Before the words “foodie”, “organic” and “locavore” became part of our lexicon, there was a prescient man who had the foresight to understand that food should be and would be headed in this direction. Chef Michael Schwartz opened his namesake restaurant, Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink back in 2006 with an emphasis on fresh and local ingredients. Since then his vision has amplified to handfuls of venues with some aboard luxury cruise ships, in the Grand Cayman and even into his own beer line.
Chef Michael Schwartz’s The Genuine Hospitality Group were the stars of Slow Food Miami’s 6th annual Ark of Taste benefit dinner. Close to 160 guests attended the swanky soiree that raised funds for 27 new edible gardens in the Slow Food Miami’s Edible School & Community Garden Program, which raises awareness for good, clean and fair food as a cornerstone of pleasure, culture and community.
The Genuine Hospitality Group’s five Miami restaurants proffered the evening’s dishes and highlighted the Ark-nominated Florida Stone Crab sourced by Miami’s own George Stone Crab. Each chef showcased their individual style of local-sourcing with dishes that either featured the Florida stone crab or complemented it with seasonal ingredients.
The evening began with an opportunity to savor spectacular views of the glowing sunset skies over the Bay, while enjoying sustainable wines by Stellar Wines and spirited cocktail hour featuring GREY GOOSE Vodka. Specialty libations included Local Legacy with GREY GOOSE Le Citron Vodka, fresh-pressed Florida orange juice, Homestead-farmed strawberries, Everglades sugar, fresh basil and club soda; and Garden To Glass – GREY GOOSE Le Melon Vodka, St. Germain, freshly-squeezed lime juice, coconut water and agave syrup.
Menu items included Napoli Squash & Fontina Arancini – smoked calabaza jam and DuChilly hazelnuts; and Homemade Goat’s Milk Ricotta Crostini and Chef de cuisine Molly Brandt’s (Restaurant Michael Schwartz at The Raleigh) Stone Crab Claws with green gribiche (French mayonnaise-style cold egg sauce).
In true Slow Food Miami fashion, Chef de cuisine Roel Alcudia (The Cypress Room) highlighted the star of the show with a Grand Stone Crab Aioli with local vegetable crudités. Chef de cuisine Daniel Ramirez (Harry’s Pizzeria) prepared Roasted Beets and Carrots – that were complemented perfectly by whipped goat cheese, crispy lentils and cumin vinaigrette, harvested at chef Niven Patel’s backyard farm. Our favorite chefs from around the world usually harvest and cook from their own gardens.
Our favorite dish of the night came from Chef de cuisine Niven Patel (Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink) who crafted Beet Cured Opah with calabaza hummus, sorghum, curry leaf and stone crab vinaigrette. The opah was a marvelous fish that Chef Patel tantalized the entire crowd with to keep coming back for.
Chef/owner Michael Schwartz and executive chef Bradley Herron (Unopened Paraiso Bay Location) cooked up Wood Grilled Poulet Rouge and Wood Rotisserie Lamb Shoulder with hemp seed pesto and mustard greens.
The evening ended on an euphorically sweet note with five decadent desserts by renowned executive pastry chef Hedy Goldsmith, including Indian River Ruby Red Grapefruit & Pistachio Petit Fours; Knaus Berry Farm Strawberry & Tangerine Macarons; Strawberry Conserve with house made ricotta, candied Meyer lemon and DuChilly praline and the foodgasmic Bittersweet Chocolate & Salted Caramel Tarts with strawberry pâte de fruit and crème that made your body levitate from the enchanting confection.
The event was a smashing and delectable success that honored a Miami culinary Icon, seduced palates and raised both money and awareness for the Slow Food Movement. We are excited to return next year and see what ingredient will be highlighted at the 7th annual Ark of Taste benefit dinner!
Slow Food Miami is all about supporting good, clean and fair food for all. They support our local community from the ground up – from the Edible School & Community Gardens they plant to encourage the enjoyment of food that is local, seasonal and sustainably grown; to the local growers and artisan food makers they support for their use of sustainable methods.
The Ark of Taste is an international catalogue of local heritage foods which is maintained by the global Slow Food movement. The Ark is designed to preserve foods that are sustainably produced, unique in taste, and part of a distinct eco region. Slow Food hopes to promote the growing and eating of foods which are sustainable and preserve biodiversity in the human food chain. Foods included in the list are intended to be “culturally or historically linked to a specific region, locality, ethnicity or traditional production practice”, in addition to being rare. The US Ark of Taste is a catalog of over 200 delicious foods in danger of extinction – – threatened by industrial standardization, the regulations of large-scale distribution and environmental damage. Only the best-tasting endangered foods make it onto the Ark, in an effort to cultivate consumer demand—key to agricultural conservation.
