Author: Matt Robinson

The name says it all (almost)

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Matt’s segments for “Connoisseur’s Corner” usually air on WBZ (1030 AM) Saturdays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25, and 11:55 AM and Sundays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25 AM.

Recent samples can be found at Recent samples can be found at https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1002-Connoisseurs-Corner-28654273/.

If you have ideas for future segments, please send them to Matt@Matts-Meals.com.

Also, please follow me on Twitter @MattsMeals73.

Thanks for listening and thanks for supporting our friends and neighbors in the food-service industry!

Need a gift for Mom? Ask Beth!

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Matt’s segments for “Connoisseur’s Corner” usually air on WBZ (1030 AM) Saturdays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25, and 11:55 AM and Sundays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25 AM.

Recent samples can be found at Recent samples can be found at https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1002-Connoisseurs-Corner-28654273/.

If you have ideas for future segments, please send them to Matt@Matts-Meals.com.

Also, please follow me on Twitter @MattsMeals73.

Thanks for listening and thanks for supporting our friends and neighbors in the food-service industry!

Is it gluten-free? ABSOLUTELY!

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Matt’s segments for “Connoisseur’s Corner” usually air on WBZ (1030 AM) Saturdays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25, and 11:55 AM and Sundays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25 AM.

Recent samples can be found at Recent samples can be found at https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1002-Connoisseurs-Corner-28654273/.

If you have ideas for future segments, please send them to Matt@Matts-Meals.com.

Also, please follow me on Twitter @MattsMeals73.

Thanks for listening and thanks for supporting our friends and neighbors in the food-service industry!

Chef Chat© – Jeff Fritz

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CHEF CHAT

Jeff Fritz

SilverWolf Private Assistance, LLC

www.facebook.com/silverwolfpriasst/?ref=py_c

While serving as an active member of the Air Force, Jeff Fritz has learned how to slice through the air with the utmost precision. As a chef and the owner of SilverWolf Private Assistance LLC, he slices fresh foods and amazing centerpieces, taking every opportunity to serve every colleague and client as best he can. Among his most successful events have been a recent dinner at the Warrior Retreat with Willing Warriors and an event that hosted Wounded Warriors from Walter Reed Medical Centerthat involved chefs from each of the branches of the military and offered 10 courses complete with wine and beer pairings. Chef Fritz has recently added to his impressive resume by signing on to serve as the Executive Culinary Director for the Table Foundation and Plating Grace, and for the Plating Grace and Grub food truck.

 

Fly-Fight-Win, Chef!

Matt’s Meals: How did you get into cooking? Who inspired you?

How I got into cooking was the long way. I grew up very poor and, like a lot of people, I worked at McDonalds as my first job in the food industry, I also worked at Quizno’s at Coors Field while I was in high school. My passion was in working with my hands, I worked as a cabinet-maker for about a year and a half before I joined the military and I really enjoyed it! But I felt the need to move away from home and find a way to support me wife to be and myself and the military was the easiest choice. 

In the military, we like to come together as a group to create what we call “Esprit de Corp” to build our [cameraderie] with each other since we deploy and spend so much time together. I always volunteered to cook for these events since I really enjoyed working with my hands and food. This lead me to my time stationed in Phoenix…where I decided I wanted to pick up a trade so that I could do something out the outside of the military. Initially, I chose [to be an] auto mechanic since my whole life that is what my father has done [and because] it’s a great skill to have when you are poor since it’s cheaper to fix a car yourself than taking it to an shop. I signed up for a new hybrid course at UTI in Phoenix and, about a week prior to my class starting, the school canceled the program which left me scrambling for something else. A coworker of mine was teaching at the local culinary school near me (Scottsdale Culinary Institute – Le Cordon Bleu) and told me I should check it out. I met up with him at the school later that week and he showed me around. I was hooked within minutes and signed up that day!  That is how I started cooking for real. Since [that] time, I have cooked in three countries, at the Taste of the NFL, Blue Hill At Stone Barns, and several culinary competitions around the country and won several medals.

Who inspired me is a tough question. I think what inspired me to really love cooking at food was the original Japanese version of Iron Chef. My wife and I watched that show all the time while we were stationed in Korea for two years. I really loved the way they cooked and the creative things that they made. Chef Morimoto was a big part of that for me, but all the chefs on the show had such passion for their food it really stuck with me.  

Matt’s Meals: Where was your first professional kitchen experience and what lessons did you learn that continue to educate how you work today?

