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Las Vegas Big Smoke: Part Three
Real Man's Breakfast
Posted: Wednesday, November 17, 2004
By Michael Moretti
Chef Charlie Palmer hosts the Real Man's Breakfast.
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"Quite a way to start a morning!" exclaimed Cigar Aficionado executive editor Gordon Mott at the outset of the Real Man's Breakfast with Charlie Palmer, the opening event of the Sunday lifestyle seminars. Indeed it was.
Bleary-eyed attendees entered the breakfast recovering from their romp at the final Big Smoke the night before. With many working on limited sleep and some fresh from the casinos where night segued into morning, the crowd was greeted with a hot cup of fresh coffee, then treated to a much-needed Bloody Mary. Served by a staff of waiters, the cocktails were fixed Charlie Palmer-style, spiced up with Absolut Peppar and garnished with a celery stalk and a poached prawn on a skewer, which Palmer called an inspiration from the tropics. Some of the more daring even chased their Bloody Marys with an Absolut Peppar Bull Shot made with beef consommé, which Palmer said is a lost classic that he wanted to bring back for the event. Palmer dubbed the back-to-back libations "Surf and Turf in a glass."
Happy diners tip back a welcomed Bloody Mary.
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Ladling in the zesty concoctions and munching on various breakfast pastries, attendees chatted and sparked up a Maria Guerrero Toro, the cigar paired with the meal, while waiting for the coup de grâce. Fragrant smoke wafted into the air. Palmer puffed on a cigar at the front of the room in his signature white chef's coat. "This is a nice even medium-bodied cigar. I'm the kind of person that likes a nice mellow smoke, especially during the day."
The doors at the back of the room flung open and a cavalcade of servers shouldered trays to the ends of the long tables where guests were seated. The silver covers on the plates were lifted to reveal a colorful dish to make the most brawny of aficionados swoon. Palmer described his culinary creation: a slow-braised beef shank, which he referred to as oxtail, had been rolled into a golden burrito resting on a bed of Serrano chile made from au jus from the beef, topped off with a creamy poached egg and served with a side of smoky pancetta bacon. "I've got to warn you, this is not a diet," said Palmer. The sleepy palates came awake with a taste explosion and not much was said until the plates were clean.
Guests listen intently after feasting.
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The post-feast conversation took on a number of subjects ranging from how Palmer regards cigar smoking in his 11 restaurants across the country to the price of butter to the quality of organically grown vegetables. Palmer talked about how consumers' palates have greatly evolved during the years he has been a chef.
"Knowledge of food, wine and cigars has grown over the years. It used to be a frozen fillet of sole was an accepted thing -- now you can't do that."
One guest asked how he handles the idea of being a celebrity chef, to which Palmer chuckled, "I always think of celebrities as being pampered people. I don't know what's so glamorous about working in a kitchen."
Palmer said one of the primary goals of his job is "to teach the young people coming into this business the importance of great food and the importance of making people happy at the table. That's one thing that I think the chefs and restaurateurs need to drive more and more."
He certainly practices what he preaches, judging by the standing ovation he received from his satisfied guests who, having been satiated, next went down the hall to try their hand at rolling a cigar.
Click here to go to the next Sunday seminar, Roll Your Own.
Photos by Camilla Sjodin and Jeff Scheid
The 2004 Las Vegas Big Smoke: Part One and Part Two
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