The Chef Writes

I cannot believe how fast they are putting up our new building. We burned on May 10th and it looks like we may have possession of the building by August 20th! Amazing! That means several weeks of training and then a nice quiet "soft opening"...We will have a few weeks to train and work some bugs out. So, be prepared Modesto and surrounding communities... Canal Street Grille is coming! And we are going to be the answer to your "where can I get really good ______________?" WOOHOO!

Greetings All!! Hope everyone is staying cool and drinking plenty of fluids cos it's gonna be a hot one.
Canal Street has walls again! YEA! We may be open by the end of summer, or the very beginnings of autumn.. but we will will open before the holidays for sure.
Just to get the crowd salivating here are some of my specialties:

Canal Street Chop Salad: Radicchio, romaine, baby greens & fresh herbs, tossed together with tomatoes, cannellini & kidney beans, fresh mozzarella & English cucumber & Red wine vinaigrette

Braciole: Slowly braised in our house sauce beef roulades filled with spinach, pine nuts & Parmesan

Stuffed Pork Chop: 12 oz boneless chop filled with apricot-cranberry stuffing,Roasted green beans & honey bourbon glaze

Porcini Salmon: Pan seared wild salmon encrusted with fine porcini mushroom powder, & compound butter

I can't wait to present this to the locals! It's going to be a lot of fun and interesting to see what kind of reception we get in Ripon.
I will keep posting til we open.

We hope to begin hiring again in about 8-10 weeks... but who knows. I have people of interest for my crew (one of them being Chow from Nosh!) and a few from surrounding restaurants..but keep your day job and keep an eye out. We are looking for the best the Valley can offer...cos we will be the premier destination steakhouse in the area.

I still would like to do an Iron Chef Modesto if anyone out there is interested...cos it would be Team Altieri-Gaines (as in Mia) going up against all you MEN.... hehehehe! Cos us girls can BRING IT!
Okay, so enough of the little ego that I have...

NEW WINE STORE!!!
The Angels Share Wine Shop will be opening next weekend over on the east side of town.. so no more having to drive downtown to special order that case for Christmas.. Jill Smith, formerly of Tresetti's will be the wine chick for Angels Share.. www.aswineshop.com

Well, that's all I have for now...Peace

Chef

Like the title says sometimes shit just happens. If anyone read last Friday's Modesto Bee, local section, you will find that 5 weeks away from our opening, Canal Street Grille suffered a minor setback... fire. But that's cool. This gives us a chance to hire the best and to perfect the menu. We are doing steaks, chops, ribs and seafood. It is going to be so awesome!
I have been testing all the menu items, see what works, what doesn't, what can be a special or on the menu. I'm fairly certain that there is something on the menu for everyone..vegan and carnivore alike. And I am getting really good at sauces, something that I have always shied away from. It's all about technique and patience.
We have also been writing the employee handbook and safety manual, something which I did while I was with Wine and Roses. We want to keep everyone happy, healthy and safe. My ideal is to create something that will make everyone happy and satisfied at the end of the evening.

Off to other stuff:

Feed the People is still doing well in Oakdale. Mia has her hands full most nights...as well as another Direct Appliance cooking class this next Monday and the Oakdale Chocolate Festival this weekend. I guess she is doing a demo both days...

Nosh closed.. sending its good employees to the far corners of the Valley..(psst..new place in Ripon looking for a few good people soon)..
And I have heard (not confirmed) that Fat Cat and 15-O-5 are for sale...Interesting. Concetta is now open for lunches and there is a hole in the wall for expansion...we'll see what Paul gets done, he does make a decent pizza.

Anyhow, that's all I have for now. I am working, but I have an open schedule and can provide personal chef services if needed...or answer any questions about anything trivial...go ahead, try me.

PS: I am looking for a home to rent; Ripon, Salida, N. Modesto, Rvbk, Escalon....something for 2 people and 2 cats, so if anyone could help..thanks

Sheesh! Been a while since I posted here..need to dust and remove all these cobwebs..

