Take Five with Chef Dominique Crenn, on Her Upcoming “Iron Chef America” Battle

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Last year, Executive Chef Dominique Crenn of Luce in San Francisco, showed her chops by competing in the Food Network’s “The Next Iron Chef Competition.”

Now, the 45-year-old chef who used to square off regularly against the guys in soccer in her homeland of France, shows off her combative skills again, this time in Kitchen Stadium on Aug. 8 on “Iron Chef America” when she takes on Iron Chef Michael Symon.

She plans to feature her “Iron Chef” dishes on a special prix fixe menu at Luce, too, starting Aug. 10. The multi-course dinner will be $65 per person, and be available through Labor Day.

Crenn joins a small cadre of Bay Area chefs who have battled an Iron Chef: Ron Siegel of the Dining Room at the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco; David Kinch of Manresa in Los Gatos, Traci Des Jardins of Jardiniere in San Francisco; Mourad Lahlou of Aziza in San Francisco; Charles Phan of the Slanted Door in San Francisco; Chris Cosentino of Incanto in San Francisco; and Nate Appleman (formerly at A16 in San Francisco and now at New York’s Pulino’s). By Crenn’s count, that makes her the eighth competitor from these parts, a most auspicious number for her, too.

Q: What’s up with the number eight?

A: In France, we celebrate the names of people on certain days. So, Aug. 8 is the day to celebrate St. Dominique in France.

Q: Hmm, so does that mean there was a good outcome for you in the battle because of that?

A: (laughs) You can’t read anything into that.

Q: The day you did the battle also marked the anniversary of your father’s death?

A: Yes, it was the 10th anniversary. The battle was for him. That day, I was sad, but focused. I wished he was there. But it also was a day to celebrate the person that he was. You have to celebrate that or else you just end up staying at home and crying your eyes out.

Q: Did you know Symon before doing the show?

A: I met him when I did ‘The Next Iron Chef.’ And I knew about him through friends in the industry. He has an incredible reputation. It was an honor to be in a battle with him.

We were putting makeup on, and sitting next to each other, just cracking up. He’s a wonderful man. But the gloves come off when it’s time to battle. It’s one hour of craziness.

Q: Of course, he has that unmistakable devilish laugh, too. Was that intimidating?

A: I love his laugh. I made a comment about it. You will see.

Q: I know you can’t say what the ‘secret ingredient’ is. But was it at least an ingredient that you liked?

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Candy With A Beard & Winners of the Starbucks Coffees

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Usually, hairy isn’t a good thing.

As in armpits.

Or finding yourself entangled in a crazy situation.

But when it comes to Chinese candy, it can be a very good thing, indeed.

I found that out when a chef-friend brought me back a souvenir from Hong Kong: Dragon Beard Candy.

This unusual confection is also known as “noodle candy,” because the way it’s made is similar to that of hand-pulled noodles.

Malt sugar is boiled, then chilled until just the right elastic consistency. Then, it is hand-pulled and stretched, which doubles the number of strands each time.

The spun sugar is then cut into small pieces and wrapped around a filling of roasted sesame seeds, chopped peanuts and shredded coconut.

The “hair” is superfine, almost like thread. When you bite into the sweet candy, the “hair” shatters immediately, giving way to a crunchy nuttiness.

According to legend — or the back of my box — an emperor in the Sung Dynasty was so fond of the candy that it became featured as an imperial treat at the palace. It was fitting, given that the dragon was the symbol of the emperor, and the thousand strands of the candy were said to resemble the emperor’s beard.

Another friend, who has lived in China, said that she remember watching vendors making the spun sugar, as passersby would gather to watch.

Which just goes to show that hairy — at least when it comes to candy — can be a definite crowd pleaser.

Contest Results: Now, for the five winners of the Starbucks Natural Fusions flavored coffees. Each person will receive a bag of each of the three different flavors (Vanilla, Caramel and Cinnamon), as well as a French press.

As you recall in my recent contest, I asked you to take your best shot at answering this question: “Without coffee in the morning, I am….”

I’m glad I’m not the only one who desperately needs that first cup in the morning to be myself. Here are the winners who had the best answers:

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News in Wine Country, Kids Eat Free & More

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New Happenings in Wine Country

After years of renovation, Rustic, Francis’s Favorites has opened in the soon-to-be-completed Francis Ford Coppola Winery in Geyserville.

The dining room is centered on the parrila, an Argentinian grill. Enjoy Neopolitan pizzas such as the one named after the famed director’s daughter (a stellar director in her own right), Sofia. This pizza comes topped with arugula, prosciutto, and Parmigiano. Other dishes include a whole fish cooked in salt, classic Fiorentino steak for two, short ribs Argentine-style, and “Mrs. Scorcese’s Lemon Chicken” (one guess where that recipe came from).

The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner daily. The winery has a temporary tasting room for now. Eventually, it will include two new tasting rooms, as well as Coppola’s collection of movie memorabilia, including Don Corleone’s desk from “The Godfather” and the original 1948 Tucker car.

Join more than 30 of the Napa Valley’s top chefs and wineries at Share Our Strength’s Taste of the Nation Grand Tasting at the Silverado Resort in Napa, Aug. 5.

