Restaurant kitchens are hectic at the best of times, but when six chefs gather in one at the same time, it is surely a recipe for chaos.
But at The Brasserie’s recent “Chef’s Jam” evening, the atmosphere behind the scenes was calm and collaborative, as all six chefs worked together to create a memorable evening for the assembled diners.
The one-off event to showcase Cayman’s gastronomic scene brought together chefs Dean Max and Artemio “Arte” Lopez of The Brasserie, alongside guest chefs Davide Sannia of Agua, Ervin Horvath of Agave Urban Agaveria, Thomas Tennant of Chef On Call and restaurateur, television host and writer Dylan Benoit, founder of Prime Group.
Five-course menu
Guests enjoyed welcome drinks and canapés in The Brasserie’s garden before sitting down to a five-course dinner, with each course showcasing the distinct style, influences and culinary perspective of a different participating chef.
The diverse selection of canapés ranged from mahi mahi ceviche, wagyu and wahoo surf ‘n turf to braised lamb breast, setting the tone for the evening before Tennant kicked off the dinner selection with a fresh and zesty tuna and carrot tartare, with seeded crackers for crunch.
Next up was Sannia’s handcrafted Sardinian culurgiones, a mouth-smacking pasta/potato combination containing Caribbean lobster in citrus butter. Roasted grouper with pumpkin seed and coconut crust from Horvath followed, then Benoit’s punchy, smoky wagyu striploin. Artistic sweetness rounded off the evening with a Cayman mango and white chocolate cheesecake by The Brasserie’s team.
While collaborative chef dinners have become increasingly popular in major culinary destinations around the world, opportunities for chefs from multiple restaurants and backgrounds to cook together remain relatively uncommon.
Max, who has been at The Brasserie for 24 years, called the evening “one of my favourite events, because of the fact that we’re getting to work with all of our great friends here on the island that do such a great job”.
He added later, “It’s easier when you have only one dish to do rather than doing a whole dinner – there’s not so much pressure on just one chef. They can just do their one dish and have a great night.”
Fellow chef Benoit agreed. “We do occasionally get the chefs together and kind of cook in this jam style, but we don’t really do it enough. We should do it more.”
The dishes were paired by wines from Italy and France, all chosen by sommelier Simone Ragusa, who finished the evening with a sweet Moscato d’Asti. Debate then ensued as to the favorite dish of the night, interrupted only by the chefs themselves emerging from the kitchen to soak up the applause – and a celebratory glass of wine or two.
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