nicks

The price of fresh fish

derek — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 17:57:00 +0000

We all got some shocking scary news on Sunday that our friend and fisherman, Steve Arnold, Captain of the Elizabeth Helen, and his crew had a tragic accident out on the water off Block Island. From what Steve and Captain Chris Brown, Steve’s partner at Wild Rhody, and Captain Richard Cook have told me, the boats cargo shifted, the wind and the current hit the boat at exactly the same time, and the boat got taken under. All of the crew made it off the boat, and Steve was pulled 30 feet under with the boat, but somehow escaped to the surface and his life, thanks to the United States Coast Guard.

This event has sent chills through the Point Judith fishing community, and made us all realize just how dangerous the open waters can be, and what great risk and effort it takes to bring the daily catch in. This could happen to any fisherman at any time, even in the best of weather.

We say it all the time, but times like this really drive it home, we give thanks to the many men and women who risk there lives every single day to bring us fresh seafood.

So please go to your local fish markets and farmers markets and support them. Go to shops and restaurants that support locally caught seafood that emphasizes sustainable and environmentally friendly efforts. It is important.

A group of Rhode Island and Boston chefs will be banding together soon to help raise awareness, appreciation and hopefully some funds for them, so please stay posted for those details…

Here’s another great short piece written by Rob Booz from Chefs Collaborative on the event:

Our thoughts go out to Steve Arnold on the sinking of his ship, the Elizabeth Helen

January 9th, 2012, 1:12 pm

Yesterday, we received word from Boston Local Leader, chef Rich Garcia that Steve Arnold’s fishing vessel the Elizabeth Helen sank in the winter waters of the North Atlantic Ocean.

Steve and his partner Chris have consistently been leaders in sustainable fishing practices around southern New England. Forgetting for a moment the high quality of the fish they bring in, their use of Trace and Trust technology through their Wild Rhody brand constantly provides a jumpstart for the all too important conversation about the state of our oceans. Whether it be among chefs, when Wild Rhody came to speak at our inaugural meeting of the Boston Local this past fall, or through larger venues, such as when Rhode Island Local Leader, chef Derek Wagner spoke of Steve and Chris’ work in The New York Times.

I could go on with examples but the point is this: fishermen have no easy lives. Their work has always been dangerous, and in recent years they’ve seen new and necessary fishery management make earning a decent living increasingly difficult. Steve Arnold, like so many fishermen, is invaluable to the food sustainability community. Both in the superb quality of product he provides to our chefs, but also in the way his and Wild Rhody’s practices foster and support discussion of the hard facts around seafood.

Saturday was an absolutely stunning day here in New England. The skies were clear and the thermostat hung lazily in the mid to high 50’s. But as we were in our cars, our homes, our kitchens, or our backyards, Steve and his crew were out to sea facing harrowing prospects. Thanks to the efforts of the United States Coast Guard, all made it back to land safe if not sound. We here at Chefs Collaborative hope for the best for all involved and urge you all out there reading this to remember where your food comes from.

Posted by: Rob Booz

New Year’s Eve 2011 Menu

derek — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 18:59:15 +0000

Every year on New Year’s Eve I create a special tasting menu to celebrate the end of one year and the beginning of the next. The Autumn has come to an end and the cold weather signals that winter is upon us. We take this special night to cook with conviction and purpose, remembering the past seasons glories, with our pickled, candied, dried and preserved gems, and looking forward anxiously into what the cold winter will bring us, with it’s root vegetables, bitter greens, and bright citrus fruits. I hope you are able to join us, if not for supper, then maybe for Champagne & Hors d’oeuvres at midnight!

This year’s menu features the love + labor of Allen Farm, American Mussel Harvesters, Aquidneck Honey, Baby Greens Farm, Baffoni Farm, Barden Orchard, Blackbird Farm, Crystalbrook Farm, Czajkowski Farm, Fresh Meadows Farm, Geer Farm, Grandy Oats, Schartner Farm, Stoney Hill Farm, Wild Rhody Seafood. We are happy + proud to support them + so many others farmers, artisans, fishermen, foragers, growers + producers every day.

