Improving on the classics
Friday - December 07, 2007
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There are few fine-dining restaurants in Hawaii that can match the ambience, the food and the history of Michel’s. Opened in 1962 by legendary restaurateur Michel Martin, the sun-kissed oceanfront room has become a dining institution in Hawaii and a guardian, of sorts, of classic French-inspired dishes.
“My training is from the Black Forest,” says executive chef Eberhard “Hardy” Kintscher in his soft, German accent. “And most of the recipes we do at Michel’s go back to classic traditional sauces and stocks, and things that take a lot of time.”
Time-consuming perhaps, but Hardy and his kitchen crew are masters of the art.
“I think the difference with the food at Michel’s is that we take the time to roast bones for rich stocks, and make demi glaces that add a lot of body to our dishes,” Hardy says.“In some restaurants, it’s hard to get people in the kitchen to understand the importance of this and the difference that it makes.”
Not so at Michel’s, where most of Hardy’s team (led by sous chef Jesus Guittap) have been with him for seven years.
“It takes a certain talent and dedication to be able to cook like this,” says Hardy, “and we’re lucky to have a team that understands that.”
But while rich sauces and stocks are one reason the dishes at Michel’s are such a treat, it’s Hardy’s ability to take traditional recipes and infuse them with local flavor that makes dinner here exciting and refreshing. This is not fusion food, but rather a combination of classic European dishes with fresh, local ingredients.
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Bouillabaisse is a perfect example. The traditional Provencal seafood stew is given a Hawaiian twist as local fish and herbs are added to lobster, scallops, shrimp, mussels and clams. It’s light, is intensely flavored with rich fish stock and features ingredients from Hawaii.
The transportation of European dishes to Hawaii is seen further in Ossobuco of Kurobuta Pork.
“I wanted to do something traditional, of course,” says Hardy, “but to me, ossobucco is a little ordinary - and I wanted to do something beyond ordinary.”
So he experimented with the tender, marbled meat of the black Kurobuta hog. “The meat is more beefy in taste and more meaty,” chef says of the prized pork. Cooked traditionally in the German style - with juniper, cloves and bay leaf - the tender meat is then given its Hawaiian twist.
“I have these wonderful ladies who call me every time they make guava puree,” says Hardy with a huge smile. “They have guava trees that produce so much fruit, and the ladies make a puree that is so beautiful and so consistent, I wanted to find a way to use it.” He created a guava barbecue glaze, and the pork dish was born - a perfect example of how Chef Hardy is able to keep a strongly European influence in the food at Michel’s yet still allow diners to have a Hawaii dining experience.
With tuxedo-clad waiters, antique French furnishings and attention paid to the tiniest of details, Michel’s is more than a dining institution. Thanks to a team of highly dedicated professional staff led by Philip Shaw in the dining room and Hardy in the kitchen, Michel’s has managed to move effortlessly through four decades of culinary change in Honolulu and still come out on top.
Michel’s at The Colony Surf 923-6552 www.michelshawaii.com
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