Denis Culinary Tours

I ventured to 135 th Street recently to Prairiefire and the two plus month old Grimaldi’s Coal Fired Pizza place.  I’d call it upscale pizza (as do the managers) – not just because of the price  which in pretty much in line with non-chain gourmet pizzas – but the environment. It’s brick, spacious, big bar, great large pictures of famous people who’ve eaten at the mothership Grimaldi’s, inventive chandeliers, cloth napkins and highly attentive service.  These were all good things, but not as important as the bottom line, pizza.    And the pizza is really, really good.  Two primary reasons for this (besides the hand-tossed dough).  One, that coal fired oven, which is huge and very, very hot.  The coal is the best quality anthracite and heats that brick oven up to 1200 degrees – leaving the front areas for the pizzas at around 530 degrees.  What this does is somehow create a crust that is thin, somehow crispy, yet still foldable – vita...

Whether you’re a great home chef or not, for many of us there comes the time when we say, “Enough!  I can’t (won’t) (don’t want to) do it this time (anymore) (ever again)!  The “it” refers to making the food for a large, or even small, gathering.  Whether it’s a full scale celebration for 60 or an intimate dinner for four, people today are reaching for different solutions – ones that used to only be called catering. There seems to be some confusion about the various options available, or who does what, when, and how.  As a consumer and potential “party planner,” in the broadest sense of the word, there are some things you need to know about catering. First, we are talking only about events not held in the hotel, restaurant, or site where the food originates.  It may be in your home, a space you have rented, a park, or someplace you’ve talked the owner into accommodating you and 89 of your closest friends. Second, the categories.  There are basicall...

Sweet, Perfect Desserts at Pierpont’s As much as I love desserts and writing about them (hence, this series), I have to tell you I seldom get to try three at once.  That is largely due to the malevolence called sharing. My portly companion and I feel too guilty usually to eat an entire dessert by ourselves.  Also generous friends usually know the sharing-with-me-rule but still, since they share usually, too, that reduces the choices. But the other day at beautiful Pierpont’s in Union Station, I tried three delicious desserts all by myself that you will love. First thing you need to know it that for some of us, it’s hard to bypass the “ Death by Chocolate Cocktails ,” since they definitely qualify as a dessert with a bonus.  I am going there some day with friends just to try the Double Dutch Chocolatini, the Moondance Martini (Jameson’s, Godiva Dark Chocolate, Bailey’s, and Guiness), and the King Alexander.  My friends will have to give me tasting privileges on...

L’École Culinaire – More Than “Just” a School Last Thursday I had dinner at L’Ecole Culinaire’s Presentation Room on the Plaza.  If you’re not familiar with it, it’s a private cooking school with locations also in Memphis and St. Louis.  They offer classes to us ordinary mortals as well (see our current wine contest for their wine class on February 12 th !) as well as degree classes and diplomas in culinary skills and restaurant management.  Students do the cooking and baking as well as the serving and hosting.  BUT, what I want to talk about is this dinner we had.  Prepared and served by students, it was delicious and remarkably, and I mean remarkably, inexpensive.  The charcuterie board was amazing, four or so different meats and pates, grilled bread, scallions, beets, couple of difference sauces – it was, truly, a meal for two all on its own.  Seven bucks.   Entrées were $12 and you could choose from five – a f...

Slurping oysters will win one lucky team $1,000 at the second annual Jax Fish House oyster eating competition on February 27 Jax declares February Oyster Month and will feature weekly food and drink specials and 10 cents per oyster shucked donated to Leukemia & Lymphoma Society during the month  Jax Fish House & Oyster Bar has declared February Oyster Month and is planning a month-long celebration, highlighted by its second annual oyster eating competition on Saturday, Feb. 27 with a grand prize of $1,000 and free crab for a year. Guests will also have the opportunity to enjoy weekly food and drink specials all month created by Chef de Cuisine Theresia Ota and Lead Bartender Kenny Cohrs. Finally, ten cents per every Emersum oyster shucked at Jax during the month of February will be donated to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Oyster Eating Competition Jax’s second annual oyster eating competition will take place on Saturday, February 27 at 2 p.m. Teams o...

Donate to JCCC Food Pantry and receive 20% off your order at The Pastry Shop (Open every Friday when classes are in session from 3 p.m. until sold out or 5:30 p.m.) The pastry program is partnering with the college ’ s food pantry and will accept items on Fridays during the sale. Please bring items from the list below and we will make sure you receive a 20% discount during checkout. Canned meats, tuna, chicken, and meat pasta sauces, peanut butter, canned fruit, chunky meat soups, protein or whole wheat, pastas, whole grain cereals.  If possible, please no canned vegetable products particularly canned corn and bean products (we have boxes and boxes). If you would like to make a cash donation Let the cashier know how much you are contributing above your total and it will be donated to the pantry. You may go to  https://secure.touchnet.com/C20110_ustores/web/store_cat.jsp?STOREID=3&CATID=606&SINGLESTORE=true  to make the donation. Checks should b...

If you like food & wine, you will love this... Publisher of the Restaurant Guide of Kansas City , Kathy Denis, a French government certified tour guide in the Bordeaux area in the 1990s, decided to lead twice-yearly culinary tours three years ago. Her husband is from France, and after their marriage, they moved to Kansas City and started publishing the restaurant guide.      “We had always given advice on travelling to France and helped people plan their vacations. While on a family trip to France in 2012, we decided to ‘officially’ share our knowledge, experience, and personal contacts in France by launching a sister-business called Global Culinary Escapades,” explained Kathy.      The main area they focus on is the city of Bordeaux, its surrounding vineyards including the town of St. Emilion, and the Dordogne Valley, including the medieval town of Sarlat. Kathy Pelz (Kansas City) and two former Dames have been among the 15 tr...