Category Archives: LJ Sconzo

Dining at La Grenouillére

After getting a taste of Chef Alex Gauthier’s cooking at last year’s StarChefs ICC (read about it here), I was looking forward to our reservation at his nouveau-French restaurant more than any other on our pilgrimage. Happily, it did not [...]

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Dining at In de Wulf

Located in the middle of the hilly Belgian countryside, a winter excursion to Chef Kobe Desramaults’ In de Wulf is like finding an oasis in a frozen desert. It’s only accessible by icy, elevated one-lane roads, which leads to trouble [...]

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Bocuse d’Or 2013 – French Impressions

I spent three days and three nights with my father in Lyon, France, to experience the Bocuse d’Or. In case you’re not familiar, here’s a brief history: The legendary Paul Bocuse started the Bocuse d’Or in 1987 as a sort [...]

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StarChefs ICC 2012 – Alexandre Gauthier – French Transformation

Alex Gauthier showcased his exciting innovations on French culinary form at this year’s StarChefs showcase. You might think that classic French cuisine is all played out, that there’s nowhere to go from fine terrine of foie gras or coq au [...]

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StarChefs ICC 2012: Sean Brock, Linton Hopkins: Sons of the South and The Carolina Rice Kitchen

In a presentation titled “Sons of the South,” Sean Brock and Linton Hopkins put on a great show for the 7th Annual Starchefs ICC. On Day 1, they united to present their take on the Southern Culinary Revival that is [...]

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Starchef ICC 2012 – Masaharu Morimoto – The Legacy of Japanese Cuisine

Chef Masaharu Morimoto stunned the main-stage audience on Day 1 with his impressive disassembly of a Kindai Bluefin Tuna. I would wager that I was not alone in my discomfort which stemmed from seeing the endangered 240lb creature lying flat [...]

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StarChef ICC 2012 – Mathias Dahlgren – Cooking Without Recipe

One of the first presentations I saw during the Starchefs ICC was Mathias Dahlgren’s workshop, wherein he took apart a whole New York cauliflower and reassembled it on various plates. As soon as these were distributed, the morsels on top [...]

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StarChefs ICC 2012 – Day Three Overview

The final day of each StarChef ICC is always bittersweet. It’s a power-packed day of demos, workshops, competition finals and great food and drink, but then it is over for another year. Unfortunately, for the final day, my team was [...]

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StarChefs ICC 2012 – Day Two Overview

The second day of the ICC tends to be the busiest. Presenters, attendees and sponsors have settled in and the Congress is in full swing. This year’s ICC was no exception. It began at 9AM and finished with the ever [...]

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StarChefs ICC 2012 – Day 1 Overview

It has become impossible for me to cover the StarChefs ICC by myself. The event has grown and has an awful lot going on. Even with the return of Sarah Gardener, my son L.J. Sconzo and the addition of my [...]

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