An Evening with Chef Angelo Sosa

Posted By: Gretchen Dec | In: Tags: Food and Wine Event, Food and Wine Pairing, New Zealand | Dated: October 19, 2011 | No Comments »

Chef Angelo Sosa at De Gustibus

On September 27^th, I had the pleasure of attending the De Gustibus Cooking School’s “Asian Adventures” class with Angelo Sosa, Executive Chef and Owner of Social Eatz here in NYC. Angelo is a protégé of Jean-Georges Vongerichten, having worked for a number of years at Restaurant Jean-Georges in Manhattan, Ocean Club at Dune restaurant in the Bahamas and opening Spice Market as Executive Sous Chef. In 2009, Angelo went on to open his own restaurant, Xie Xie (shay-shay), a fast paced-casual establishment in Hell’s Kitchen. Then, in 2010, Angelo was cast in Season 7 of Bravo’s hit reality series “Top Chef”. His most recent endeavor is Social Eatz , a fun, creative American-Asian restaurant and bar in mid-town Manhattan.

Angelo’s energy and enthusiasm was palpable as he prepared a stunning five-course menu while telling entertaining anecdotes from earlier in his career as a Chef, and earlier in his life. Each dish that Angelo demonstrated for the class was a sensational, playful surprise and paired beautifully with the wines of New Zealand Complexity.

The first course was a delightfully spicy Sweet Tomato Soup, made with whole peeled San Marzano tomatos, lemongrass and curry cream. The soup was paired with one of our favorite sparklers from New Zealand, the NV Quartz Reef Sparkling Methode Traditionnelle ($28).

Next, Angelo whipped together his Tuna Pastrami with Asian Pickles and Rye. In this tuna preparation, a riff on NYC’s classic sandwich, a center cut sushi grade tuna loin is cured overnight in an exotic spice mixture, including coriander, smoked paprika, mustard seed and allspice. The tuna is sliced sashimi style and garnished with chili mayo, the homemade Asian pickles and a sprinkling of rye bread “bits”. The result is incredibly refreshing and invigorating combination of textures and flavors, a dance party in your mouth, if you will. The Tuna Pastrami paired wonderfully with both the NV Quartz Reef Sparkling Methode Traditionnelle ($28) and the 2008 Craggy Range Kidnapper’s Vineyard Chardonnay ($24) that were poured while Angelo prepared the dish.

The third course was Angelo’s modern take on “Pork & Apple Sauce”, which is spiced up with Pickled Japanese Ginger Sprout and Sake. The Pork and Apple Sauce à la Angelo was paired with the 2008 Craggy Range Kidnapper’s Vineyard Chardonnay ($24), which really highlighted the apples and Asian pears in the dish.

For the fourth course, in a whirlwind of energy, right before our bemused eyes, Angelo created the most delicious Korean Beef Tacos with pickled veggies. The freshness of the pickled veggies combined with the sweet-salty-spiciness of the marinated beef, all tucked into homemade tortillas, made for a real savory finale to the exquisite menu. The Korean Beef Tacos paired marvelously with the 2008 Craggy Range Te Muna Road Pinot Noir ($40).

Angelo’s final demo of the evening was dessert, a Corn “Brulée” with bitter sugar, sake and blueberries. This was the perfect end to the menu, a not-too-sweet spin on classic Crème Brulée. I usually can’t finish a dessert course all by myself, but had no problem with this.

This was my first experience at the De Gustibus Cooking School and it was truly a treat. Watching Angelo demo five courses, each distinct yet unified by Asian flavors, and learning from his methods and tips was an inspiring adventure! Adding to the whole experience of the evening, I had the opportunity to interview Angelo after the class and learned even more about one of New York City’s great Chefs. The Wine Cellarage’s exclusive interview with Angelo Sosa is below…

WC: The wine menu at Social Eatz is manageable, yet eclectic. What was your philosophy behind choosing the wines?

Angelo: A dining experience is not only formed by the greeting at the door, the presentation of the menus, the staff and the food, but it’s the whole experience of the wines that really accentuates the dining experience, along with the personality of the restaurant. Social Eatz is more of a casual environment and we have a very affordable and very easy to drink wine menu; wines that are very diverse with different types of flavor, from Rieslings to Gewurztraminers and Sauvignon Blancs. The wines we’ve chosen are very manageable and very easy to drink.

WC: Is there a wine pairing rule of thumb that you go by?

Angelo: Maybe it’s a little bit unorthodox, but personally I think any combination can work. Flavors are subjective. ‘Drink what you like’ is really the bottom line. You eat what you like, so why shouldn’t you drink what you like? Who’s to say what goes with what? Maybe there’s a certain combination that you can extract an epiphany experience from, but in the end, you have to drink what you like and what you enjoy.

WC: At what point in your life or career did you become Asian food devotee?

Angelo: Working with Jean-Georges Vongerichten definitely was the first exposure to Asian flavors. But in retrospect, thinking back on my life, part of my Latin-Dominican side had an influence. Very spicy foods with a plethora of flavors, from rice and beans, to ingredients such as bay leaf, vinegar, cumin and coriander. That background is really the essence of my inspiration and affinity for Asian flavors.

WC: What was the most valuable lesson or experience that you took from being a Top Chef contender?

Angelo: Biggest lesson, other than ‘taste your food’, was to be 100% confident in what you put out. Stand behind what you put out. There shouldn’t be justification, it’s your vision, it’s what you feel and you have to stand behind it. You can sell yourself on your passion and what you love to do and then people will love what you are doing. When people are placed outside of their element they actually accomplish more.

WC: What has been your greatest culinary achievement to date?

Angelo: Competing back to back on Top Chef. I created over 50 dishes, improv. I think that’s a lot for one person under those extremes, the pressures of being on national camera, cooking for those judges, competing outside of your element. It’s a big accomplishment.

WC: As Executive Chef and Owner of Social Eatz, where does the inspiration for your menu and recipes come from?

Angelo: Definitely from my travels. I’m very keen and really push myself to travel. It’s a very important process of linking and bridging the beginning phases of travel and discovery to the end product.

WC: If there’s a wine you could drink every day, what would it be?

Angelo: Definitely Icewine. I think I would take a bath in it if I could.

WC: Have you tried Icewines from Canada?

Angelo: Yes, absolutely. And I love the ones I’ve tried from Niagara too. I love sweet things.

WC: Finally, what is your favorite ingredient?

Angelo: I go through phases and get very compulsive with ingredients. I would say either Dill or Sriracha.

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