-bean crème fraîche and smoked paprika croutons Skorka’s own “Chiqellenos” (chile rellenos with chicken asada, goat cheese, and serrano salt) Truffled edamame panna cotta with red kaiware shoots and black garlic tuile Smoked-trout crêpes with
SAY‘STILTON CHEESE’!: Smiling below, from left to right, are Jonathan Barnett,David Skorka, Jeff Leidy, Centerplate President and CEO Des Hague, Robert Campbell, Centerplate Executive Vice President of Operations GeorgeWooten,NewYork City’s Jacob K. Javits Center Executive Chef Scott Hauser, and Philippe Chin.Above, from left to right, are three of the dinner’s dishes—chocolate caviar,“Mushroom Hoodoo,” and smoked-trout crêpes.
Dinner: Freshwater American snapping turtle soup with spinach, Rainwater Madeira wine, and yucca crisp “Tuna Tuna” (ginger-scented tuna brûlée with pickled ginger pearls and kabayaki) and tuna roll with rice paper, micro-herbs, bamboo rice, wasabi foam, and soy-yuzu sauce Braised veal cheek with whipped parsnips, mascarpone, and roasted win- ter root vegetables “Mushroom Hoodoo” (wild mushroom ragout timbale with garlic cream, thyme, squash, and Stilton cheese).
also crafted each of the mini-dishes that made up the dessert course. “They were quite impressed, and it was nice to have a full, sold-out Beard House.” —Hunter R. Slaton