First TuttoToscana Trial dinner at Ganzo Sets the Stage for NY

Introduction by Lauren Maher 
Menu Section by Chloe Streeter
Photos by Yi Chun Tsai

The Evening

This past Friday I participated in the Friday Ganzo dinner service. The menu, prepared by Apicius students, features items that will debut in New York City later this month at the FUA-AUF Alumni dinner at the James Beard Foundation (Oct 20) and the Art & Fashion Fundraising event (Oct 23). It was a wonderful selection of foods that could all also be tailored to meet any dietary restrictions if the customers had any. All of the menu options had a gluten-free and vegetarian option that could replace the dish if a guest was intolerant. 
There was one guest during the night who was gluten-free, so the kitchen was able to prepare all of the dishes for her to accommodate her allergy. The kitchen was able to communicate this very well with us for each dish, so that we knew which ones to give her. I was really impressed overall by the communication skills of the kitchen. 
The menu also came with an optional wine pairing. The wine pairing goes along with each of the courses for the dinner menu. The purpose is to provide the guests with an enhanced food and wine experience in which they can see how the different flavors pair well together. Guests also had the option to order a single glass of wine if they were not doing the full tasting menu. The most important part of serving the meals is making sure that everything comes out both at the same time and the right time. I noticed throughout the night the importance of making sure that the wine was served right before bringing out the next course. 
I assisted as a food runner for this project, so I would bring the food from the kitchen to the tables and clear them throughout the night. It was a great experience to get to see all of the dishes that were being served and to interact with the guests. It was fun to see that there were a lot of locals dining at Ganzo that night. It was also nice to hear about how happy they were with their experience eating there. At the end of the night, one group even gave the staff of the restaurant a huge compliment saying how amazing food and the service was. 
Guests appeared to love the food and wine test menu for upcoming TuttoToscana dishes! It was an experience to get to see the kitchen preparing the dishes, and how much they put into each dish. Both with how it is plated and the flavors within it.

The Menu

The dinner started with an Amuse Bouche, a frittata in the “tripe style,” meaning cut into thin strips, dressed in a tomato sauce as pictured (this meal was vegetarian and gluten free so there were no alternatives needed). It will be featured at the JBF Alumni dinner in NYC.

Following was the antipasto. This was a cauliflower flan made with a gorgonzola bechamel sauce inside as well as on the plating around the flan and garnished with toasted walnuts. This dish will be served in NY at the Art & Fashion fundraising event.

The Primo was an in-house made whole wheat pappardelle pasta with a traditional beef ragu sauce, (the vegetarian option for this dish would’ve been with a classic tomato sauce no meat). The ragu will be paired with pasta for the Art & Fashion fundraising event.

The secondo was a honey-glazed roasted pork loin stuffed with herbs including sage and rosemary, the dish was paired with a sweet and sour roasted potatoes and apples with caramelized cipolline onions. This dish was gluten free but the vegetarian option for this dish was an oven roasted stuffed bell pepper with rice and seasonal vegetables. This dish will also be featured at the Art & Fashion event in NYC.

The pre-dessert was a “zuppa inglese,” scheduled for the JBF Alumni Dinner.

And finally, also from the JBF Alumni Dinner menu, was the dolce served as a chocolate tart.

Gluten-free options for both desert were available for guests.