Just recieved some pictures from a former coworker. I remember cooking for this photo shoot like it was yesterday. Looking at these pictures, I do miss cooking French. However, I absolutely love what I am doing right now and wouldn't go back to working for anyone. Anyway, take a look. It's pretty decent food porn. HA!




Tarte Flambee


Grand Plateau




Cote de Beouf for 2

Chorizo crusted Cod, Coco Beans and Pistou

Bone Marrow and Oxtail Jam

My New Beginning

It's been a while since I've written anything. I just haven't been inspired to write.

My entire life, I've always lived with great passion and many inspirations. I'm not going to lie. These past few months have been very hard on me. After leaving my last post as exec chef at Cosmopolitan's French eatery a few months ago, I didn't want to work for another restaurant for as long as I could hold off for.

The same week I left, I had 3 offers for an exec chef position here in Vegas and another in SoCal. I was not interested in working for anybody though. I took some time off to plan what I wanted to do and what my next steps were. This was what I knew: I couldn't stay away from the food industry and I couldn't work for anybody else anymore. That's when the Great Bao idea came alive. I had been playing around with the idea of starting a truck for a while in my head and it seemed like the perfect opportunity to start up, as the Vegas food truck scene was just starting to gain followers.

The idea was Chinese street food: Bao and Potstickers. I wasn't going to do anything too crazy...this was my grandma's type of cooking, but cooked and seasoned through my senses. I quickly snatched up a truck and begun work on it. Unfortunately, after pouring in all my savings $$$, it is a business that I still haven't been able to get started.

A cafe space became available on Tropicana and Decatur, which I signed a lease for. It is my temporary space. I love the location, however, I lack the kitchen space that I desperately need. I am serving a smaller food menu than I had planned for the truck. The emphasis on the cafe space will be more about the drinks and building the Great Bao brand.

So...my goal, is to save enough money to move into a larger space in 1 years time.

This is my new beginning and my new inspiration. Alive. Energized. Engaged.

944 Magazine Article

Click on pic to read full article.

The Great Bao Truck

Thank you to all who have followed my blogs detailing my journies through Las Vegas to Mexico City and then Las Vegas again. Please check out my new project: The Great Bao Truck.

http://www.greatbao.com/

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook @GreatBaoTruck

Escargot

Have you had great escargot?

My guess is most people who have tried it haven't had it the way I've had it. It's one of the tastiest dishes in the history of French gastronomy, yet most places just don't do it justice.

Escargot, aka sea snails, are usually prepared with butter, garlic and herbs. Here in town, Mon Ami Gabi does a solid traditional version. At Comme Ca Las Vegas, we serve Escargot en Croute. It is garlicky, buttery, has the aroma of roasted shallots, briny like the ocean, lemony and herbal all at the same time. It's fantastic and whenever I take a bite, it brings me back to Paris.

Team

Putting together the best team out at Comme Ca is no small task.

Raw Bar @ Comme Ca Las Vegas

From the very first time Chef David told me that Balthazar had the best raw bar in the country, I've been on a quest to make Comme Ca Las Vegas' raw bar into something phenomenol. It's been my obsession. We are currently featuring a rotation of 3 west coast oysters and 3 east coast oysters, Alaskan king crab legs, Maine lobsters, littleneck clams, P.E.I. mussels, osetra and kaluga caviar...and the best shrimp cocktail in Las Vegas!

I've always been demanding for the best produce available. This past week, we started featuring some of these amazing ingredients for our guests in the dining room. These were provided by Melissa's World Variety Produce out of Southern California.

