Frisson
San Francisco, CA |
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Frozen Almond-Milk
Parfait, with Vanilla Poached Field Rhubarb and Grandma
Darling's Poppy Seed Kordjas
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Alison Roman's lovely
Spring-y dessert is the antithesis of the French Napoleon’s
precise architecture and symmetry. The bright ribs of
rhubarb are encouraged to cross the boundaries of their
tower and the thick slice of parfait pours generously
out of its sandwiching Kordjas. Roman’s Napoleon
is rustic, spontaneous, and organic-looking.
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| Pastry Chef Alison Roman |
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Campton Place
San Francisco, CA |
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Carrot and Coconut
Ravioli with Avocado Semi-Freddo and Spiced Tangerine
Sorbet
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Boris Portnoy’s
plate is a clean, bright vision of oranges and pale greens.
The most exciting feature comes in the form of tiny orange
parcels – ribbons of carrot poached in syrup and
holding cubes of cold coconut cream. The composed mouthful
is reminiscent of an Indian carrot halva: sweet, savory,
and spicy all at once.
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| Pastry Chef Boris Portnoy |
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Fifth Floor
San Francisco, CA |
| |
Meyer Lemon Chiffon
Cake with Castelvetrano Olive Brittle, Tarragon Ice Cream
and Crushed Meringue
|
Leena
Hung’s dessert is deceptively classic-looking. Don’t
be fooled by the swirled disk of cake and pale green quenelle:
the dish is unapologetically savory with bold tarragon
and raw briny olive flavors. What keeps the dish fun and
grounded is the gravy boat of tiny meringue kisses that
the diner is free to sprinkle liberally for interaction,
sweetness, and texture.
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| Pastry Chef Leena Hung |
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Maverick
San Francisco, CA |
| |
New England Clam Chowder
|
Scott
Youkilis serves regional dishes at Maverick,
an American eatery in the Mission. His version of clam
chowder started off a casual, hearty meal: a rough brunoise
of potato, celery, onion and chives served in the clam
shell with a Littleneck for one perfect mouthful of chowder.
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| Chef Scott Youkilis |
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XYZ
San Francisco, CA |
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Mustard Seed Roasted
Pineapple, Coconut Panna Cotta, Spiced Beignet
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Ryan
West is adept at incorporating savory elements into his
desserts – from artichokes to fennel and black olives.
In this savory concoction, West serves an incredibly loose
panna cotta with a series of contrasting textures –
from roasted fruit to tender beignet and crisp sugar.
The sugar garnish divides the plate and offers a focal
point without appearing old-fashioned.
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| Pasty Chef Ryan West |
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Jack Falstaff
San Francisco, CA |
| |
Chantenay Carrot Soup,
Almond-Ginger Flan, Andalucian Extra Virgin Olive Oil
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Jonnatan
Leiva’s rich essence-of-carrot soup is poured theatrically
from a simple white teapot over a cool almond-ginger flan.
While the flavor pairing is classic, the interactive presentation
is fun both visually and texturally: the flan is slowly
drowned in hot soup and its outermost layer melts simultaneously.
With a little pampering and attention, Leiva makes the
common marriage of carrot to ginger exciting again.
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| Chef Jonnatan Leiva |
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