(sigh)

Well, the holidays are well behind us now and we are into a brand new year..Most of us, I suspect have already broken or are moments away from breaking our New Year's Resolution.. Mine was to not lose my temper and to quit smoking... one out of 2 so far isn't bad.

So, off to local foodie news...

The Nine's downtown Modesto will be changing the scene at 10th and J. From the rumblings I have heard.. they acquired the chef from Del Rio Country Club... can anyone confirm? They are going to be a steakhouse competing with Dewz. We'll have to wait and see.

Direct Appliance on McHenry is offering up some cooking demo classes. It's a series called "Great Chefs of the Valley". Classes are $55 each or 5 or $250 and are held Monday and Tuesday nights at Direct Appl.
So far they have Chef Sanchez, from Jacobs Fine Dining, Chef Sarah from Appetez, Chef Muni from Mallards, Chow from Nosh and my good buddy, Mia Gaines-Alt, from Feed the People and Top Chef Seas. 2...I know Mia's class is February 26th and she has an Arabic theme to her food.

I will be representin' a new restaurant, Canal Street Grille, opening in Ripon in April (if the weather doesn't mess things up too much). It will be a steak and seafood house with a lot of specialties that I developed while at Concetta (remember the Chai Cheesecake and Sweet Chile Prawns?)
My demo class date is Tuesday, March 20th.. and I am going to do steak and seafood. But as far as my menu goes.. eek! it's still up in the air.

So, that is what I am doing... and if anyone knows Brian Kline, have that farmer call me...otherwise, I will write again next month..

peace out..

THE HOLIDAYS ARE COMING!!!!

And what do you have to do?
Well? Is that list of tasks getting longer and longer?
I can take some of it off you by...

Cooking your family’s meals and delivering them

Bake all those great holiday cookies and cakes that you just don't have time for.

Available for intimate parties, holiday gatherings,
Home meals, holiday baked goods, cooking lessons,
And kitchen organization...

Or whatever culinary disaster you have brewing

Take some pressure off yourself and hire someone to cook it all for you.
Be the social butterfly at your holiday party
Don’t sweat about what is going on in the kitchen...

Reasonable rates...
So relax and let someone else do it!

My services also make a great gift!

Chef Connie Altieri
chefaltieri@charter.net

Have knives will travel

Okay people... sometimes shit just happens. I am referring to the fact that I never moved (thankfully).. and now I am out of a job. Let's just say the Murphys Hotel is having legal problems, (google "poker faught" and you'll see what I am talking about) So, if anyone knows of a place that needs a good chef.. let me know. But for now I am going to attempt to start something for myself.
I make these cheesecakes see, and I would like to start selling them, cos I need the money, and maybe it would open up into something else. I know that there are folks out there who frequented Concetta that may have events upcoming that need some hors d'oeuvers or a full meal that I could create for them. What I guess I am saying in HEY! ANYONE MISS ME? I"M BACK. Yeah, I know it has only been 3 weeks, but when you start developing an ulcer after only one week..and they kinda hint around that maybe hiring me wasn't a good idea fiscally... it's time to get out. bastard! So, I am going to make some phone calls... and the rent is paid for september, and most of the bills, so I can survive this month, and hopefully something will pan out... Wish me luck, and ya know if you want a cooking lesson even.. have knives, will travel.

WELL,after much bidding in the incestous downtown community I have decided to take my show on the road... As of this Friday I will no longer be the Chef at Concetta, I am leaving that kitchen to my trusty sidekick of 5 months, Sam Bans. He is good and I hope everyone will appreciate him as much as I have...

Where am I going? Up the mountain... to Murphys, specifically the Murphys Historical Hotel. I am going to be the Executive Chef. I am excited about change. I am actually moving up there...going to become a mountain gal with a shotgun, faithful companion Lilly and No Trespassing signs posted around the property. Don't worry I will still check in with my "fans" and keep in contact with those who matter and ANYONE is welcome to come taste my fine cuisine, especially if you never made it into Concetta... you missed some good shit!

