At the Table newsletter: Destination chicken, tandoori style. Hankering for Chinese takeout. Roaming Delray. And free BBQ!
Destination chicken, tandoori style. Hankering for Chinese takeout. Roaming Delray. And free BBQ!
A few years ago, I wrote about a mini-wave of new Peruvian restaurants that had popped up in Palm Beach County, and posed the question: Is Palm Beach County having a Peruvian moment?
Earlier this week, I wrote about a similar trend that has brought us various new Chinese-inspired restaurants and other food businesses. But there’s a difference between these waves, and it goes beyond cuisine.
The Peruvian wave was powered by chefs and restaurateurs with Peruvian roots. The Chinese-inspired wave is driven by chefs and restaurateurs who are not Chinese, but who yearn for the Chinese takeout meals of their childhood. In both scenarios, I found there’s a strong element of yearning.
West Palm Beach chef Felix Ayala told me it was a yearning for the “Chino-criollo” flavors of his native Puerto Rico that led him to open La Cajita China, a ghost kitchen and delivery operation. Meanwhile, Boca Raton chef Eric Baker told me it was his nostalgia for the Chinese-American food of his Long Island childhood that inspired him to open the full-service Mr. Goode’s Chinese Takeout restaurant.
These are chefs from starkly different backgrounds. What unites them – and this recent wave – is nostalgia. You can read that story here.
Best thing I ate for dinner
One can dine on at least 10 dishes during a single meal at the outstanding new Ela Curry Kitchen in Palm Beach Gardens.
Chef/co-owner Pushkar Marathe’s thali-style tasting menu ($65 per person) allows you to sample a grand variety of small plates and bowls. The experience delivers one “wow” moment after another.
But if I had to choose one plate at Ela, it would be one that’s not on the thali menu. It would be the tandoori chicken ($33). Meaty pieces of chicken get a 24-hour marinade before they are roasted and served on the bone, bronzy and resplendent. They’re presented simply with a cilantro chutney and a mound of icy, slivered red onions that are tossed with mint.
Add a side of basmati or a buttery paratha (flat bread), if you must. But the dish stands proudly on its own: smoky chicken that’s aromatic with contrasting spice notes, a tangy green sauce and those delicious, mint-tempered onions.
When I visited last weekend, I found Ela’s “Butterfly Effect” mocktail (butterfly pea flower tea syrup with carbonated lemonade, $12) to be a refreshing pairing to my spicy feast.
Marathe and business partner Andy Dugard tell me the chicken is Ela’s top-selling menu item. I can understand why – undoubtedly, it’s a destination dish.
Ela Curry Kitchen: 4650 Donald Ross Road, Suite 110 in the The Shops of Donald Ross Village, Palm Beach Gardens, 561-345-2196, ElaCurryKitchen.com
When in downtown Delray…
Some good reasons to wander around downtown Delray Beach this weekend:
• The Downtown Delray Beach Restaurant Month, which runs throughout this month, is in full swing. Here are the details and five standout deals.
• The 27th annual Downtown Delray Beach Craft Festival returns Saturday and Sunday. The outdoor fest, which brings together more than 100 artists, also includes a green market. The free fair goes from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (both days) on Atlantic Avenue at 4th Avenue.
This prompts the inevitable question for fest-goers: “Where do we eat?” Here are a handful of favorites:
Bar 25 – This newish restaurant, which took over the old Mellow Mushroom space just off Atlantic Ave, offers a pub-meets-diner menu, craft cocktails and weekend brunch specials. (25 SE 6th Ave.)
The Wine Room Kitchen and Bar – This popular wine bar and restaurant made Yelp’s “Top 100 Places to Eat in the U.S.” list. (411 E. Atlantic Ave.)
Rose’s Daughter – A Pineapple Grove gem with delicious pizza and small plates by chef Suzanne Perrotto, who also owns Brule Bistro just down the street from there. Her food is excellent and the vibe is usually very “neighborhood favorite.” Ditto for Brule Bistro. (169 NE 2nd Ave.)
Jamón Jamón – A tiny tapas bar in the middle of the Delray Beach Market food hall. Grab a seat at the bar for good wines, excellent ham, cheeses and Spanish tapería vibe. (33 SE 3rd Ave.)
Amar Mediterranean Bistro – This cozy, Lebanese-inspired spot has a pita oven and lots of shareable dishes for lovers of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean food. (522 E. Atlantic Ave.)
Free BBQ for first responders
Starting today, Okeechobee Prime Barbecue in West Palm Beach is serving free barbecue sandwiches all weekend to active and retired first responders. This is owner Ralph Lewis’ way of honoring the work of so many first responders after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Lewis includes fire rescue and police responders, military personnel, doctors and nurses, whether they are all active or retired.
They can choose from a specialty sandwich menu that includes pulled pork, smoked turkey breast, jalapeño-cheddar sausage, Wagyu hot dog and Wagyu hot dog topped with pulled pork. (One sandwich per responder with a valid ID.)
The special runs all weekend, through closing time on Sunday. The roadside barbecue operation is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
1959 Wabasso Dr., in the parking lot outside Okeechobee Prime Meat Market, West Palm Beach, 561-305-7835, OkeePrimeBBQ.com
Have a delicious weekend!
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Newsletter: Destination tandoori chicken, Chinese takeout + Free BBQ!