Here’s the menu…

7!

Freshly baked baguette with honey, lavender sea salt + Provencal herb butter

6!

Warm Narragansett Bay oysters with mussel, house-bacon + mustard cream

or

Cream of golden + sweet potatoes with pecans, sage + olive oil

Paired with Duval-Leroy Brut NV

5!

Point Judith fluke crudo style with cranberries, grapefruit, black pepper, celery + herbs

or

Brioche tartine with goat cheese + salad of baby radishes, beets, citrus, lettuces + herbs

Paired Duval-Leroy Brut Rose

4!

Point Judith monkfish + squid with chili-pepper risotto, parmesan, lemon + herbs

or

Wilted winter greens + cauliflower with soft egg + charred sourdough

Paired with Duval-Leroy cuvée Paris 2006

3!

Carrot + Moroccan lime sorbet with bubbles + sea salt

2!

Stoney Hill Farm pork braise, belly + loin with butternut squash, pea greens, Madeira + cider

or

Creamed oats, barley + rye seed with roasted mushrooms, fennel, cabbage + parsley

Paired with Duval-Leroy Clos du Bouveriers 2004

1!

Profiteroles of dark chocolate, vanilla-bean + white chocolate, with fruits, candies + nuts

Paired with Vin du Bugey-Cerdon NV

Happy New Year!

No substitutions please. Please notify in advance for any dietary needs, allergies or special restrictions.

$75 per person, exclusive of beverage, tax + gratuities. Champagne pairings available for 5 per course. Gratuity of 20% may be added to parties of 6 or more.

Champagne & Hors d’oeuvres at 1130pm-1am, $25 per person.

Call 401.421.0286 for reservations or more details.

Tonight’s Whole Hog Menu

derek — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 16:58:50 +0000

We source almost exclusively whole animals these days, which is a great deal of work, but so very worthwhile and rewarding. It truly drives our creativity and pushes us to be resourceful, aware, and keeps us constantly changing and evolving our food. More importantly, its a huge help to our local and small farmers to be able to take in a whole animal instead of trying to cherry-pick the “good cuts”, which leaves them with a freezer full of animal that they bread, reared, raised and cared for, only to watch hang out in their freezer with no one to love nor respect the life that was given and the many efforts that were made to get it all the way to the abattoir.

One of my favorites, ok actually my favorite (but ssshhhh! don’t tell my beef farmer because I love that too! ok, don’t tell my fisherman or my chicken farmer either, because I love breaking their products also!) animals to butcher and get into is the hog. The enormous variety of product that a hog yields is enough to make any chef or food lover salivate (i.e. ham, chops, headcheese, butts, jowls, trotters, skirts, snout, flanks, tenderloins, sausages, lomo, lardo, prosciotto, kidneys, brains, chiccarones, rillettes, pates, ribs, the Holy Grail-BACON, and so much more), the possibilities are almost endless. Most of our pork comes from farmer Bill at Stoney Hill Farm here in RI. We do a great deal with the different bits and pieces, and not a single piece goes to waste. We utilize 100% of the animal in some way, shape or form.

Tonight I’ve got a couple that I know loves all that is pork more than most (they will remain nameless for their protection for fear of jealous reaction over their porktacular porksperience tonight). So I’ve put a little something special together for them tonight, a pork tasting menu… I thought I’d share it with you all….