I may be back, you never know, although my ultimate goal is to be on the coast someday, from Seattle to San Diego, (just not LA, I hate it there).

I will miss Modesto, only for the big box stores and the shopping. The car thefts, idiots on J street, and other "big city" crap I hope to leave behind. I know I will miss the trains through town, and the noise of living in a metropolitan area, but it will be replaced by silence or animal creatures lurking in the woods. I just hope Lilly doesn't end up a snack.

I am not going far, just outside the circle and I hope you all aren't too good to make that hours drive to Murphys... which by the way... has some really good wineries, and 9 of the tasting rooms are within walking distance of the Hotel... so you know, BONUS!!!

PEACE OUT MO'TOWN!!!!

I appearently offended someone. I have been asked not to blog anymore. I cannot mention the place I work anymore. No free publicity... (shrug) I don't care. Someone is trying to silence me and I don't much appreciate it. So.. wanna know what the specials are for the week? Call that place I work...
Is blogging protected by the 1st Amendment? Have I been negative about the place I work or just its patrons? Have I mentioned any names, called anyone out, or the like? I didn't think so, but alas, I have done my damage... whatever that means.
So, what can I talk about here? Politics-religion-sex... the Taboo Trinity

I am really gonna go for it... and I am sure I will receive my share of hateful comments.. but I have since I was registered to vote...First time I registered it was with the Green Party, 4 years shy of the Nader campaign- and I voted for Clinton. Who I still readily believe was the 3rd best president of the 20th century. (FDR and Kennedy's potential are the other 2). Anyway that aside... I HATE the current administration. Not just for the War in Iraq/Afganistan, oil, environmental policies, the widening gap between rich and poor and the slow reaction in aiding the needy during crisis (Katrina and Rita)... nope, I hate them for who they were, who they became and how they allowed MONEY to control their decision making. Yes, I am primarily talking about Cheney-Rove-Rumsfeld... Think about how much crap about them has gotten swept under the rug. They don't want the public to hear about it.. they still blast the "liberal media", but don't you think we would know more if the media was indeed LIBERAL? I mean the truth is out there, it's just harder to find than it should be sometimes. Thank Al Gore for the Internet!!

God-Allah-Dude in the Sky
I am not a religious person. I don't believe in organized religion... I believe that IF there is a Higher being, and it made us in its image, then we don't have to worship together and congregate. We should worship ourselves... What? Okay, hear me out...
"God" supposedly came down here and "poof" made the Earth. Now, we have all this evidence regarding dinosaurs, and fossils and how old the Earth is and all that..then what was all that stuff for? Was he practicing? Was he molding this stuff out of clay and playing "house" with these toys he created? If we are made in his image we should be taking WAY better care of ourselves and our planet... The body is a Temple.. and yet we treat it like a tent (Thanks JB).
And wait, here's another thing about religion... why do we fight about who is right and wrong all the time? Religion is the cause of most of all wars... WHO CARES! Take care of yourself, your family, your property, your neighbors, your community and your planet... we may be here only a short time and what you do may make whatever comes next (another BIG IF) really great or really shitty. So, just be a good human..we are all humans on this big round ball... and we should treat EVERYONE... regardless of color, social stature, money, sex, physical challenge, looks... the SAME... be nice to your neighbor.. it will make you feel good. Besides, isn't that the real thing behind religion? Be good to yourself and those around you. That's it.. seems pretty simple...until emotions get involved...

Sex-
yup, like it...
and that is all I am going to say about that... except.. going back to the previous paragraph... "and we should treat EVERYONE... regardless of color, social stature, money, sex, physical challenge, looks... the SAME"
Oh, and marriage is a contract between 2 consenting adults. regardless if one or both of them have a penis.
This amendment crap is just that... and it makes the line between Church and State a little blurry. The license that you get when you go down to the county building... should be a binding contract between adults, and have nothing to do with "Dude in the Sky"...and should come with all the benefits that "normal" married couples have... especially those damn tax deductions... most gays make more than the average hetero-household so I think they really deserve them... everyone's the same anyway... so shouldn't we all be treated fairly?

okay, so that's how I feel this week.. a little off put, but I think that I can make this work. Until next week...

