Menu:
*Kimchi Omelette
*Brioche French Toast with Maple Syrup, Berries and Bacon
*Savory Tart with Caramelized Onions, Gruyere, and Roasted Tomatoes
*Wild Blueberry Scones with Clotted Cream and an Assortment of Jams
*Tea & Coffee with Buttermilk Rusks

Plates & Records is a nomadic and themed supper club organized by Joann, Ram and Andrzej, a writer, a human rights lawyer and an artist respectively.  To attend, all you need is a plate, a record, an empty stomach, and an Andrew Jackson ($20).  The original P&R trifecta includes Andrzej, but in his place at the stove that morning was their friend Georgie.

Joann and Ram

Talisa and I arrived at Joann’s apartment to a friendly “Hello hello! Come in!” through the intercom.  Dashing into the hallway to greet us, Mellow, Joann’s Daschund, led us into the apartment, where we found a bustling kitchen and joyously inhaled the aroma of freshly baked savory tarts. We then climbed up the stairs and into the backyard, where a long communal table for 20 was set up, and a few people had already settled down.

Joann’s botanical kitchen / living room

Luckily, what started as a wet and dreary morning turned into a sunny afternoon.  It wasn’t long before we started passing around an aluminum tray of blueberry scones and assorted jams and began sipping on Mombucha and mimosas, all while I got a head start on my summer tan.

Joann’s dog, Mellow, scoping out the brunch scene

Ingredients for the kimchi omelettes

Ram’s Savory Tart with Caramelized Onions, Gruyere, and Roasted Tomatoes

My plate, after I took a few bites and before I grabbed a scone and piled on the berries and lemon curd.

Joann collected our plates and returned them with piping hot omelettes filled with a savory spicy mix of finely diced Soppressata, carrots, cheddar cheese, and of course kimchi.  This was all topped with a zig-zag of ketchup and Sriracha hot sauce.  Who needs a Bloody Mary when there are kimchi omelettes?  Kimchi omelettes aside, Ram’s savory tarts were a culinary feat —a total of 18 onions were cut, cooked and caramelized for these two tarts, some real blood, sweat and tears!  So what exactly is a savory tart?  Imagine if a quiche and a Chinese egg custard tart (“dan tat”) had a lovechild.  A very delicious lovechild.  Tucked within a buttery crust was a silken, custard-like, otherworldly egg filling.  The delicate filling coaxed out the complimentary flavors of sweet, golden brown threads of caramelized onion and robust gruyere cheese.  Throw in some cherry tomatoes and chives, and I was eating one killer savory tart.  For those who preferred a sweeter brunch option, Georgie helmed the stove and whipped up a delicious made-to-order french toast.  Made with fresh brioche, each slice was lightly washed with egg, browned in a cast iron pan, and sent off with a dusting of powdered sugar.  Unlike the hefty, dense french toast served at some brunch venues, this toast had a crispy, crunchy exterior with a light and ethereal interior.

Thanks to the Plates and Records crew, brunch is no longer a distant college memory.  Alright, so I’m not old enough to miss college yet, but I am susceptible to occasional bouts of nostalgia.  Find updates on the next supper club gathering and a recipe for Ram’s savory tart at the Plates and Records blog.  And if you’re in the hood, swing by and visit Joann and 50+ vendors at the monthly Greenpoint Food Market this Saturday, May 22, for some sweet treats and good eats.  Cheers to a warm spring and summer with backyard bbqs and park picnics aplenty!

Rachel Yang, Akira Back, Youngsun Lee, Andrew Chang, and Tommy Lee

Don’t let her sweet demeanor deceive you, Rachel Yang makes some serious food.  She and her husband Seif own Joule Restaurant in Wallingford, Washington, where seasonal ingredients, French techniques, and Korean flavors take center stage, coming together harmoniously to create magical tastes that transcend cultural boundaries.

The first bite of Rachel’s smoked tofu with Honshimeiji confit and wild sesame seeds delivered a powerful smoky flavor, bearing close resemblance —in both taste and texture—to smoked mozzarella.  The smoky tofu slab was topped with a bed of Honshimeiji mushroom confit, then sprinkled with a chiffonade of basil, wild sesame seeds, and a drizzle of tart soy truffle vinegarette.

A trio of pickled beef tongue, braised kohlrabi and quail egg was shuffled into small wooden boats and quickly swept away by the hungry masses.  Pickling was a especially interesting way to prepare beef tongue, an ingredient commonly found stuffed into tacos or sliced like deli meat and stacked inside sandwiches.

Rum raisin and chestnut honey sweet rice fruit cake was a deliciously sticky orgy of glutinous rice, rum raisins, diced jujubes, and nuts topped with a dash of course sea salt and microgreens for embellishment, then generously drizzled with chestnut honey.

