I'll start off this way, I'm probably the only person whose favorite meal this week in 90° July…read moreweather included half a quart of warm, Smoky Red Pepper Soup with Basil Croutons ($10).
I'll admit, a small part of the reason is because I keep my apartment very cold and really love soups. The primary reason though is that I found an executive chef who is a culinary genius that will cater and deliver phenomenal gourmet food directly to my door at very reasonable prices.
This was one of the best original soups that I've tasted in a very long while. A great thick, creamy texture, good heat (without being too spicy), and you could taste the flavor of the ingredients, not just get overwhelmed by the red pepper. The taste and texture worked in perfect concert together, just like the cream and the red pepper. I've been paying ten bucks a quart for deli-quality soups during this quarantine. This was certainly in a much different class of quality, for the same exact price.
Once people catch on to this amazing value, I'll likely end up paying far more for the same caliber of cuisine. However, supporting a well-deserving and hardworking small business with an honest and positive is more important to me than saving a little money.
By the way, in addition to his well-honed, epicurean chops, Chef Sebastian is also a real sweetheart of a guy. I know a lot of great chefs and they're not all...oh, what's a good euphemism to use here? As good at dealing with people as they are with knives. Well, Chef Sebastian is wonderful with both. A true professional and a good person.
Alright, now let me review some more of his food. In the late 1990s, I lived in New Orleans. So, I definitely know a thing or two about great-tasting cornbread. Chef Sebastian makes excellent cornbread. Not too crumbly, but also not sticky. There's nice pieces of whole corn and little pieces of jalapenos inside. Remember, I'm not a big fan of spicy, but this cornbread was perfect. Not too spicy and it was pre-cut into small squares for me and filled an entire sizeable container. I've eaten a few pieces with 4 meals already and I still have leftovers. His portions are immense.
That goes double for the Slow Smoked Beer Marinated Local Shortrib ($27 with corn and cornbread). I've never been given that much shortrib in a single portion intended for one person. I LOVE his homemade BBQ sauce so much that I used it abundantly, put the shortribs in potato roll buns and served them up similar to pulled pork sandwiches, only these were far better because they were beer marinated shortribs. There was enough for 4.5 overstuffed sandwiches. My executive chef friend ate one, along with a piece of cornbread, and was extremely impressed with both as well.
The Smoked Whole Trout ($14) was actually a bit overwhelming. Even with my big appetite, I certainly couldn't finish it. It's an entire large cooked trout. For $14 and hand delivered to your door by the chef himself? Where else will you get that type of value? Nowhere! Certainly not near Port Washington, where I live. I ate half of the fish the first day that the food arrived because obviously it's seafood. Although, I did decide to sneak Chef S's New Jersey grilled corn on the cob into this meal, even though it really came to compliment another dish. I didn't want to wait though. The fish was cooked nicely and traveled very well. A nice thickness, easy to cut the meat away, and just a nice smokey flavor throughout. However, I avoided the recommended horseradish sauce that came with it because I was in the mood for more of a fish flavor. I wasn't disappointed. The corn was tasty too.
The 24 Hour Slow Smoked BBQ Pork Shoulder ($21 with corn and cornbread) was another massive creation. Once again, I had leftovers. You can taste the time it took to cook this. Completely fall off-the-bone type of dish and so savory. Extremely tender and also beautifully complimented by Chef's homeade BBQ sauce. Honestly, that stuff could go with anything. It's delicious.
Local Jersey Peach Crisp with Homemade Whipped Cream ($7). My favorite dessert from anywhere this month. It's a giant piece made for 2 people, as long as one of them isn't me. LOL. I devoured about 3/4 of it because it was so incredible. Thin fresh peach slices with a deliciously sugary crust. This dessert could start an addiction. Just before writing this paragraph I polished off the remaining 1/4 piece left in my fridge. By the way, his food and containers keep very well. The food is delicious, but the portions are huge!
Pickle Spears ($8). These are smaller sized pickle spears. However, there's enough of them to fill the jar and they're obviously pickled that way to provide much more surface area and access to the flavors of Chef's special blend of peppers and seasonings. They're very good. If you like pickles, you'll totally like these. Lots of flavors: garlic, peppers, mustard seeds, and some others. Be careful though, these bite back.
Everything is PERFECT!