Chef Con

I hate cutomers who think just because they "know the owner" think they can get away with treating people like they do. Don't make my waitstaff cry... I may do something bad.
Who do you think you are coming into my kitchen and talking to me like that? You come in, following 5 other tables, and expect to be done first because you have 20 minutes to make a movie... We are about a dining experience, be realistic!!! Then because it's taking so long (10 minutes for 4 dishes?) you have to talk to the server like that? She works for a living, does this on the side, you think she gives a shit if you threaten to tell the owner? This IS my career, but I don't need to be treated like that either... I love those signs "We reserve the right to refuse service" That's right, to anyone. Next time you come in... you will be asked to leave. You don't need to enjoy my cooking ever again.
So, a word to those of you who are a little over the top at restaurants..don't be an asshole, don't be demanding or demeaning... they are there to serve you, yes, but not to be treated like a indentured servant..Just be nice... PLEASE! (you know this only applies to when the servers are not being pretentious pricks.)

Sorry about the RANT, but some things need to be said.

Specials this week at Concetta: (that is if you want to come in now that I have complained all over my blog..)

Pork Sirloin Roulade-pork filet stuffed with apricots and pancetta with a lemon creme
Red Curry Prawns with Jasmine rice.
Papaya Southwest Salad-with a creamy cilantro dressing
Cumin Grilled Duck with black beans

Peace...
Connie

Here we are, in what feels like late in the game. The late spring rains damaged what could have been an awesome produce season. I love to cook with farm fresh produce. There is something so special about knowing exactly where your food comes from and who grows it. I have been fortunate to know Brian Kline of Kline Organic Produce.
Late summer of last year Brian came to me and asked if I would be interested in doing some canning. I said yes and spent quite a few of my days off in the kitchen at Concetta canning Brian's produce. The tomatoes he brought were made into organic marinara sauce; I pickled 3 different varieties of beans as well as cucumbers, all which were available at Farmers Market, up until last week when the last jar of pickles were sold. Needless to say, I became quite good friends with Brian and his wife Tracy.
During those rainy weeks of winter Brian brought in seed catalogs. We discussed and I wished for certain types of greens, tomatoes, potatoes, and anything that looked interesting. It made slow rainy nights at Concetta fun and gave us something to look forward to in Spring.
Now comes summer, blazing down on the rich soil of the San Joaquin Valley, making us impatient for the fresh tomatoes that will have a somewhat late, (Brian said 40 days on Friday) but hopefully long season. The watermelon and cantelope tendrils are beginning to spread out there in Waterford.
I am using the best of what Kline Organics has to offer, arugula, gold, red and white chards, mizuna and this awesome mustard with bumpy red leaves and red veins running through it. It is spicy but adds a certain depth to my salads. I really enjoy working with Brian's produce, creating vinaigrettes and adding ingredients that enhance yet still stay true the organic compunds of the greens. Greens are good-good for you, good tasting and in this case good for the community. By purchasing directly from the farmer I am saving time and money as well as helping someone to make a living.

I feature Kline Organic Produce heavily on my menus:

Arugula and Smoked Trout with orange muscat vinaigrette
Sauteed greens with shallots and chevre
Roasted veggie- baby greens with oven roasted peppers, onions and mushrooms with Raspberry Balsamic and feta.

This weeks Specials: (5/30-6/6)

Lavendar & Black Pepper Grilled Lamb rack
Tamari Glazed beef brisket
Salt-cured salmon with dill'd cream cheese, shaved red onion, capers and brioche points.
Chipotle Grilled prawns with corn and black bean relish
Asparagus 3-Ways-green and white asparagus prepared 3 distinct ways