Pork tasting Saturday 11.5.11

C1. Amuse bouche/snack plate

Schartner Farm Sweet Potato-Rye Bread w/Molasses-Clove Butter + Crispy Smoked Bacon

C2. Puree

Schartner Farm Parsnip + Sweet Onion Puree w/Fried Quonset Point Oyster, Stoney Hill Farm Pork Belly + Celery Leaf

C3. Cananpe

Stoney Hill Farm Pork + Blackbird Farm Beef Kidney Pate with Pickled RI Pears, Golden Raisins, Fresh Baked Brioche

C4. Trotter “Salad”

Stoney Hill Farm Pork Trotter + Head Cheese Croquette with Soft Boiled Baffoni Farm Egg, Barden’s Orchard Apples, Allen Farm Pea Greens, Pickled Mustard Seeds + Pickled Local Cranberries

C5. Tongue

Char-grilled Stoney Hill Farm Pork Tongue with Allen Farm Arugula-Walnut Polenta, Parmesan + Lemon-Thyme Jus

C6. Refresher

Schartner Farm Pumpkin-Citrus Sorbet with Chiccarone Sea Salt, Lime + Cava

C6. Rib + Snout Braise

Slow-braised Stoney Hill Farm Pork Ribs + Snout with Crystal Brook Farm Goat Cheese + Golden Potato Puree, Parsley, Black Pepper + Hill’s Cider Jus

C7. Dessert

Pork lard + Corn Cake with Vermont Maple Ice Cream, Candied Pecans + Caramel

Stoudts Beer Dinner

derek — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 06:08:47 +0000

October 5^th 2011 Craft Beer Celebration Dinner with Brewer Carol Stoudt

First Course – Pils German Style Pilsener

Wild-caught Point Judith fluke with Scharter Farm potato, parsnip + lemon-parsley aioli

Second Course – American Pale Ale

Local pumpkin-chili-Vermont cheddar soup with local pear-honeypecan salad + toasted pumpkin bread

Refresher

Barden Family Orchard honey-crisp apple sorbet with bubbles

Third Course – Oktober Fest

Spiced-roasted Stoney Hill Farm pork with Schartner Farm sweet potato puree, roasted cauliflower + sweet onion jus

Fourth Course – Old Abominable Barley Wine

Plate of selected artisanal cheeses, local honeycomb, marinated local plumbs, house-made mustard + jam

Fifth Course – Fat Dog Oatmeal Stout

Warm ginger-molasses cake with malted milk ice cream + sea-salty caramel

$65 per person (exclusive of tax, gratuity + additional beverages).

6pm arrival. 630pm start time.

401.421.0286 for details.

Upcoming Events Autumn 2011

derek — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 17:20:25 +0000

South Side Community Land Trust Benefit

Thursday, September 15th

Roger Williams Park Botanical Center

Rhode Island Center for Agricultural Promotion & Education Benefit

Friday, September 16th

Grenvale Vineyards

Six Degrees of Vegetation Collaborative Chef’s Dinner

Sunday, September 25th

La Laiterie

Stoudt’s Beer Dinner with Brewer Carol Stoudt

Wednesday, October 5th

nicks on broadway

Farm to Fork Autumn Harvest BBQ

Sunday, October 16th

Schartner Farm

Ferraton Pere & Fils Dinner

derek — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 13:38:55 +0000

A special night featuring the wines of Ferraton Pere Et Fils

Thursday August 25^th, 2011

Welcome

Domaine Joseph Cattin Cremant Brut

Schartner Farm Endive, Local Tomato & Great Hill Dairy Blue Cheese

First Course

Ferraton Pere & Fils Cotes Du Rhone Samorens Blanc 2008

Warm Quonset Point Oysters with Allen Farm Pea Greens, Pickled Summer Chilies & Sabayon

Second Course

Saint-Joseph La Source Blanc 2008

Tasting of Chilled RI Mussels with Pickled Onion & Pepper-Aioli,

Point Judith Fluke & Cucumber Crudo,

Blackbird Farm Beef & Pistachio Terrine,

Baffoni Farm Chicken Liver Pate with Pickled Golden Raisins

Third Course

Ferraton Pere & Fils Crozes-Hermitage la Matiniere 2007

Wild Crispy-Skin Point Judith Black Bass with Local Pepper-Tomato-Eggplant Ragout & Green Peppercorn-Thyme Jus

Refresher

Roof-top Heirloom Tomato Sorbet with Gin, Bubbles & Sea Salt

Fifth Course

Ferraton Pere & Fils Chateauneuf-du-Pape le Parvis 2006

Char-grilled Stoney Hill Farm Pork with Schartner Farm Sweet Corn Puree, Local Onions, Bitter Greens & Mustard-Sage Jus

Sixth Course

Pineau des Charentes

Roasted Confreda Farm Peaches with Aquidneck Honey-Lavender Ice Cream & Toasted Pecan Crumble

$65 per person(exclusive of additional beverage, tax & gratuity). No substitutions Please. Menus always subject to change based on Chef’s discretion, availability and seasonality.