While I was in culinary school in Phoenix, we had a group of chefs that told me to get involved with the American Culinary Federation chapter. I did that and it lead me to my first real cooking job which was for an upscale caterer in Scottsdale. I remember that my first day of work was a large event at a millionaire’s home in North Scottsdale [where] my one and only job was to pick arugula stems for hours. It was a bit of a humbling experience since I was in the military and had some major real world experiences, but it was an amazing job and the event was awesome….. This really fueled my passion for more, and I started looking at other jobs I could do that were also closer to my house. At this time, I was doing 20-hour days Monday through Friday and 10-hour days on the weekends. What I found in the end was Skye Supper Club in Glendale. This was a fine dining establishment and was where I cut my teeth in the fine dining world. Chef Scott Tompkins was the Chef/Owner and he really took me under his wing. We cooked amazing food with French/American influences. The only reason I left Skye was due to the military. I received orders to move to a small town in Idaho. But Chef Tompkins forever left his mark on me for continued passion and to never stop learning. He’s the person who got me my first culinary books and magazines. He got me to look at food in a completely different way. 

Matt’s Meals: What have been the biggest challenges you have faced and how have you handled then?

My biggest challenges have been due to my military life and having to move every other year or so. Every time I got settled in and found amazing chefs and places to work at or stage at, I would get orders to move to my next location. This has also presented me with many new opportunities, but it’s also hard to start over ever time. The American Culinary Federation has helped me so much in this regard. I have always found a chapter near the new location I would move to and my chapter president at each place helped me connect to that new chapter each time. After my time in Idaho, I was selected for a position in North Bay, Ontario. My chapter president and mentor made some calls to the National ACF president and he got in touch with the Canadian Culinary Federation and connected me with the closest chapter near me.

Matt’s Meals: How has your cooking and business style changed and how has the industry changed?

My cooking style was strictly based on classic French cooking but, as I moved and found new foods and styles of cooking, my style…adapted and evolved into a more modern style. I love molecular cooking, but at the same time I love classical techniques as well. I have figured out a way to combine those styles together along with open-fire cooking. I think that the industry has continued to evolve along with the trends that we see and how chefs and customers react to those trends. I’m rooted in classics but understand that things change and that if you don’t change with them you will be left behind.

Matt’s Meals: What are you most looking forward to this year, in terms of your career?

This one is easy! I retire from the Air Force this year which will give me more time to focus just on culinary projects like the cookbook I’m working on [and] possible TV shows. But I’m realistic as well. COVID has devastated much of the hospitality industry and I’m lucky enough to have other job skills from my military time that I can use as a bridge to get to my culinary dreams. My ultimate goal is to have a brick and mortar restaurant and we will see if that happens in the next year or two. 

Save the (Spicy) Sharks

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I am recording TODAY so please be listening to @wbznewsradioSaturdays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25, and 11:55 AM and Sundays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25 AM.

If you have ideas for future segments, please send them to Matt@Matts-Meals.com.

Also, please follow me on Twitter @MattsMeals73.

Bon appétit!

In recent months, Matt’s Meals has been promoting many of the food makers who have been helping others get through the pandemic and deal with other challenges. And while many keep their fellow humans (in mind first and foremost, there are others who are taking an even braoder view.

Among these is our friend Gabe DiSaverio of The Spicy Shark.

As Matt’s Meals fans know, I LOVE hot sauces and the wide menu of hot honeys, sauces, and syrups from The Spicy Shark provide me with plenty of great go-to’s.

While I could easily go on and on about the many mouth- and eye-watering options they offer, I also wanted to talk about how the Shark is not just a name. In fact, Gabe and his team are among the most prominent shark savers in New England and they are calling on their fans to help save the shark and support the ocean habitat.

If you go to www.thespicyshark.com/save-the-sharks, you can connect to The Spicy Shark’s many sea-saving partners. If you go to their blog (www.thespicyshark.com/blog), you can get ideas that will help you preserve your own health and those of our sea-faring friends. Among these are educating yourself and others by wacthing shark-related films (including the Netflix documentary “Seaspiracy”), volunteering with one of the many sea- and wildlife-preserving organizations (including Sharks4Kids.com), asking if your favorite seafood restaurant serves shark (in which case, they shoud become your ex-favorite), and going to events like Shark-Con (yes, it is a thing!). There is even a link to suggested gifts for fellow fin fans!

So while The Spicy Shark is a great place to bring the heat to our fellow humans, we all need to remember that, in order to keep the ocean and the entire earth cool, it is a good idea to bring the heat!

More than one way to get you through

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Matt’s segments for “Connoisseur’s Corner” usually air on WBZ (1030 AM) Saturdays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25, and 11:55 AM and Sundays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25 AM.

Recent samples can be found at https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1002-Connoisseurs-Corner-28654273/.

If you have ideas for future segments, please send them to Matt@Matts-Meals.com.

Also, please follow me on Twitter @MattsMeals73.

Thanks for listening and thanks for supporting our friends and neighbors in the food-service industry!

Even as people continue to get their shots, many still need a shot in the arm to help them get through another day of pantsless meetings.

Fortunately, the folks at Odd Fellows Ice Cream Co. have enhanced their already-raved about ice cream happy hours by combining the best of their own creamy offerings with recipes from some of the top bars around to offer a set of sweet treats that will surely help you get through (or sleep through) another day.