(photos are from Max Korekt)

Comme Ca NYE menu

Raw Bar Display in the Dining Room


Amuse: House Cured Salmon Tartar, Chive Creme Fraiche, Crispy Purple Potato


Roasted Chestnut Soup, Foie Gras Terrine, Lemon Creme, Beuree Noisette

Maine Lobster, Salad of Roasted Red and Golden Beet, Upland Cress, Puree of Fennel (Top and Bottom)

Butter Poached Turbot, Celery Root and Truffle Puree, Salad of Apple and Celery, Red Wine Vinegar Reduction

Chorizo Crusted Cod, Stew of Littleneck Clams and Coco Bean, Noilly Prat Sauce


Duo of Beef: Prime Strip Steak, "Bourgignon", Pomme Aligot, Glazed Winter Vegetables

Truffles

1# of White Alba Truffles; cost: $2800/lb
1# of Perigord Black Truffles: $850/lb

I brought in one pound of each for the New Year at Comme Ca Las Vegas.

Thank you

First of all, I have to say that I feel very priviliged and honored to be part of the opening team of Comme Ca Las Vegas. It's an experience that I have always dreamed of having. I mean, I am just a normal guy, who grew up in the suburbs of LA. There's nothing really flashy about me. I love food and cooking, like many other people.

My dream was to be the chef of a high profile restaurant and being able to serve great food in one of the most amazing spaces on the Las Vegas Strip.

I am living it.

The opening process, however, isn't the kind of experience that I dreamed it would be. We've had a lot of difficulty getting produce, dairy, fish, uniforms, pots and pans, you name it...we've had trouble getting these things together for the restaurant. We're less than a week away from serving our first external guests, and it's a nerve racking feeling, knowing that we're still missing so many items.

This being said, I do not doubt that we will be successful. We will be... and we will be amazing. I'm blessed to be surrounded by a great team, from the chefs that I have been working with to the "foh", front of the house. That isn't the whole team, though. There's Chef David Myers, and Allie who have helped me through the opening process..and I can't thank Chefs Dong and Eric and their CCLA team enough.

I've been pulled in so many directions during the past couple weeks, that if my partners in the kitchen (Rodney, Aldo, and Ramon) weren't so strong and composed, the whole project might turn sour. I'm very thankful for having these guys on my side.

Comme Ca Las Vegas Daily Specials

(Hardee's ad featuring their French Dip Sandwiches. It has nothing to do with me or Comme Ca, but I'm putting it up anyway.)

In addition to our kickass brasserie menu, we'll be offering Plats du Jour. Here is the lineup.

Monday: Pork Belly
Tuesday: Cassoulet
Wednesday: Coq au Vin
Thursday: Coquille St. Jacques
Friday: Roasted Whole Fish
Saturday: Cote de Beouf for 2
Sunday: Roast Whole Chicken for 2

I'm really looking forward to our opening. Only 3 weeks away!

Comme Ca's Mission Statement

Mission Statement
To provide the BEST brasserie experience for each and every single guest.

Paris, Day One

I had to take a pic of my very first sight of Paris, the City of Love. Walking up from our subway stop.


The first stop for me, Dong, and Eric. The chocolate croissant was great. Perfect after a 14 hour flight.



Fresh seafood, brought in from Brittany?



During this trip, I had macarons from three legendary patisseries. Lenotre, Pierre Herme, and Lauduree. I prefer macarons from Pierre Herme.



Le Comptoir for lunch with Chefs David, Dong and Eric.

Carpaccio Tete de Veau

Boudin Noir, Apples

Ouefs

Roasted Cepes

Pate de Campagna

Braised Pork shaped into a disc, then pan fried. Really cool dish. Nice touch with the lentils and pig ears underneath the braise.

Roasted whole Chicken

Beef Cheeks, Macaroni, Carrots

Tripe

Pork Belly, Potato Puree, Pork Jus, Olive Jus

Scallop and Cepes

The name of this cheese escapes me, but it is quite similar to an Eppoisse

My first Pastis...at the legendary Cafe de Flore.

La Baratin

Escargot

Foie Gras Terrine

Artichoke Salad

Crab Croquettes

Turbot

Roast Suckling Pig!!!

Red Wine Poached Pear

Chocolate Tart

I got a pic with the chef of La Baratin. She did all the cooking on a 6 burner stove, in the kitchen the size of my closet. I am humbled.

Au Pied de Cochon for some pig's feet!