Chef Donald Link has been chosen as a finalist in the James Beard Foundation Awards Outstanding Chef U.S. category! Chef Link joins a superior group of accomplished chefs from around the country: David Chang, Gary Danko, Daniel Humm, Paul Kahan and Nancy Silverton. In true New Orleans fashion, the celebrating goes on – New Orleans is represented in several other categories, as well. Emeril’s was honored with an Outstanding Wine Program nomination. Times picayune writer Brett Anderson was nominated for his writing in the Environment, Food Politics, and Policy category. Brett Martin, a new New Orleans resident, received a nod for his Humor article in GQ. And four fellow New Orleans chefs were nominated for Best Chef: South—Justin Devillier, John Harris, Tory McPhail and Alon Shaya, in addition to Sue Zemanick, up for Rising Star Chef of the Year.
The James Beard Foundation Awards recognize outstanding achievement within the food and wine industry and are considered to be the “Oscars of the food world.” The winners will be announced live from New York on May 7, 2012.
Cochon Butcher: In a town where po’boys and muffulettas call into question the sanity of any soul who opts for a sliced-bread sandwich, Cochon Butcher’s Stephen Stryjewski and Donald Link fight back hard with this Southern spin on grilled cheese. Slices of Swiss and house-cured, uncrisped bacon made from shoulder meat hold their own, but it’s a careful layering of vinegar-laced collard greens cooked al dente that nudges the bacon melt onto the bucket list.
Cochon Butcher: This new Warehouse District wine bar and meat market combo from the owners of Herbsaint and Cochon brings a loving Cajun inflection to the art of cured meat. Try the housemade boudin sausages or tasso ham, grab a muffuletta sandwich to go, or sample such irrestible $6 bar bites as andouille sausage pizzetta with a glass of Barbere d’Asti. Those bacon pralines? They’re the next big food fad in the making.
Each year, our team of voracious eaters sets off, fork in hand, to search out the world’s most exciting new restaurants – as always, traveling anonymously and paying for every last bite of foie gras. Countless courses later, we’ve narrowed the field to 50 tables in 26 countries. From bargain prix fixes in Paris to blowout feasts in Dubai, there’s something for every taste and budget. (Cochon Butcher) This self-described swine bar and eatery is chef-owner Donald Link’s addition to his wildly popular Cochon. Nestled behind the restaurant, the compact space ha a small market stocked with homemade charcuterie and pickled vegetables, as well as a handful of stools for sipping wine and tucking into small plates. Dishes like pickled pig’s feet and Cajun-spiced soppressata pay homage to both the pig and the Big Easy, and there’s a deliciously fatty pressed duck pastrami sandwich oozing with melted Gruyére. Tip: Come at lunch and don’t leave without trying the smoky bacon pralines.
In the hands of talented American chefs, the sandwich comes edible art. These seven takes on traditional lunch-box fare revisit the format with whimsy, style and spice. Today’s best sandwiches upend old notions about what belongs between two slices of bread. Although lettuce and mayo haven’t gotten the boot, America’s most notable sandwich artisans no longer feel obliged to include them. Chefs like Donald Link at New Orleans’s recently opened Cochon Butcher Shop apply the same finicky standards to sandwiches that they do to the rest of the menu. Cochon’s muffuletta admits only house-cured meats, from mortadella to Genoa salami to supple sliced ham. The chef also prepares his own giardiniera , the signature olive relish that marks a muffuletta.
While the classic hot dog with ketchup and mustard is near culinary perfection, the frank continues to inspire fresh versions at restaurants across the country. Here’s what chefs are teaching old dogs plenty of new tricks.
Cochon Butcher – Orleans
Boutique butcher-shop fans take note: The housemade meats are sold by the pound, as well as on sandwiches like the muffuletta or the hot pork sausage with mustard and sauerkraut.
