As promised, I dug up some “set up” shots demonstrating unorthodox techniques to obtain decent photos.
Salmon Filet with Red-wine sauce, toasted-garlic risotto, and veggies (sauteed cabbage, leeks, and asparagus). Cranberry and pine-nut salsa.
Roasted Beet salad with manchego and pistachios
Pandowdy with housemade creme freche.
These were setups that were improvised, and had a number of unique requirements. Most notably, they had to be unobtrusive and set up in a part of the kitchen which was both accessible (because the food needed to move from the line, to the studio, to a server’s hands in a rapid progression, to prevent the food from getting cold) and not taking-up valuable space. They also needed to be able to be broken down quickly, in case something came up that necessitated the use of the space (i.e. dishwasher needs to peel potatoes and cut more fries because we are running out.) The results were acceptable IMO, because I was doing this to provide a portfolio for myself and other chefs, illustrating our dishes and plate-ups. Photos that were intended for public distribution (adverts, postcards, websites, etc,) allowed for a more complex set-up and the production of “hero-food” (food not meant for consumption, but rather produced exclusively for the production of quality photos.)
Here are a few of my plate-ups/creations from my time at Jeffrey’s Chop House in Dr. Phillips, Florida. One of my favorite parts of this job was creating the daily Amuse-Bouche. If you aren’t familiar, the amuse-bouche (french for "mouth amuser) is a small bite, often eaten with the hands, that is presented to each diner at the table, usually right after they order. It is a preview of what’s to come; an appetizer before the appetizer; a way for the chef to have fun, hook-up a table, and utilize small amounts of leftovers.
Salmon Lox with Caviar on Toast with charred-lemon slice, aioli, and cilantro-pesto.
Tempura Sushi Lollipop-Duo; one was salmon, the other tuna. Salmon was topped with a cream-cheese and chive “easter-egg”, the tuna was drizzled with eel sauce.
A few other plate-ups/dishes I did (Remember: this was mid-2000’s… this was the style):
Pan-seared grouper over cilantro-pesto rice, with avocado, pepper salsa, asparagus, chipotle cream sauce.
Surf & Turf. Bone-in Kubota Pork Chop and Scallop Napoleon. Served with caviar, wilted greens, and grilled parsnips. Demi glace and lobster-cream sauce.
Finally: not food-porn per se, but a cool food-related/restaurant pic I took
:
Chef Kyo Koo on the Wood Grill at Clarklewis, Executive Chef Dolan Lane on prep. Loved working with these guys.
I’ll dig up some more soon. Happy Sunday T-Nation!