BR's Buffalo Chef's Challenge: Chayote comes to a close today with the announcement of the winner- SAMPLE! Chef Aaron Dombroski really impressed me with his selection of well-conceived, delicately balanced bites.
As I mentioned in the Torches piece, we furnished everyone with a pretty comprehensive list of rules for the chayote challenge. We did however, manage to overlook the fact that some people would prepare more than one dish. Shango prepared three small items, served all on the same plate. Torches made seven courses, and at the time of tasting, Jenn at Amaryllis was disappointed by her interpretation of the rules- that chefs could prepare only one. We certainly won't omit the specifics on the number of entries allowed in the future.
Since contemporary cuisine has really taken a turn toward serving things in multiples, we decided that the only fair way to deal with the situation was to consider items included on a single plate as one dish, items served on multiple plates as separate entries. For restaurants that offered us many courses, we based our judgments on the best dish of their many entires.
For readers that haven't followed the challenge step by step, the links for all of our previous articles are included below. And with that, let's move on to the important part- the food!
Do you love parties? You know, the kind with really good food, friends and drinks? Well, welcome to SAMPLE. This Allen Street restaurant, following in the footsteps of other hot spots in major metropolitan cities, hosts a full-tilt cocktail party every night. And you don't need an invitation.
SAMPLE has introduced Buffalo to one of the more innovative restaurant concepts to become trendy in recent memory. Their contemporary cuisine is available in portions equal to only one or two bites. Imagine an entire meal made up of amuses bouche!
The menu offers flavors that appeal to our regional palate and don't ask any of us to stretch our taste buds too far. Guests will find a mini club sandwich featuring lobster tail medallions, romaine, apple smoked bacon and olive oil poached tomatoes. This is a refreshing take on traditional America cuisine, and the other menu items reflect that concept as well. The bite-size beef on weck, sausage with pepper and onion, and the tomato soup with grilled cheese have all had their components or preparation techniques spun into a more interesting offering. All tasty, all bite-size.
But, what I really can't wait to see is if, at some point, the menu at SAMPLE offers Chef Dombroski the opportunity to really break loose. If the plate he set before me featuring his chayote entries was even a glimpse into his skill set, he could really take the city by storm. Really.
Dombroski hadn't worked with chayote before, as was the case with all of our chefs but one. While tasting his food, I really didn't observe any evidence of that with the exception of Chef's humble reaction to my exclamations of appreciation and surprise.
Here's a quick run down of the plethora of items I tasted, they are listed in order, running left to right on the plate shown in the lead photo.
Chayote blini served with chayote “gravlax” and caviar, Scallop “ravioli” stuffed with chayote brandade, Orange and chayote granita scented with rosemary, Soy glazed chayote coleslaw, White chayote gazpacho, and Chayote and truffle custard with braised beef and parsley.
The blini was nice, topped with a “ring” of chayote that was filled with caviar. Overall, it was well executed. The texture of the chayote added a different dimension to the typical pancake and caviar pairing, but it's flavor was lost under the salty caviar.
One of my two favorites of the group was the “ravioli”. The ravioli in this case was a soft, supple scallop. It had been halved and filled with a chayote brandade. The feel of the scallop was phenomenal, and the chayote, though used in a very delicate manner, was the predominate flavor. A brandade is a preparation that traditionally means salted or smoked fish, olive oil, garlic, milk and cream, is pureed or pounded together and then served on croutes. In this case, I didn't notice dairy in the filling, but in all honesty, it was one cool, velvety bite, and I was so distracted with the texture and the chayote, that I may have missed it. I felt the combination of scallop and chayote, though both very mild in flavor, were a fantastic pair.
The chayote in the granita was undetectable, but the classic combination of citrus and rosemary made for a great palate cleanser.
The “coleslaw” dreamed up by Dombroski was really flavorful, and something I would happily enjoy again. The chayote's structure lent itself well to this application, and the glaze was really very good, sweet and salty, without leaning too far in either direction. Serving it in a little chayote “cup” was a nice touch.
The second of my two favorites was the white gazpacho. Traditional white gazpacho is made of ground almonds, cucumbers, yogurt or cream, grapes and garlic. SAMPLE's included chayote and was garnished with tempura fried grapes and little pieces of chayote skin. This dish was fantastic, smooth, nutty, and sweet, and even with all of those flavors mingling together, the earthy quality of the chayote came through. White gazpacho has become increasingly popular in the last few years thanks to world renown Chef Jose Andres, and I think Dombroski's recipe could really put it on the radar here in Buffalo.
The custard, served in an egg shell, was very tasty. It's no surprise that the truffle and braised beef worked very well together, and the creaminess of the custard added luxuriousness to the mouth feel and richness and dimension to the flavor. The only thing disparaging I can say about this offering is that the inclusion of chayote was difficult to suss out.
For dessert, Dombroski and pastry chef Tammy Law prepared a trio of chayote inspired sweets.
A sushi roll, wrapped in chayote and filled with chayote rice pudding was served with a chayote and pineapple brulee. It was good, though the chayote a little tough. I especially liked that chayote pit was used in the brulee. The pit is a perfectly edible portion of the chayote that was overlooked by the rest of the challengers.
Second up was the ice cream. Here a sweet, thin cone, flavored with chayote, was filled with a remarkable chayote and lime ice cream. Though the lime was really the predominant flavor, it was very good, and the cone was nicely done.
Each of the sweet offerings were good, though the third dessert, a chocolate truffle, was a little too odd- even for me. When bitten, the very hard chocolate exterior gave way to what can only be described as “potato water”. It was a valiant attempt, but the result was somewhat unappetizing.
Owners Pat Castine and Adam and Jennifer Goetz have really done a fantastic job, offering Buffalo a fresh, hip option in a city already packed full of eateries. SAMPLE's décor offers a stunning, modern backdrop to its flavorful and fun cuisine. Don't think of it as a restaurant, or the portion size may deter you. It's a first-rate party, where guests are offered good food and great cocktails, all made with classic techniques and fresh ingredients in new and progressive combinations.
Congratulations SAMPLE on a job well done. We appreciate your willingness to participate in our adventure, and look forward to conducting our second challenge so that Chef Dombroski can face its winner in a “showdown”.
SAMPLE, 242 Allen, 14201, 883.1675, call for hours
Photos by Christa Glennie Seychew
Other links:
Initial Chayote Challenge Post
Second Place: Shango
Third Place (tie): Torches
Third Place (tie): Amaryllis
Honorable Mention: Left Bank
Honorable Mention: Mode
Honorable Mention: North End