Pretty Things Beer Dinner

derek — Sun, 15 May 2011 15:28:54 +0000

Tuesday May 17^th 2011

Celebrating Craft Beer Week with Dan, Martha, Terry, Derek & the Gang!

Come eat, drink, make merry & celebrate with a bit of libation & supper!

When Dan & Martha asked me if I would be interested in hosting a beer dinner with their incredible handcrafted brews, I absolutely jumped at the chance, emphatically. Hands down my favorite craft brewers right now and I just couldn’t think of a better pairing than Springtime, nicks & Pretty Things!!!!

While you can often find 2-3-4 of their amazing ales on draft here at any given time, this is a really unique and fun opportunity to meet, mingle, eat and chat with Dan & Martha while tasting through an array of their special selections. I’ve tasted these amazing beers and tried to pair them with some fun Spring flavors and tasty treats.

Hopefully you can all make it, call for bookings, as we’re filling up! Without more ado, here’s the menu….

‘Nibbles’

House Smoked Baffoni Farm Chicken, Onion, Herb & Walnut Salad

Narragansett Creamery Ricotta with Black Pepper + Aquidneck Honey

Plum Point Oysters on the Half with Orange-Caper Gremolatta

Baffoni Farm Chicken Liver Pate with House Pickle Relish

Paired with Fluffy White Rabbits, Hoppy Triple

‘Starter’

House-Smoked Point Judith Hake on Toast with Pickle Schartner’s Asparagus + Caraway Mayo

Paired with Jack D’Or, American Saison

‘Salad’

Local Lettuces with Blue Cheese, Smoked Bacon, Spring Radishes & Pistachios

Paired with Field Mouse’s Farewell

‘Main’

Peppery Hereford Sirloin with Hot Mustard, Stoney Hill Farm Pork Belly, Truffled Barley, Rye Seed & Bitter Greens

Paired with EIP 1855 London Porter

‘Cheese Board’

Artisan Cheese Selection of Cheeses with House-made Jam, Local Honey, Nuts & Toasted Brioche

Paired with Baby Tree Plumb Ale

‘Pudding’

Elderberry & Rhubarb Fool with Crumbled Oat Biscuit & Mint

Paired with Our Finest Regards Barley Wine

Details

$50 Per person (exclusive of tax, gratuities & additional beverages).

Starts at 7pm.

Bookings 401.421.0286

Farm & Vine Dinner

derek — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 16:24:48 +0000

With nicks on broadway, Arcadian Fields Farm & Qupé Vineyards

At The Ocean House

Wednesday May 4^th, 20011

It’s always a special treat to collaborate with another chef, and I’m really looking forward to working with Chef Eric and his team at The Ocean House next week. Highlighting our local and seasonal bounty is something I try to do on a daily basis with our food at nicks, so when posed with the question of participating in a collaborative, special dinner to honor that purpose I jumped at the chance.

After the long cold winter has taken its toll and our stews and roasts have robbed our cellars bare of all the root vegetables stored from the late Autumn and early Winter harvests, we wait with bated breaths in our kitchens for the first signs of Spring. Blossoms, chives, and the promise of fiddle heads, asparagus and the like reinvigorate our spirits, inspire our creativity and brighten our plates with a freshness that always seems as exciting as it was the first time we realized their brilliance.

Quick and fickle it can be, the Spring bounty, as the Winter is often long, hard, and reluctant to go, while the blistering Summer with its hot sun and crushing humidity wastes no time screaming into existence. So as chefs, we must be flexible, understanding and ready when all of our favorite things arrive, as they may run their course and be gone before we know it.