Previously a professional snowboarder shredding the slopes in Colorado, Akira Back now tears it up in Las Vegas, where he helms the kitchen and wields the sushi knives at Yellowtail Restaurant and Lounge in the Bellagio Hotel and Resort.  You can usually find him slicing up fat blue fin tunas freshly shipped from Japan in his army pants and bright blue Etnies kicks and mixing things up, often times throwing in ingredients on his menu that are probably more familiar at a Korean restaurant.

Kwang Eo with caviar and Gochujang sauce were meticulously laid out onto each plate beneath a delicate bed of micro cilantro and micro bulls blood beet greens.  Although this dish seemed fairly simple to make,  sake, mirin, and 7up were all stirred in with gochujang, a fermented Korean chili paste, to create a spicy effervescent concoction.

Youngsun Lee stays true to Korean flavors and culinary techniques in his cooking.  When asked by MC Vivian Lee why he chose cooking as his profession, he explained his mission to educate more people about Korean cuisine and culture.  Previously the chef and owner of Persimmon in the East Village, he is now teaches at the Institute of Culinary Education, his alma mater.

A sliver of braised pork belly “bo ssam”, moo woo kimchi, salted napa cabbage and baby shrimp.  The salty pork belly and spicy and tart kimchi are a winning combination.

A mild and creamy concoction of eggplant with tofu dressing, or “ga ji neng jo rim” in Korean, consists of slow-cooked eggplant, silken tofu and black sesame counterbalanced with crunchy black and white bits of fried rice cake.

Braised until tender, the grilled octopus salad, or “moon eo goo yi”, is paired with water chestnut, shallot, and pickled Asian plums.

Andrew Chang was born and raised in New York and is the newly appointed sous chef at the Central Park Boathouse.  He is Korean by heritage but 100% New York at heart — with a downright fierce devotion to the Yankees and a sleeve full of witty remarks.  Founder and president of the Global Culinary Society at his alma mater, the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, it is apparent that New York’s global culinary landscape is a major source of his inspiration.

Andrew’s pumpkin porridge with dried jujube, pumpkin seed oil, and roasted chestnuts had the texture and viscosity of a hearty butternut squash soup.  The bits of dried jujube and roasted chestnuts bring a nice sweetness to the soup when mixed together.

Having gone to Vietnam with Andrew and other student chefs for a culinary tour over four years ago, I still have vivid memories of all the delicious food we had while we were there.  Seeing a summer roll reinterpreted with Korean ingredients and flavors brought back nostalgic Vietnam moments and was a very welcome surprise.  Andrew’s version of summer rolls were filled with bulgogi in a shallow pool of spicy pineapple ginger dipping sauce.

Last but not least was Tommy Lee of Battery Gardens in New York.  Accustomed to catering to dignitaries and top political figures, he veered away from his usual repertoire and turned to his Korean roots for some inspiration.

Miniature pork and kimchi raviolis were a perfect mouth-popping size.

photo by Kathy YL Chan
More mini raviolis; these sweet versions are filled with red bean paste over a dollop of whipped cream, topped with crystallized ginger and a sprig of cilantro.

photo by Kathy YL Chan
Lollypop-sized Korean style barbecue lamb chops.

At the end of the night, while everyone was cleaning and packing up their belongings, Rachel approached me and asked, “Veronica, what should I do with this bucket of beef tongue?  This can keep for a while, since it’s pickled, and I would hate to throw it away.”  And just like that, I went home with a bucket of tongue.

Earlier this month, I was asked to help in the Korean government’s latest efforts to promote and globalize their cuisine at a celebration of National Day and Armed Forces Day at the Ambassador’s home in D.C.  And this time there was no grilled meat involved… Ok, maybe a tub or two of bulgogi.

Apart from the bulgogi, there was a huge spread of other Korean eats and treats to be offered, including a wooden bucket of bibimbop, spiraled with colorful piles of julienned vegetables, which was then mixed with a paddle and served.

Scallion pancakes on the griddle were freshly made ready to order.

Jay Weinstein, culinary instructor, cookbook author and friend, recently returned from a trip to Korea and joined us from New York to assist in cooking and explaining the dishes.

Cucumber kimchi sprinkled with pine nuts

Stir-fried cylindrical rice cakes (tteokbokki)

Jay makes Gujeolpan, a traditional Korean wrap filled with 9 ingredients.

Sweet korean rice cakes, or tteok, were freshly rolled and cut, then rolled around in soybean powder and crispy rice bits.

Cucumber and lemon soju, or Korean rice wine.

Korean Ambassador (center) with his wife (right).

Many guests arrived in formal or military attire, while some opted for hanboks and other traditional Korean dresses.

My favorite outfit of the night:

The night ended with a full moon, welcoming us to the beginning of Autumn.  In celebration of the arrival of Autumn, Koreans often eat Songpyeon, a sweet glutinous rice cake traditionally eaten during the Korean autumn festival, Chuseok.  They come filled with sesame seeds, honey, red bean paste, or chestnut paste and steamed over a layer of pine needles, to give it an aroma of pine trees.  Try out a basic recipe I found from Agrofood Magazine: