Richard Hamilton: Restaurant Local

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Super Chef decided to catch up with Richard Hamilton, formerly chef of the Spiced Pear in Providence and runner-up in 2005's record-breaking longest hunt for a White House Executive Chef. At the time of Mrs. Bush's announcement in August 2005, he was working with Bonnet distributor Maverick Cuisine. Since then, Richard has settled upon on Maryland's Eastern Shore, working with the Carl M. Freeman Companies, owners of the the newly renovated Tidewater Inn, the pride of Easton, MD. The Tidewater Inn, built in 1949 fell on hard times and had run down nearly to ruin by the time the Carl M. Freeman Companies bought the property out of foreclosure in the fall of 2005. Freeman was not in the hotel business, but Frank Edwards, then CFO and now president, could not resist. Frank had spent summers as a kid clamming and boating with his cousins in the Chesapeake Bay near Easton and knew the hotel well. The Tidewater has been the heartbeat of Easton for decades. In its heyday, James A. Michener was a resident -- and a nearly permanent fixture at hotel's bar. Michener wrote book Chesapeake (Random House 1978) here. For years, the hotel has been unofficial host to the Waterfowl Festival (annually, Novembers) that unites hunters with birdwatchers and artists. Realizing they were in unchartered waters and taking a risk by refurbishing the Tidewater, they decided to reduce their risk in Food & Beverage -- so they hired Richard Hamilton as corporate chef. With him came Michael Quattrucci as executive chef. Frank told Super Chef: We wanted ours to be more comfortable, less formal, but keep the food and the experience on the level of fine dining. We decide to hire first rate chef, create a wine list and wine inventory to rival any thing In NY, then refurbish hotel. Since Easton is just over an hour from Washington DC, and less from Baltimore or Annapolis, it's an easy day trip to dine at Restaurant Local. The Eastern Shore is one of those rare places, like Sonoma or Napa counties in California that brings the bounty of the sea and land to chefs. The mild weather means its possible to use only local ingredients for much of the year. On December 15, 2006, Richard unveiled his first collaborative effort with them: Restaurant Local. Super Chef passed by Restaurant Local for brunch recently to sample: we found the cuisine full of great seafood and local vegetables. We started with a Bloody Mary, concocted from homemade horseradish as a base that also includes roasted celery, tomatoes, green onion and lemons. We also tried the base itself -- and recommend it to NASA for astronaut fare over some of the flashier fare that has come recently from Emeril Lagasse and Rachael Ray. Greaseless calamari arrived in a napkin resting in a cone frame with three sauces. The sauces were tasty but nearly superfluous when accompanying such calamari: well spiced, amidst chunks of sweet banana peppers and onions. A bowl of Lobster Cream soup came with lobster foam and chunks of sweet meat, a distillation, as it were, of lobster flavor. For the main course, a plate of Shrimp and Biscuits arrived with corn beef hash: cubes of potato, meat, and peppers minutely cut but packed with flavor and a friendly Southern reminder of just how close you are to the Mason-Dixon Line. Crab abounded. Richard prepares crab cakes in a couple of ways, with a creamed corn relish and as a sandwich with spicy aioli and micro greens. Both are packed with crab, and not much else to distract from the crab flavor. The menu also has egg and breakfast dishes, from Rock Lobster Western Omlettte to French Toast. Clearly, Richard has conceived of Restaurant Local as an accessible restaurant to help bring business and life back to the Tidewater Inn and restore not just its reputation but its business base. While clearly not Haute Cuisine, even this relaxed dining daunts some local residents, as Super Chef found out while exploring Easton. However, Restaurant Local is not the only new spot in the Tidewater Inn. Next to the main dining room is a private room called the Decanter Wine Room. It is an intimate place to enjoy the 22,000 bottle cellar. The room is fitted with a handsome cherry wood table and custom-made wine bar. Here is an arena to rejoice -- not just for diners but for the Ducasse-tranined chef. "It is a step up from Restaurant Local," Richard told Super Chef. "I can play here." In fact, Freeman's Frank Edwards is planning more restaurants with Richard. Restaurant Local is a showcase for casual food, in keeping with Easton's laid-back feel, but a more formal fine dining restaurant is in the deck. Super Chef is eager to see what the next card is when it's played. Previous articles: White House Chefgate: Richard Hamilton's Story Supreme Court Justice: White House Chef Cristeta Comerford: White House Woman Chef Richard Hamilton: Test Drive a Bonnet [White House Woman Chef - complete] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging Del.icio.us | Digg | Technorati | Blinklist | Furl --> back to Super Chef