On that note, here is a menu with some of the first signs of Spring and its bounty. Paired with some fantastic, well crafted wines, I hope you get the chance to come and visit us at The Ocean House and taste some our local, seasonal goodness. See you soon!

Reception

Seasonal treats and surpises with Chef Eric Haugen

Paired 2009 Qupé Bien Nacido Cuvée

First Course

Butter-roasted native day boat sea scallops with lardo, peas, lemon-chive cream cream & fresh herbs

Paired with 2009 Qupé Marsanne “Santa Ynez Valley”

Second Course

Peppered Stoney Hill Farm pork with dandelion greens, lovage & charred-radish-potato puree, red wine jus

Paired with 2008 Los Olivos Cuvée

Third Course

Dark Chocolate with lavender, local honey + fresh mint

Paired with 2008 Syrah Bien Nacido Vineyard

Earth Dinners

derek — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 21:06:57 +0000

Earth Dinner Tasting Meal 2011

In honor of Earth Day this year nicks on broadway is proud to partner with Organic Valley and Chef’s Collaborative to celebrate and bring awareness to sustainability, locally and organically grown foods, and the entire farm to table movement. A portion of the proceeds from these dinners will go directly to Chef’s Collaborative, which is the leading nonprofit network of chefs and farmers that fosters sustainable food systems using the power of education, collaboration and responsible buying decisions.

This menu has been thoughtfully prepared to feature + represent many of the small farmers, producers + artisans that we work with every day. Each course represents a different aspect of our local Rhode Island + New England bounty. We hope you enjoy!

1^st Taste From the Dairy

Beltane Farms goat’s milk cheese with baby spring radishes, poppy seeds + lettuces

2^nd Taste From the Field

Schartner Farm carrot + onion potage with house-made crème fraiche

3^rd Taste From the Sea

Native butter roasted sea scallops with potato-pea puree, herbs + lemon vinaigrette

4^th Taste From the Bog

Fresh Meadow Farm cranberry-wine sorbet with bubbles

5^th Taste From the Pasture

Char-grilled Stoney Hill Farm pork with rye seed, barley, wilted bitter greens, pork belly + cider jus

6^th Taste From the Bees

Aquidneck honey ice cream with warm Maine oat cookies + house berry preserves

For proper timing and execution + for your enjoyment, your entire party must order the tasting meal. Thank you.

$60 per person, exclusive of tax, beverage + gratuity.

Wine Pairings available for $5 per course.

Substitutions are respectfully declined. Please make your server aware of any allergies or restrictions.

Here are nicks we are proud to support + work with these farmers, artisans + producers:

Allen Farm, Aurora Mills & Farm, Baby Greens Farm, Baffoni Family Farm, Barden Family Orchard, Beltane Farm, Blackbird Farm, Berkshire Brewing Co, Blue Skys Farm, Bomster Scallops, Cook’s Valley Farm, Confreda Farm, Crystal Brook Farm, Czajkowski Farm, Farmstead Cheese, Fitzhugh Family Syrup, Four Town Farm, Fresh Meadow Farm, Hill Orchard, Kingston Trawlers, Harpoon Brewing, Jephrey Floral Studio, Little City Growers Co-op, Narragansett Creamery, Newport Vineyard, Newport Storm Brewery, Olga’s Bakery, Plum Point Oysters, Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project, Red Planet, Rosasharn Farm, Schartner Farm, Stoney Hill Cattle, Sakonnet Vineyard, Urban Greens, Westport Vineyards, Wishing Stone Farm, Yacht Club Bottling Works and so many more.

Trace and Trust post from Rob Booz & Chef’s Collaborative

derek — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 04:11:21 +0000

Here’s a post directly cut from the Chef’s Collaborative Website. I was going to post a link but I figured I would just show the entire post as is….

Trace and Trust in the Ocean State with Chef Derek Wagner

March 31st, 2011, 7:00 pm

Hot on the tails of Chef Garcia’s post about the wonderful folks at Trace and Trust, I got in touch with Chef Derek Wagner of acclaimed Nick’s on Broadway down in Providence, Rhode Island.

