Alinea is a Chicago-based modernist restaurant co-owned by Chef Grant Achatz and Nick Kokonas, which opened in May 2005. Known for its creative and experimental cuisine, Alinea has received numerous accolades, including three Michelin stars and being named the best restaurant in North America by Gourmet and The World’s 50 Best Restaurants. The restaurant’s history is defined…
Tag: Carter
Rigatoni with Red Sauce 🍝
Discover the ultimate comfort food with this hearty rigatoni recipe, featuring a rich meat sauce perfect for fall gatherings! Fall is here, along with my cravings for hearty, home-cooked food. I don’t often make pasta, but I have been craving a good, meaty red sauce. Carter was in Arizona last weekend and said he had…
Noma Kyoto ⛩️✿✿✿
Carter and I planned our Kyoto 2024 trip around our reservation to the Noma Kyoto popup, the same year in a row, the storied restaurant packed up from Copenhagen and relocated to the Ace Hotel in Kyoto, which is a wonderful place to stay. I secured four spots, but alas, two friends could not make…
Alchemist ✿✿
With our visit to Alchemist in Copenhagen, we would complete our quest to dine at all three Michelin-starred restaurants in the city. My good friend Paul Ellington asked me to get tickets about six months before our trip so he could also enjoy the experience with me, Carter, and Mitch. Alchemist is set in Refshaleøen,…
Geranium ✿✿✿
For Carter’s 23rd Birthday, we went to Copenhagen for a week with friends Mitch Morgan and Paul Ellington. I was able to secure a table at Geranium for the actual birthday – a great present for sure. We were one step closer to visiting all three Michelin-starred restaurants in the city. Our mission is to…
Noma ✿✿✿
While in Copenhagen in August of 2024, at the start of our two-week European Road Tour, Carter was searching for the coveted Noma reservation. Fortune smiled upon us as he found a lunch reservation during our trip. He asked if he should book it, as it was a vegetarian menu and I immediately said yes….
Pork Chop Suprise 🐖
The making of old school goodness. When I was a latchkey kid in the 1980s, my Mom would prep my meals before heading to work. Early on, she would pre-make this dish, which I called Pork Chop Surprise. It was better than Shake & Bake pork chops. As I got older, I prepared the dish…
Stacked Scallop Potatoes 🥔
With fall in full swing here in 2025, I have been cooking at home most evenings, and this scalloped potato dish is on frequent rotation. I call these stacked scallop potatoes because, during layering in the pan, I flip them upright so the cheese and cream can settle between the layers, which adds an extra…
Cast Iron Lasagne 🍝
My good cooking buddy Nick Haddow and I had been cooking lasagne over the winter of 2022, and he had the brilliant idea to cook a cast-iron lasagne over his many fire sources the evening of January 15th. We knew the recipe by heart and were looking forward to channeling his inner sportsman and our…
Villa Crespi ✿✿✿
Carter and I were in Italy on a YPO Super Car trip touring the Grand Lakes – Garda, Como, Iseo, and Maggiore. Sean decided to join us for a few days on Lake Maggiore to celebrate his 60th birthday. Given this was a significant birthday, Carter and I decided to treat him and ourselves to…