Red Meat: Tiffany MacIsaac

Posted by Warren Rojas / Tuesday, June 14th, 2011

Anyone who believes it’s hard being the new(ish) girl in town has probably never Tiffany MacIsaac:

(Image: Neighborhood Restaurant Group)

MacIssac and hubby Kyle Bailey swooped into town in late 2009 to help the Neighborhood Restaurant Group launch Birch & Barley. Since then, MacIsaac has been handed the reins to the multiplying Buzz bakeries and placed in charge of the dessert programs across the NRG properties–scooping up a RAMMY nomination along the way.

WR: Butter. Sugar. What other culinary elements could you not live without?

TM: Salt. I prefer maldon for finishing, but there are all kinds of salt that add depth and balance to sweetness. My assistants know that every recipe gets a pinch of salt.

WR: What’s the very first dish you ever mastered? How long did it take? Do you still make it today?

TM: Early on I was really focused on ice cream and sorbet. I have always loved making it and it was the first thing I really dove in to and understood. I use a refractometer to make my sorbets, so there is no exact recipe. I currently have over 40 flavors that we produce for all of the Neighborhood Restaurant Group.

WR: What seasonal ingredient(s) get your creative juices flowing?

TM: I love grapes. I always look forward to concord grape season. I remember the first time I ate one, I was 19 and it completely blew my mind. It tasted the way I had always known grapes were supposed to taste, but I had only had that flavor in Bubalicious [sic] Bubblegum. Every year I remember how special that moment was.

WR: My latest cookbook obsession is …

TM: I read every issue of Art Culinaire. I love it.

WR: What’s the most challenging dish you’ve ever attempted? Would you make it again?

TM: I always try to challenge myself with new ideas/flavors/techniques. There is no particular dish, but I do have a general philosophy that if you can’t make something work, put it down and come back to it later. Sometimes I’ll work on something, abandon it for a year then come back and it just clicks. You can’t force things to work.

WR: If I could the spend the day working alongside any local chef, I’d love to collaborate with …

TM: This might be weird, but I’d say Sara Moulton. I used to watch her religiously on The Food Network. She was part of the reason I went to culinary school. When I was at Allen and Delancey, she dined there and I actually went to the table like a total nerd and gushed over her.

WR: What’s the easiest/quickest–but still wholly satisfying–meal you make for yourself?

TM: I am sandwiched obsessed. I can eat a good sandwich for any meal and I can make almost anything in to a sandwich. When my husband puts a new item on the menu at Birch & Barley, the general manager and I are always scheming a way to put the dish on a sandwich. At home, I am big fan of chicken salad, especially if Kyle roasts a chicken and we have leftovers.

WR: In the next six months you won’t want to miss my …

TM: Well, it’s summer and we have a new line of frozen items at Buzz – Ballston including the frozen fruit pops which are fun. I’m also getting a cotton candy machine. I’m not even sure what I’m going to do with it yet, but it’s cotton candy, so it should be fun!

WR: It’s quitting time. I’m pouring myself …

TM: Johnny Walker Black on the rocks

————————————————————————————————————————————————

Spontaneous sorbets, MacGyver-like sandwich ingenuity and access to a cotton candy machine? Chef, you sound like one fun gal.

Come back next Tuesday for another helping of Red Meat.

–Warren

NoVA Well Represented in 2010 RAMMY Race

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010

(Image: RAMW)

Restaurant awards season is now officially underway, with the James Beard Foundation unveiling its 2010 finalists yesterday and the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington shining a light on the D.C.-Metro area’s culinary superstars today.

Though they are two very different competitions, there are at least one pair of hometown hopefuls in the running for both the national Beard Awards and local honors: restaurateur Jose Andres–whose minibar has him in contention for a Fine Dining RAMMY and Beard’s Outstanding Chef award–and CityZen pastry chef Amanda Cook (nominated for her delectable sweets by both hospitality scrutinizing bodies).

Meanwhile, Northern Virginia restaurants figure prominently in nine of the 14 RAMMY categories, including:

* Fine Dining: 2941

*Upscale Casual: Liberty Tavern, Vermilion

* Neighborhood Gathering Place: EatBar

* New Restaurant: Eventide, Inox

* Chef: Bertrand Chemel/2941

* Rising Culinary Star: Liam LaCivita/Liberty Tavern, Shannon Overmiller/The Majestic, Jon Mathieson/Inox

* Pastry Chef: Anthony Chavez/2941, Josh Short/Buzz (Neighborhood Restaurant Group)

* Wine Program: 2941

* Beverage/Mixology Program: EatGoodFood Group (AKA Todd Thrasher of Restaurant Eve/PX/The Majestic fame)

You can browse the full list of 2010 RAMMY nominees here. The winners will be feted June 6th during an awards gala at the Marriott Wardman Park.

Northern Virginia Magazine would like to congratulate all the nominees–yes, even you D.C. restos–and wish you all the best of luck on awards night!

–Warren

NoVA Restaurants Score Big at 2009 RAMMYS

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Sunday, June 7th, 2009

(Image: Michael Birchenall)

A cadre of stellar local toques and restaurants (many of whom we’ve crowed about in the magazine) did NoVA proud at the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington’s 2009 RAMMY awards.

Top honors takers from here in the Old Dominion included:

* Restaurant Eve (Fine Dining Restaurant of the Year)

* The Liberty Tavern (Neighborhood Gathering Place)

* Anthony Chittum (Rising Culinary Star of the Year), and,

* Kate Jansen (Pastry Chef of the Year)

Congratulations to all the 2009 nominees and, of course, to the aforementioned award winners. Peruse the full list of 2009 RAMMY contenders  here.

–Warren