The Best Celebrity Chef Kitchens Behind the New York City Wine & Food Festival
Undeterred by the pandemic, yet undeniably reshaped by it, for the 13th year the Food Network & Cooking Channel’s New York City Wine & Food Festival opens the month of October (through October 11). If anything this year’s event, presented by Capital One, is even bigger than the usual walk-around tastings offered, since it’s not only happening to some extent in person but also virtually, which means opportunities for participants to hobnob with celebrity chefs and bring a few of their skills into kitchens around the world.
Per usual, the event’s mission is to raise awareness and funds for No Kid Hungry and Food Bank for New York City, whose operations are even more critical these days. With marquee names such as Rachael Ray, Martha Stewart, Andrew Zimmern, Katie Lee, Jesse James Decker, and Giada De Laurentiis doling out cooking lessons and others preparing special, intimate dinners, participants will be glimpsing inside pro kitchens like never before. In that spirit, here’s an even closer peek into what a few celeb chefs love about their own gourmet domains. Hint: They’re all about the islands.
Martha Stewart
“My kitchen at my farm in Bedford is a model of efficiency, mixed with several warm and decorative details,” Stewart tells AD. “I love the two islands within it that offer ample seating and storage as well as the overhead steel rack, which is a must for anyone who wants to keep their pots and pans reachable but out of the way.” The Martha Knows Best star, who virtually demonstrated the art of cake decorating in her sold-out NYCWFF session (which included a copy of her new cookbook, Cake Perfection), took inspiration from “all the gorgeous berries I love to grow and eat myself” for the Berry Layer Cake recipe she shared. “Whole, fresh blueberries punctuate the cake dough and the black raspberry jam is blended into three batches of Swiss meringue buttercream, which is then piped into dreamlike rosettes and swirls.” The festival, Stewart says, is an event she looks forward to each fall in NYC, and “to be able to still teach in the first-ever entirely virtual iteration feels special.”
Andrew Zimmern
These days the James Beard Award–winning chef, TV host, and author is mostly cooking in the Kitchen Studio and Test Kitchen at the office of his production company and restaurant group, Intuitive Content and Passport Hospitality, which has massive firepower. “My favorite features are the flattop griddle on the cooktop in the rear, and the storage island that was designed with capacity to house all our tabletop appliances—and, most important, it contains our wine fridge, plate warmers, and utility cabinets.” Zimmern is in the midst of a home redesign that includes a drool-worthy new kitchen with “Puustelli custom cabinetry and a full Gaggenau suite that includes some incredible features like a wok burner, steam oven, and large baking oven. My favorite feature there is also my island, where I cut out cutting board–sized sections so that my work space is flat all the way across.” The chef has been part of NYCWFF since the start, and this year offers a class making the Brazilian seafood stew called moqueca (October 10 at 6 p.m. ET). “It’s not only delicious, but I hope it will also raise awareness of the massive falloff of seafood sales here in America, where 70% of our seafood is sold in restaurants during a time when many are closed or hampered by limited seating.” He is also cooking a private subscription dinner with a charitable component.
Maneet Chauhan
The Chopped star judge and chef loves the layout of her home kitchen for its efficiency. “The island is my favorite part,” says Chauhan, “It truly is the heart of the kitchen so we can prep and cook together as a family. I’d describe my kitchen as homey and relaxed, a place where we can all be comfortable and enjoy being together.” She is celebrating her new book, Chaat, during her October 11 (12 p.m. ET) Goldbelly Presents Cook From the Book With Maneet Chauhan session, which focuses on Indian-inspired cooking. “It’s the same thing that excites me every year—bringing people together,” she says of the event where she’ll be virtually sharing her nostalgic sweet potato chaat recipe. “As a kid it was always one of my favorite street foods in Delhi during the winter,” Chauhan recalls. “It brings back very fond memories, and I’m looking forward to sharing that dish with others during the festival!”
Jacques Torres
French chocolatier and pastry chef Jacques Torres has very specific needs for his own kitchen, met by having many flat surfaces and both wood and marble countertops. “Using marble-top is great because I can put ice on it, cool it down to work easier with doughs that have lots of butter, or any kind of work with chocolate,” says the Nailed It! personality. Meanwhile, “the wood countertop is a great surface to make pizza or bread.” As someone who’s taught for 40 years and loves sharing the craft and techniques of pastry and chocolate making, Torres finds this year’s virtual forum a wonderful way to connect with even more people than usual. “I’m excited to elevate my famous chocolate chip cookie recipe to a delicious spooky haunted house!” he says of his October 6 (5 p.m. ET) class. “It will be a lot of fun!”
Geoffrey Zakarian
It’s not surprising that celeb chef and restaurateur (The Lambs Club, The National) Geoffrey Zakarian chose his home for its kitchen, since it would fit his family of five. “It’s bright, airy, light in color, and has a huge marble island, which makes it perfect for doing prep work or filming our cooking shows from home,” he tells AD. His family spends so much time in there together that he wrote a book about it: The Family That Cooks Together (releasing October 6). Some other favorite features: the many slide-out drawers, ceiling-high cabinetry, and six burners—“a must for us at home as there are often multiple things cooking at once. When we don’t need so many, we put a cutting board over two burners to give us a bit more counter space.” Zakarian’s daughters, Madeline and Anna, are helping dad with his October 10 (noon EST) class, preparing Bistro Hanger Steak with Caramelized Shallots, from the new cookbook. “I have found that fans of the festival are looking for recipes that deliver in a big foodie way and want to know some insider tips on making their home cooking elevated,” says Zakarian. “We have many tips to share for cooking steak, and the steakhouse-worthy caramelized shallots take the vegetable side dish to another level.”
Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
