SPOILER ALERT: This story accommodates spoilers from the season finale of “Top Chef.”
The utensils are down, the knives are packed, and “Prime Chef” has topped its newest winner. Season 21 started in Wisconsin earlier than decamping for the Caribbean, the place contestants visited Curaçao and Aruba between cooking meals on a large cruise ship. Within the last episode, Dan Jacobs, Savannah Miller and Danny Garcia have been every tasked with cooking the most effective meal of their lives within the hope that alumna and new host Kristen Kish would declare them the most recent Prime Chef.
Finally, Garcia took the prize. The New Yorker and fine-dining veteran delivered a persistently robust efficiency, crafting exact and cerebral dishes out of substances that might be as humble as a carrot. His four-course finale meal was centered across the theme of first meals recollections whereas centering native Caribbean produce, progressing from a leche de tigre ceviche with breadfruit tuile to a piragua, a Puerto Rican shaved-ice dessert that referred to as again to Garcia’s childhood within the 5 boroughs.
Again residence, Garcia works with Saga Hospitality Group, which at the moment operates two eating places and a bar contained in the skyscraper at 70 Pine Road in Manhattan’s Monetary District. Sadly, information broke over the weekend that Saga’s founding companion, chef Jamal “James” Kent, had died of a heart attack at age 45. Garcia stays dedicated to opening Saga’s subsequent restaurant this fall as govt chef. “We’re going to proceed his legacy,” he says.
Kent’s passing makes Garcia’s victory considerably bittersweet. The “Prime Chef” victor nonetheless spoke with Selection about watching himself on TV, his plans for the prize cash and why he doesn’t plan on taking his TV cooking model again into skilled kitchens.
You talked about in our earlier dialog that you just’d spent a while learning the delicacies of the Caribbean past your earlier expertise earlier than happening for the finale. What have been a number of the classes that you just took from that point?
There’s numerous produce. There’s numerous fish. There’s numerous merchandise which are simply totally different, that prepare dinner otherwise. They’re simply indigenous to their area. So I might go to Little Haiti in Brooklyn, and I met a bunch of people that had totally different farm stands in numerous markets, a number of of that are like, one man who had a market the place he introduced produce from his household’s farm within the Caribbean. I might speak to him about what was in season, and he would share totally different merchandise with me that have been going to be in season on the time that we have been going to be in Curaçao. I actually simply sort of simply gave myself a masterclass in understanding totally different substances that I had by no means seen earlier than.
When it got here time to prepare dinner the ultimate meal, what made you select Manny Barella as your sous chef?
Manny and I had gotten alongside very well all through the complete season. He’s simply somebody who cares. He’s somebody who’s form. He and I simply grew to become homies. I knew, possibly he doesn’t prepare dinner meals like I do, however that’s not essentially the field that I wanted to be checked. He would assist do the issues that I wanted to do. And he would, on the finish of the day, do no matter it took to assist me win.
May you discuss your planning course of for the ultimate meal, and the way you selected these 4 dishes?
For me, it was telling the story — the story was crucial a part of my meal. Two challenges prior, I actually struggled with telling how I improved within the season. The meals is necessary, however the story on “Prime Chef” is simply as necessary. It was actually this throughline of first moments, and having the ability to inform this actually private story of the place I began and the place I’ve gone.
You needed to pivot a pair instances throughout the prepare dinner. How do you keep composure underneath that sort of stress?
I feel as cooks, you will have to have the ability to pivot. You might have to have the ability to — at any given time, whether or not it’s in your kitchen, or it’s on “Prime Chef” — it’s a must to simply be prepared for issues to catch fireplace and for shit to hit the fan. That’s simply the secret. With the ability to react, having the ability to keep cool and calm and never fold like a deck of playing cards, when issues go unsuitable. I might at all times say, it’s by no means about if issues are gonna go unsuitable, it’s nearly being ready for when issues go unsuitable.
Emeril Lagasse was the shock choose within the finale. What was your preexisting relationship to him and his work?
He’s an OG on the subject of the American meals scene, that’s for positive. I bear in mind being a child and watching him on TV and wilding out, simply throwing pans in all places and spicing issues up a bit. Nevertheless it was cool to fulfill him. It’s cool to be in his presence, and he’s tremendous form. He’s an icon in American delicacies.
Your spouse, pastry chef Sumaiya Bangee, can be a culinary skilled. How has she influenced you in your individual cooking life?
Sumaiya’s my companion. That’s my finest good friend. That’s my confidant. She’s by no means afraid to verify me. She’s by no means letting my head get too large. She’s at all times the one to inform me if one thing is sweet or not good, with out hesitation. So it positively helped me. She was a soundboard. She’s at all times the pattern for the meals that I prepare dinner and the selections that I make.
Out of curiosity, do you watch the precise present because it’s airing stay?
At Crown Shy and 70 Pine, we now have a theater within the basement of the constructing. Each week, the workforce comes down and we watch. There’s often, a sluggish day is like 20 and on a busy day, there’s like 50 of us down on this theater, consuming snacks and watching the episode.
Does watching provide you with new perspective?
No, it’s simply giving me cringe moments of listening to the ridiculous shit that I say on TV. Everybody will get a superb snigger on the ridiculousness of me always working round and goofing on one another. Nevertheless it’s enjoyable.
I do know you’re at the moment within the strategy of opening a restaurant. What section of which are you in at the moment?
We’re opening a brand new restaurant, Time and Tide, later this fall. With the passing of Jamal, we’re taking a quick pause to gather ourselves and grieve correctly, and simply be right here for one another. However we’re going to proceed his legacy. We’re going to proceed constructing what we have been constructing. We’re going to take Saga Hospitality to all of the locations that he wished to take it, and past. The expectation is that we open within the fall. The expectation was that this restaurant was going to be this wonderful seafood restaurant. And that’s the objective, to maintain pushing in direction of that. Simply maintain doing all of the issues that we had deliberate, greater and higher.
Do you will have any particular plans for a way you need to use the prize cash?
$250,000, I suppose $300,000 when you add all the things in — it’s numerous money. My spouse and I want to purchase our first residence. That is one thing I persistently stated on the season, and that we’re nonetheless doing: setting ourselves up for our future and discovering our first residence and establishing this subsequent a part of our journey.
Now that you just’ve had far, are there any main takeaways from the competitors that you just’re going to use in your cooking going ahead?
Not essentially. It’s so totally different. Competitors cooking and restaurant cooking are like apples and oranges. They’re not the identical. I walked away with numerous actually nice relationships constructed with different cooks, however I feel the meals cooked on that present would have by no means been cooked up in every other place. Like, a watermelon-gooseberry A1 variation sauce? There’s no likelihood in the actual world I might make that sauce. Was it good and scrumptious? Yeah, for that second. Nevertheless it’s only a totally different model of cooking.
It’s a distinct time and place. That model of cooking, I’d quite depart it there.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
