On final day of festival, chef Daniel Boulud’s son steals the show
Festival goers quickly go from foodies to paparazzi.
Oh, there were plenty of famous chefs. And dozens of sophisticated palates feasting on the opulent buffets while quaffing a fast-flowing river of Champagne.
But the unquestioned center of attention at the Palm Beach Food & Wine Festival‘s Daniel & Friends brunch on Sunday drank out of a sippy cup.
Chef Daniel Boulud’s 1-year-old son, Julien, stole hearts — and his famous father’s microphone — when Boulud attempted to welcome his guests to the Brazilian Court Hotel, Cafe Boulud’s Palm Beach home, creating a scene so adorable that festival goers quickly turned into impromptu paparazzi.
A few moments later, Boulud himself posed with the musicians while holding their instruments, which in Boulud’s case consisted of a copper pan and a whisk.
Sunday’s sold-out brunch was that kind of affair, a congenial mix of informality and assured cooking from Cafe Boulud’s Rick Mace as well as Mike Lata, Dena Marino and Marc Murphy.
There were some “oh, I’ve always wanted to try that” moments in the case of Mace’s scrambled eggs topped with creme fraic- he and caviar and served in an eggshell and his luscious pate made with duck foie gras.
Later that night, right about the time The Gardens Mall shoppers were headed for the exits, the party was just getting started inside for the festival’s culminating event, the Grand Tasting.
“To see the entire first floor of the mall as busy as it was was really something,” festival founder David Sabin said.
More than 60 South Florida restaurants and 30 wineries took over the ground floor of the Palm Beach Gardens mall, setting up at five different tasting areas in lobbies throughout.
There was a fashion show, a beer garden, live music by the Potash Twins, SOSOS and local D Js. But the highlight was the Grand Chef Throwdown, a competition between three of Palm Beach’s top restaurants.
Chefs from Cafe Boulud (sous chef Jimmy Strine), EmKo Palm Beach (Nick Martinkovic) and Buccan (Taylor Balderson) tested their skills with Creekstone Farms organic Angus beef and Duroc pork in 30 minutes. And they knew they were cooking for discerning palates, with judges that included celebrity chefs Murphy and Irvine.
EmKo’s Martinkovic won the crown and $10,000 for his charity, No Kid Hungry, with his grilled skirt steak, pork jowl, broccoli stem and cured egg yolk.