160blue since Nougier left?

I noticed on 160blue's website that there's free corkage this Friday. I liked it very much with its previous chef, and wondered if anyone has been there since the new guy took over. Free corkage is always a good draw.

By the way, 4 of us recently dined at Nougier's new restaurant and really enjoyed it. I'm totally blanking on its name as well as the name of the hotel its in - the contemporary hotel where Rush meets Wabash/Delaware. It was a great meal in terms of food and service, though the decor didn't quite do the restaurant as it is now justice, though they are redecorating. I realize this is pointless until I can come up with the name, sorry.

Anyway, 160blue, anyone?

Are you thinking of Sofitel? Would that be Cafe des Architectes?

Davooda wrote:Are you thinking of Sofitel? Would that be Cafe des Architectes?

That's where Chef Noguier went. He's one of my favorites, and I'm sure it's all the better for landing him.

I haven't heard anything about one sixtyblue naming a new chef. I'm wondering whether they haven't done so yet, and still have the same menu and staff for the time being.

That's the correct hotel and restaurant, thanks. 160 blue has a chef named on their website, whether he's permanent or not I don't know.

Michael M. wrote:160 blue has a chef named on their website

When I go there, all I see is "Details to come".

It's not the most user friendly website. Under "menus" it says:

We hope you anxiously anticipate the soon to be introduced menu of our new culinary team headed by executive chef Michael Mcdonald as much as we are. With the diversity of chef McDonald's culinary background, it is no surprise that he will bring one sixtyblue's menu to life with comfortably sophisticated cuisine.

Wonder if it's the same Michael McDonald that was Jean Joho's Chef d' Cuisine at Everest when I was a prep/pantry cook there back in (Yikes!) 1994? He left Everest shortly before I did, if I recall correctly to take a position in Texas. He definately had some talent back then, so if it's the same guy I'm intrigued to see how he's progressed. 160blue has been a favorite of ours and I was pretty bummed when I heard Martial was leaving, but now my curiosity is peaked so it may be time for a return visit!

Well-traveled Michael McDonald returns to head up kitchen at one sixtyblue

McDonald, no relation to the Doobie Brother of the same name (despite our tortured lede-in), has been working for Charlie Trotter for the last few years--just not here: He was executive chef at C, Trotter's seaside restaurant in the One and Only Palmilla hotel in Los Cabos, Mexico; and most recently he was executive chef at Restaurant Charlie, Trotter's seafood-focused restaurant in the Palazzo resort in Las Vegas.

Enjoyed a tasty meal at 160 Blue tonight.

Started with a pork belly carbonara, served with gnocchi instead of wheat pasta. Salty, but appropriately so to cut the richness of the crispy pork belly. The gnocchi was denser than I would have liked (probably a result of pan frying it to get a "crust"). The belly was amazing, melty but crispy goodness.

Had some Iberico pork loin for my main. This was pork-tastic! Cooked medium, served with spaetzle, sauerkraut and a mustard sauce. It was incredibly tender and porky. One flaw was that it was charred a bit too much on the outside, such that the surface was very slightly acrid. The creamy sauerkraut and mustard were excellent foils to the richness.

Got a side dish as well, the "house" hash browns with duck fat powder and caramelized shallots. Mmmmm... for 6 bucks, the best hash brown I've ever had. It was pretty thick, so there was a great crust on the outside yet it remained soft and tender inside. Again, the one nagging issue was the duck fat powder which didn't dissolve well, so it left a slightly gummy texture in my mouth.

Overall, we had a great time. They brought out the hash browns late and so we were comped for that. I think a few tweaks here and there, and it would have been a great meal. As it is, the slight imbalances in each dish were enough to bring things down a notch.

Random point: Michael Jordan walked in about 5 minutes after we did. He was seated about 15 feet away - looks like he got a tasting menu of some sort. He seems shorter in real life than I would have imagined.

Puppy wrote:Random point: Michael Jordan walked in about 5 minutes after we did. He was seated about 15 feet away - looks like he got a tasting menu of some sort. He seems shorter in real life than I would have imagined.

But was he on a date with a celebrity chef, and do you have his address?

Santander wrote:

Puppy wrote:Random point: Michael Jordan walked in about 5 minutes after we did. He was seated about 15 feet away - looks like he got a tasting menu of some sort. He seems shorter in real life than I would have imagined.

But was he on a date with a celebrity chef, and do you have his address?

He won't date celebrity chefs because he's still pissed that a (local) celebrity chef ignored him (wouldn't let him try out for the tasting menu) at a local restaurant in Wilmington, NC as a high school freshman. It was cut from his HoF speech, but I understand it motivated him to buy into one sixtyblue so that he would be the one telling the celebrity chefs where to stick it.

Fabulous fall-flavored dinner at one sixtyblue this evening. For the first time, I am actually HAPPY to be surrounded by heartier fall comfort foods, and ready to let go of my beloved summer eats.

Had a tasting menu and tried a bunch of things. Confit leek soup with potatoes, poured tableside. Next up was an absolute highlight: Alaskan King crab with apple salad, cranberries and puffed rice crisp. SO refreshing, with a delightful balance of sweet and tart from the apples and berries. The Iberico pork loin was succulent and juicy, served atop creamy sauerkraut (who knew?) and spaetzle, served in a sort of "french fry" form. This spaetzle is quite possibly my favorite example of fall comfort food I have had in a LONG time.

For dessert, the pumpkin waffle was brand new this evening. Served with cream cheese ice cream and a praline brittle. The pumpkin was nice and subtle, yielding a fluffy soft griddle cake. I am thoroughly digging this trend of "breakfast for dessert."

~M@

Mattkrc wrote:Had a tasting menu and tried a bunch of things. Confit leek soup with potatoes, poured tableside. Next up was an absolute highlight: Alaskan King crab with apple salad, cranberries and puffed rice crisp. SO refreshing, with a delightful balance of sweet and tart from the apples and berries. The Iberico pork loin was succulent and juicy, served atop creamy sauerkraut (who knew?) and spaetzle, served in a sort of "french fry" form. This spaetzle is quite possibly my favorite example of fall comfort food I have had in a LONG time.

I didn't mention it in my post above, but my LDC had the soup and king crab salad. I actually found the crab to be the most disappointing meal of the evening. The accoutrements were a bit strong (almost astringent), but the biggest flaw I thought was that the actual crab preparation was a disservice to the ingredient. Extremely dry and mealy. Maybe you had better luck than us.

Mattkrc wrote:
Had a tasting menu and tried a bunch of things. Confit leek soup with potatoes, poured tableside. Next up was an absolute highlight: Alaskan King crab with apple salad, cranberries and puffed rice crisp. SO refreshing, with a delightful balance of sweet and tart from the apples and berries. The Iberico pork loin was succulent and juicy, served atop creamy sauerkraut (who knew?) and spaetzle, served in a sort of "french fry" form. This spaetzle is quite possibly my favorite example of fall comfort food I have had in a LONG time.


I didn't mention it in my post above, but my LDC had the soup and king crab salad. I actually found the crab to be the most disappointing meal of the evening. The accoutrements were a bit strong (almost astringent), but the biggest flaw I thought was that the actual crab preparation was a disservice to the ingredient. Extremely dry and mealy. Maybe you had better luck than us.

Sorry to hear your crab wasn't so good. Mine was sorta the opposite. Uber moist and tender. Interesting preparation to be sure, I was expecting a mound of shredded crab meat. I liked how I got some "meat" to it. It was nice and delicate, I could easily cut it with my fork and scoop up some of those luscious cranberries.

~M@