A Celebration of "Fried & True" at Ginny's Supperclub

On June 24th, a tinted and lavish Ginny's Supper Club, under the often bustling Red Rooster in Harlem, hosted a launch to the public and local press for Fried & True: 50 Recipes for America's Best Fried Chicken and Sides compiled by Lee Brian Schrager (with Adeena Sussman). Fried & True features about 100 recipes from chefs/restaurateurs/cooks around the country offering their take on fried chicken in addition to side pairings reflecting the variations of what people of different backgrounds think of when it comes to a historic dish that is steadily becoming part of the "new wave" of food trends.

Fried & True's origins stem from Lee's complete and utter love of fried chicken. Growing up on Long Island it was a staple meal in his home and also a treat purchased and delivered when his parents went out. In the Introduction Lee states that he often orders fried chicken whenever he's out rather than making it himself to taste what others have to offer and how they reflect a change in the perceived tried and true way to make this American classic. Lee's involvement and background in so many aspects of the culinary world, including being the founder of the NY Food & Wine Festival and Food Network South Beach Wine & Food festival, make him a huge name in the industry and someone with an enviable palate.

Fried & True now out from Clarkson Potter

Three NYC based chefs were featured at the Fried & True celebration, as were their contributions to the book for the evening's menu. Marcus Samuelsson (owner and chef of Red Rooster) who not only greeted attendees but was also working, Elizabeth Karmel of Hill Country BBQ & Hill Country Chicken, and Harlem native with Southern roots Charles Gabriel whose restaurant Charles' Country Pan Fried Chicken was lauded by Lee and Marcus as being the best fried chicken in Harlem, let alone New York City.

Guests received a copy of the book along with tote bags from sponsor Mastercard. But the only way to get a real sense of Fried & True was in the food itself. Attendees got to try recipes from Samuelsson including his coconut fried chicken on a bed of shredded bok choy claw with toasted peanuts, pickled jalapeno, and fried chickpeas; in addition to Elizabeth Karmel's garlic cheese grits with candied country ham and Charles Gabriel's candied yams.

Each dish was brought out family style and there were mutterings/requests for more. Karmel, mouth full, complimented Gabriel on his candied yams (simple with only a handful of ingredients; "a staple to real Southern cooking," he insisted). And Gabriel became a fan of Karmel's garlic cheese grits with ham bits sweetened with a crust of granulated and dark brown sugar. Samuelsson's chicken had a kick as did the bok choy slaw that reflected his signature style of a twist on an American classic while adding in bits of Samuelsson's African and European roots.

Brooklyn ice cream shop Ample Hills Creamery provided scoops of their popular flavors salted crack caramel and sweet as honey ice cream with toppings for dessert while guests enjoyed music from local artist Farrah Burns and her band.

Fried & True is split up into four sections: Southern Inspiration; American Originals; Pacific Rim Flavors; and Sandwiches, Wings, L'il Bites, and Special Diets. Some of the more heavily reflected regions for the recipes featured include the East coast (New York City has prominent coverage), the South(east), California, parts of the Midwest such as Chicago, and even Portland, OR.

Charles Gabriel being of South Carolina roots and having cooked with his mother at a very young age brings his wisdom and flavors to Harlem not just at his own shop but having been a chef at Copeland's in Harlem for a couple decades. He may be one of the few, if only, true Southern contemporaries bringing good ole down home fried chicken in a big ole cast iron (yes, you will need a cast iron as Fried & True notes in Fried Chicken 101) to make his chicken oh so crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. Karmel's recipes also fit into Southern Inspiration and Samuelsson's contributions land in the American Originals section.

While Marcus Samuelsson may be considered the hot name and grand orator, Gabriel received the spotlight that evening and was someone anyone who hadn't know him before wanted to know. Lee said he absolutely had to have Gabriel's recipes in this book. Marcus echoed that when he first visited Harlem in preparation for his own restaurant that he was informed that he had to go to Charles' Country Pan Fried Chicken on 150th and Frederick Douglass, get some chicken, and then head to Marcus Garvey Park to watch the residents play ball. To him, the combination of watching local ballers and eating Gabriel's chicken culminated in the perfect Sunday.

Gabriel is a tall, shy man with dark skin and a great smile. Once he talks about chicken, about cooking, he opens up, more extroverted and more animated in his talk about enjoying what he does and waking up early and going to bed late. Even after this event he was going straight to his restaurant to prep for the next day and was very much looking forward to closing up for a week to enjoy a vacation and cruise with his family. Gabriel was stopped, repeatedly, during conversation by those wanting his autograph, wanting to know where his shop was exactly, and saying that they'd be back to Harlem going further north this time around and, even with full bellies, were excited to try his food. This made Gabriel grin even wider, surprised and humbled by the celebrity thrust upon him that evening.

Fried & True brings attention to the hot spots and the smaller spots. It even brought "low-key fried chicken lovers out of the woodwork" where the unifier is good, comfort food that is recognizable to many from their childhood. Like Lee says, fried chicken is becoming part of the American "culinary canon" and this celebration of Fried & True's release may be just the resurgence fried chicken and the places that serve it needed.

