Category Archives: Chefs

Dining Outside At Amber India In Santana Row

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Chilean sea bass tikka with pumpkin ravioli -- only at Amber India's Santana Row location.
Chilean sea bass tikka with pumpkin ravioli — only at Amber India’s Santana Row location.

Chef Bikram Das couldn’t be happier to finally have the chance to show off his creative flair at Amber India in San Jose’s Santana Row.

Yes, it’s only recently that he’s been able to fully do that. Because Das had the unfortunate timing of arriving as head chef in March 2020.

Initially, he had high hopes that the restaurant would be able to succeed with food to-go.

But his optimism was dashed, when he realized that many of the apartments at the upscale retail-restaurant-housing complex were corporate-owned, and thus, largely empty during the pandemic.

However, with both indoor and outdoor dining now offered, Das is thrilled to offer an array of classic dishes, as well as contemporary ones that take inspiration from Italian and other Asian fare he’s cooked at hotels in India.

I had a chance to sample some of his handiwork, when I was invited in as a guest of the restaurant last week.

Revolver cocktail with draft Blue Moon in the background.
Revolver cocktail with draft Blue Moon in the background.

There are plenty of outdoor tables right in front of the restaurant, which provides for a great people-watching vantage point, especially with a craft cocktail in hand. Santana’s Revolver ($14) is a take on a Manhattan, a potent blend of Bulleit Rye, Tia Maria, and Angostura orange bitters for a smoky, honeyed-vanilla punch.

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Sizzling Turkish Lamb and Eggplant Kebabs

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Lamb meatballs interspersed with big chunks of eggplant turn delightfully smoky on the grill.
Lamb meatballs interspersed with big chunks of eggplant turn delightfully smoky on the grill.

Husband-and-wife chefs Itamar Srulovich and Sarit Packer like to play with fire.

And the after-effects are sure to make your mouth-water.

After honing their craft at Yotam Ottolenghi’s acclaimed London restaurants, the couple opened the popular Israeli-influenced cafe, Honey & Co. in London, in 2012. That was followed in short succession by Honey & Smoke, and the Honey & Spice deli.

Their first cookbook, “Honey & Co: At Home: Middle Eastern Recipes From Our Kitchen” (Pavilion) was named “Cookbook of the Year” in 2015 by The Sunday Times in the United Kingdom.

Now comes their follow-up, “Honey & Co: Chasing Smoke: Cooking Over Fire Around the Levant” (Pavilion), of which I received a review copy.

As the title implies, this book is all about grilling, smoking and imparting coveted char in dishes. Join Packer and Srulovich as they take you on a journey to discover the most delicious live-fire-cooking through Egypt, Jordan, Israel, Turkey, and Greece. Photographs of market stalls, desert landscapes, seashores, and all manner of blazing grills transport you to these evocative places. So much so, that you’ll swear you can feel the heat and smell the smoke right off the pages.

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David Kinch’s Ricotta Gnocchi with A Simple Tomato Sauce

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Pillowy ricotta gnocchi in a fresh and lively tomato sauce.
Pillowy ricotta gnocchi in a fresh and lively tomato sauce.

If you’re someone who was mesmerized by the beauty, creativity, and precision of the “Manresa: An Edible Reflection” (Ten Speed Press, 2013) cookbook, you are not alone.

And if you are someone who sheepishly admits to never having actually cooked anything from it, I am right there with you.

Because let’s face it, few — if any — of us have the daring or dexterity to cook Michelin three-star food at home.

Chef-Owner David Kinch knows that.

That’s why his newest cookbook, “At Home in the Kitchen: Simple Recipes from a Chef’s Night Off” (Ten Speed Press) focuses not on what this renowned chef creates at his revered Los Gatos restaurant, Manresa, but what he cooks at his Santa Cruz home, particularly on Tuesdays, his day off, when he’s apt to invite friends over for impromptu, beachy eats .

The book was written with Devin Fuller, a former Manresa backserver and expeditor who is now a freelance writer.

Included are more than 120 recipes, including “Baked Miso Eggplant,” “Pasta with Pesto & Avocado,” “Trout with Fennel & Grapefruit,” and “Almond Granita.” Each recipe includes a fun addition: a song recommendation by Kinch, a vinyl fan, to play while indulging in the dish.

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Where I’ve Been Getting Takeout of Late, Part 34

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The butternut squash and salsa verde Milan-style pizza from Pizzone.
The delicata squash and salsa verde Milan-style pizza from Pizzone.

Pizzone, Palo Alto

Let’s start by saying that I’ve never paid nearly $70 for one pizza before ($69.90 to be exact).

But Pizzone’s pie is unlike most.

For one thing, it’s a massive 18-inches in diameter and 1-inch thick all around.

It’s also Milan-style, meaning that it’s airy, soft, fluffy, and more like focaccia.

Milan-native Dario Presezzi, founder and CEO of Redwood City’s Biotechforce Corp., put his entrepreneurial skills to use in a different way this summer when he opened this ghost kitchen inside of Palo Alto’s Vina Enoteca.

That means it’s pick-up and delivery only. And if you pick it up yourself, just note that you do so at a side door just to the left of Vina Enoteca’s main entrance.

By the time you get the pizza home, the cheese may have congealed just a bit, so you can rewarm it in the oven or zap it in the microwave for the briefest of seconds.

The whole pie.
The whole pie.

The pizza comes either in a box of two slices ($9.90 to $11.90, depending on the toppings) or as a full pizza (12 slices that will serve 6, starting at $54.90). Because the crust is thick, two slices will definitely fill you up comfortably, too.

There are five vegetarian pizzas to choose from, and four meat ones. The beauty of the whole pizza is that you can choose up to six flavors on one pie, which is what I went with.

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Dining News Around The Bay

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"Fall Off the Bone'' wings from alaMar Kitchen & Bar. (Photo by Dana Plucinski)
“Fall Off the Bone” wings from alaMar Kitchen & Bar. (Photo by Dana Plucinski)

Nelson German of “Top Chef” Reopens Indoor Dining at alaMar Kitchen & Bar In Oakland

After months of doing only takeout and delivery, alaMar Kitchen & Bar in Oakland reopened last week for indoor dining. Come by to say “hello” to Chef Nelson German, whose time on this season’s “Top Chef’‘ was cut short by an injury from which he has thankfully recovered.

The lively restaurant, which blends Latin, Caribbean, and Mediterranean flavors, has undergone an interior refresh. The menu also has been updated with some new offerings, including shrimp tacos “quesa style” with Oaxaca cheese, chow chow and salsa criolla; roasted oysters with salsa verde, pork longaniza, and Parmesan butter; and stuffed masa, a recreation of his “Unidentified Dominican Object” created in an episode 6 challenge of “Top Chef.”

Chef-Owner Nelson German. (Photo by Melati Citrawireja)
Chef-Owner Nelson German. (Photo by Melati Citrawireja)

Perennial favorites, “Fall Off the Bone Wings” and “Peel and Eat Shrimp,” that proved popular during takeout can still be enjoyed on the dining room menu, too.

For more fun, pick up a copy of my cookbook, “East Bay Cooks: Signature Recipes from the Best Restaurants, Bars, and Bakeries” (Figure 1) at the restaurant, local bookstores or on Amazon. It features recipes and stories from a roster of top East Bay chefs, including German.

Scott’s Chowder House Opens in San Jose

Scott’s Chowder House, a more casual spin-off from veteran Scott’s Seafood, opened in downtown San Jose last week, with another planned to debut next month in San Francisco at 334 Grant Ave.

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