Derek was the first chef in the Ocean State to use Trace and Trust. I asked him a few questions, figuring that I would pull together some quotes and write a post. But the things that Derek said needed no editing.

So here, in full, is what Derek had to say about his relationship with Trace and Trust:

I became involved with Trace and Trust through Chefs Collaborative. For a long time I have been looking for ways to work with local fisherman and get access to fresh local fish, directly, with minimal interference and maximum contact to freshness and integrity in sourcing, methods and information.

As chefs, we’ve had to rely on middlemen for sourcing and an industry-driven information stream that hasn’t always had our best interests, or truth, at heart. We are often fed misinformation about sourcing, species, sustainability, region, and availability.

I’m a chef who tries incredibly hard to make conscientious, thoughtful, direct connections to his food sources, not being able to talk directly with the people who were doing the hunting and gathering on a daily basis just felt wrong. Why can’t I talk to my fisherman? Why do I have to rely on purchasing from, talking to, and getting information from brokers, purveyors and distributors? And why, when I do meet or talk to local fisherman, is it so impossibly hard to buy and serve the fish that they are catching on a daily basis?

We, as an industry have been making so many strides in other areas, such as all things produce, dairy, pork, beef, chicken, lamb, duck, cheese producers and more. I knew there had to be something I could do to find that same connection to what should be one of the most abundant resources in our little state, FISH!

As the chef and owner of a busy restaurant I needed to find a constant source of fresh local seafood, not just a once off, seasonal foray into sourcing it. I first started asking questions to the folks at Farm Fresh RI, who have done so much in creating awareness and making special connections between chefs and farmers, growers and producers. When we hit some roadblocks I turned to my friends at Chefs Collaborative for direction, information and advice. After attending a great meeting in Boston, where I spoke to and listened to many other chefs and speakers from various organizations on the topic, I felt energized about tackling the issue, but still wasn’t sure how to or where to start. Over the course of the next few months I had some great conversations with Leigh and Alida about how and where I could start to make this a reality.

There were many organizations that were out there making connections with chefs and sustainable, responsible seafood sources, but none that I knew of that were available from, or based out of Rhode Island. It just seemed mad to me that we lived in the Ocean State, but had to import fresh fish from all around the world to try to achieve what should be so simple. I knew there were fisherman out there doing great things, but how was I to make that connection?

Leigh soon introduced me to Glenn from Trace and Trust, making the connection that would ultimately develop this dream into a reality. Glenn and I had several great conversations, and after months of phone and emails, we finally met at Nick’s on Broadway to discuss kick starting the Trace and Trust initiative in Rhode Island. Glenn brought with him Steve Arnold, a local fisherman based out of Point Judith. Together we shared ideas and thoughts on the topic and it was soon apparent that we not only shared similar goals and philosophies, but we had all the necessary pieces to put the puzzle together.

Steve and I had further conversations on seasonality, availability, sustainability, method, species, integrity and process and soon after began a partnership that would lead to what very well may revolutionize the way we as chefs source our fish on a daily basis. Nick’s was the first Trace and Trust delivery in Rhode Island, and the network is building as the knowledge and information spreads. More chefs are tuning in and catching on, which is making the initiative stronger and healthier.

We have established a direct connection from source to end user that had not been available to us here. We are able to fish responsibly, shorten distance, time and handling, support local community and put forth dishes to our guests that are not only fresher than anything they’ve ever had, but thoughtfully procured and prepared for them. We are able to give them information about product, source and method in a way that they’ve never had access to before. It is truly exciting and special work.

I can call my fisherman now and ask him when and where he is going fishing. My fisherman can call me from his boat, at sea, telling me what the weather is, how far out to sea he is, what waters the fish are biting in, and exactly what and when he’ll be able to get to my kitchen that day. It’s incredible. It’s important to remember however that flexibility, empathy and innovation have all been absolutely imperative at all turns and on both sides.