Village Voice's @ChoiceEats 2014

Once again the Village Voice held one of the biggest vendor events on a really blustery "spring" evening this past Tuesday. The new venue for Choice Eats was Pier 36 on South Street right next to the water. If you were waiting outside you were hit with all kinds of cold winds coming right off the Hudson. But what would keep you warm, or at least hopeful, was knowing that soon, soon, you would be immersed in a smorgasbord of vendors for savory and sweet treats as well as a variety of alcohol (beer, liquors, and wine). One of my first impressions upon entering the building was how much bigger Pier 36 was and how welcoming it felt. The dull colored carpeting and the expansive space allowed for more movement among the several hundred people in attendance. Much more so than the Armory in the Flat Iron District in years prior. This does not mean it didn't get packed, however. By 8pm it was hard to get through sections or view what vendors were doling out because lines extended past one booth and merged with others for booths parallel to the one you may have been interested in in the first place.

What's great about Choice Eats is it allows for attendees to sample items from new or established eateries around NYC. Ones you may not have known existed. Places from Queens, Brooklyn, and all over Manhattan had large display signs in yellow with red type advertising their dish(es) and people with smiling faces trying to feed the masses as quickly as they could.

If you purchased general admission you got in at 7pm. If you opted to go for VIP status you got in at 6pm, got to sample vendors food without the larger crowd, got a goody bag, and a private lounge to sit in. Again this one was swankier than at the Armory. Whereas the Armory's lounge was downstairs away from the bustle Pier 36's was above the bustle so you could still survey the scene and not feel left out.

For me, this year was a bit hit and miss. Many dishes I wasn't a fan of or were too salty or too spicy taking away from actual taste of the dish for me. But, one of my favorite new finds was the first table my friend Joy and I hit, Cafe Glechik.

Cafe Glechik had the largest portions and were well stocked--even at 8:45 (the event ends at 9pm) they had a whole sheet of Napoleon Cake as well as many blinis and dumplings available whereas many places had run out and bolted. The blini is essentially meat in a crepe and then fried on either side to get that nice warm taste inside. It was well seasoned and not at all spicy. The Napoleon Cake was other-worldly and my favorite dessert. Several layers of phyllo dough with light vanilla creme between each layer was delicious. The only downside was the portions were so huge I couldn't finish. I did see some people bring Tupperware so perhaps that's an idea if you can't sample it all in one day; try and take what may be reheatable home. Just a thought.

Other standouts were Bien Cut's apricot danish. A croissant with apricot cream filling. Fantastic and light, they ran out of it fast. Bien Cut also had corn biscuits with a sweet puree on top that had a nice organic taste to it not like your boxed, run-of-the-mill cornmeal but something much more of the earth. Bien Cut's items were perfectly bite size and lovely to look at.

Other items I did like was the array of soul food proteins and sides from Charles' Country Pan Fried Chicken. They had a nice small plate of down home cooking that included candied yams, collard greens, cornbread, fried chicken wings or baked chicken bits, rib tips, and mac n' cheese. This was one of the longer lines as they had the most offerings. In fact if you visited more of the ethnic fare like Ethiopian or Indian eateries they may have had several items, and ultimately served attendees buffet style rather than focusing on one standout dish. This choice can be good or bad for the vendor but at least more items gives a broader sense of what's available.

There were also old faves like Fay Da Bakery. I love the lightness of their sponge cakes, the fact that they have honey tea and bubble tea, and also their egg custard tarts all in small sizes but in large quantities. And the people at the Fay Da booth are friendly every year.

There was also chocolatey goodness of a chocolate chip cookie with a layer of caramel and a layer of chocolate from Robicelli's. Liddabit Sweets served chocolate caramel bonbons with pistachio and salt atop. Butter & Scotch had their Dark & Stormy flavored popcorn that has been gaining speed since they debuted it last year at the food fairs. And there was La Newyorkina whose line was ridiculous by night's end once people diverted from the savory and sought to fulfill their sweet tooth. One day I shall have Newyorkina. It will happen.

What makes Choice Eats great is the variety, going with friends, enjoying food and some alcohol and learning of new places to dine. The vendors are eager to get their name out there and you're looking to eat/drink so it's a win-win situation really. What I would point out is that this is not necessarily a vegan-friendly or gluten-free (GF) friendly event. Many items are meat and do have dairy. As my friend Joy said at one point, "I'm filled with meat." Vegetarians may fair okay, especially in the dessert realm, but if you're vegan or lactose or GF there may be very slim pickins for you here. As is there were several ice cream vendors and many of the cakes, including Fay Da's and Cafe Glechik's had cream. Vendors don't readily advertise what they'll be giving out beforehand, but for the most part there'll be good eats if you're ready to throw down and get in as much as there is to offer.

Tickets for Choice Eat's sister event Choice Streets will be going on sale on April 2nd. And tickets for Choice Eats tend to go on sale in January.