Among the restaurants participating are Peter Pahk, chef of the Silverado Resort, who will be assisted by chefs from La Toque, the Restaurant at Meadowood, and Cole’s Chop House.

Funds raised will go to Share Our Strength’s efforts to eradicate childhood hunger in Napa County and across the nation.

Tickets are $75 per person. One of the sponsors, Pretzel Crisps, is offering a deal on $15 off the ticket price. Just use the code, “PRETZELCRISP,” when purchasing tickets online.

This month, Swanson Vineyards in Rutherford debuted a new, whimsical tasting room, Sip Shoppe.

It joins the winery’s Salon tasting room. The Sip Shoppe, open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays, is decorated in striped circus-like fabric and faux stone gargoyles. Enjoy sipping wines in unusual glassware such as glass “Dixie” cups, mini Riedel O’s, and colored cut crystal.

A sense of fun permeates this tasting spot, which was envisioned as a candy store for grown-ups. Wines are available by the glass or by specific tastings, including the “Oakville Irony” ($15, Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, a dollop of caviar atop a potato chip, and a New Orleans Snowball).

Look for new gift sets to be sold there, too, such as the “Newlywed Kit” (six bottles of  Swanson Vineyards “Just Married” wine, along with a feather ostrich duster, and a sage bundle).

Kids Eat Free at Chipotle Aug. 2

Parents who purchase a burrito, salad, burrito bowl or tacos at Bay Area Chipotle’s get a free meal for their kids on Aug. 2.

It’s a promotion to show off the new Chipotle kids’ menu, which includes choices such as small cheese quesadilla ($2.95, which includes a bag of chips, and beverage) and a “taco kit” ($3.95), which allows the pint-sized bunch to build their own tacos from three items (and enjoy chips and a beverage).

Just as with the grown-up dishes, the kid-friendly ones also are made with naturally raised meats, organic and local produce, and hormone-free dairy.

Today is National Cheesecake Day…

…And you know what that means? Half-price cheesecake slices for eat-in diners today at Cheesecake Factory locations.

Choose from more than 30 different flavors, including the new Reese’s Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake Cheesecake, which includes chunks of your favorite candy mixed into cheesecake with layers of fudge cake and caramel. How decadent is that?

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Treasures To Be Found Inside the Attic

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Earlier this year, I, like so many other foodies, mourned the passing of San Francisco’s Poleng Lounge, one of the few restaurants not only to feature modern Filipino food, but to do it exceedingly well.

So, I rejoiced when I heard that the Mosquito had landed — at least temporarily.

For those in the know, that’s the nickname of Filipino-American Chef Tim Luym, formerly of Poleng Lounge, who earned that moniker during college, when he used to deejay at club gigs by scratchin’ vinyl to create distinctive sounds. And nothing scratches more than a mosquito, right?

Luym now can be found in the kitchen at the barely two-month old Attic restaurant in downtown San Mateo, where he is the consulting chef. Whether he sticks around permanently, remains to be seen. Luym would only play coy, saying he was still exploring all his options.

For those who have missed the bold, memorable flavors of Luym’s former Southeast Asian small plates restaurant in San Francisco, you’ll be glad to know the menu at Attic features a lot of the same dishes you fell in love with there.

The vibe also is similar. Walk in the doorway, and you’ll find yourself first in the Bar under Attic — a small, bare-bones speakeasy on the ground floor that stays open late. Walk up a flight of stairs in the corner, and you’ll enter the actual restaurant upstairs, done up in warm reds and browns, and decorated with terracotta tea pots and wood crates. Dark, polished tables are set with caddies of chopsticks. Sliding glass doors overlooking the bustling street below let in a cool breeze on warm summer evenings.

Although my two gal pals and I paid our tab, Luym sent out extra goodies as a welcoming gesture because I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing him multiple times over the past few years.

The best way to enjoy yourself, of course, is to share all the dishes family-style. That’s just what my friends and I did, starting with sweet potato fries ($3.50), which were wonderfully crisp. To dunk them in, there was a spicy, house-made ketchup made with banana. Yes, banana, which lent a wonderful note of fruity, tropical sweetness, so much so that you wonder why more ketchups don’t have banana incorpoated into them.

Then came monster-sized house-made Sinigang Chicharonnes ($3.50). They looked like tortilla-sized shrimp chips. But one bite revealed their porky, fatty lushness.

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Ad Hoc BBQ Goodies

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When it carries the name, Ad Hoc, synonymous with the high-quality famous at Thomas Keller’s lauded, family-style Yountville restaurant, you know it will come with good taste and a high premium.

Such is the case with the new Ad Hoc Apple Bacon BBQ Sauce and Ad Hoc Sweet & Spicy BBQ Rub, both sold exclusively at Williams-Sonoma.

Recently, I got a chance to try out samples of both — the 13-ounce jar of barbecue sauce, which sells for $16; and the 3-ounce canister of rub, which is $12.

The hubby, aka Meat Boy, smeared the rub on racks of ribs, then brushed on the sauce after they came off the grill.

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