Known as the Boozy Capsules program, these new offerings not only make those who enjoy them feel better but also support those who created them with partial proceeds going to bartenders who have been cleaning glasses for the past year.

Crafted by OddFellows’ resident James Beard-nominee and Co-Founder Sam Mason, the Capsules include meldings ofcoconut sorbet with Dorothy Parker Gin and Kalani Coconut Liqueur, cranberry-lime sorbet with Absolut Citron and Cointreau, coffee ice cream with Oloroso Sherry and Manuka honey , and awhiskey ice cream made with Dewar’s.

With locations in Chestnut Hill, MA, and around New York (including their latest in Domino Park), a visit to Odd Fellows may involve crossing state lines. And while we do not condone such behavior, amazing ice cream combined with fine booze is surely a good reason to, in the words of the late Shock-G, doowutchyalike.

oddfellowsnyc.com

A softer “hard” seltzer

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Matt’s segments for “Connoisseur’s Corner” usually air on WBZ (1030 AM) Saturdays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25, and 11:55 AM and Sundays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25 AM.

Recent samples can be found at https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1002-Connoisseurs-Corner-28654273/.

If you have ideas for future segments, please send them to Matt@Matts-Meals.com.

Also, please follow me on Twitter @MattsMeals73.

Thanks for listening and thanks for supporting our friends and neighbors in the food-service industry!

As Matt’s Meals fans know, food trends come and go. And while bacon apparently will still not go away (Argh!), a pair that seems to be hanging around lately is the dynamic duo of buzz-enhanced seltzers and cannabis-infused items.

Leave it to Bay State women to figure out how to offer the best of both worlds!

Based in Georgetown, MA, LEVIA was first in Massachusetts to release a cannabis-infused seltzer. In addition to 5mg of locally-sourced THC per 12 oz can, LEVIA drinks also have zero calories and sugar and are now available at over 70 cannabis retailers from Boston to the Berkshires. 

While all three flavors are delicious, each kind offers a different feeling:Achieve combines vibrant raspberry-lime sparkling water with LEVIA’s own sativa blend. 

Celebrate keeps the smiles coming with a lemon-lime mix. And Dream offers an indica blend in a jamberry base that offers tasty serenity and calm. All three offer a consistent experience and consistently-delicious taste (which, by the way, is the only part that lingers).  

Whether you want to get things done a bit faster, enjoy good times a bit more, or find new levels of mellow, LEVIA has the stuff you need to amp up, rave on, or chill out.

https://LEVIA.buzz

She has the meat(balls)

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Matt’s segments for “Connoisseur’s Corner” usually air on WBZ (1030 AM) Saturdays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25, and 11:55 AM and Sundays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25 AM.

Recent samples can be found at https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1002-Connoisseurs-Corner-28654273/.

If you have ideas for future segments, please send them to Matt@Matts-Meals.com.

Also, please follow me on Twitter @MattsMeals73.

Thanks for listening and thanks for supporting our friends and neighbors in the food-service industry!

Living in Needham, I am blessed with many great restaurants that are all right nearby. From Hearth, the Farmhouse, and Latina (and, of course, Abbott’s custard!) in Needham Center to Farm Grille, Walnut Grill, and Pressed right over the border in Newton, there is a bounty of local flavor that brings people from far beyond our borders.

Chef Marisa Iocco has long been a local legend thanks to the amazingly authentic Italian food she creates at Spiga in Needham. With her new ghost kitchen and delivery source Polpettiamo (which means ‘love of meatballs’ in Italian), she is bringing some of her most popular dishes to RI, making the already amazing Providence food scene even better! What is more is that Chef Ioccoo has plans to bring the new concept back to Boston later this year

The trip-worthy ‘polpettes’ (meatballs) come in such fantastic flavors as sausage and peppers, veal marsala, lamb cacciatore, salmon, and both chicken and eggplant parmigiana balls. All are are hand made with in-house grated cheeses, local meats and herbs and topped with a variety of delicious sauces (including a house-made béchamel). The menu also includes meatball burgers, fresh pasta, arancini balls, as well ashandcrafted meat and vegetarian lasagna, and many sides and dessert options as well.

Delivery is available via Uber Eats, Grubhub, DoorDash, and Seamless Tuesday to Saturday from 11 am to 10 pm.

So even if you are still afraid of crossing state lines (or even driving to Needham), Chef Iocco is doing all she can to make sure that more people in more places wil be able to find out what makes her balls (and other offerings) so famous.

Be sure to check out www.polpettiamo.com and www.spigaristorante.com to find out what is new in her kitchen and mangia!

Huel-ing he Future

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Matt’s segments for “Connoisseur’s Corner” usually air on WBZ (1030 AM) Saturdays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25, and 11:55 AM and Sundays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25 AM.

Recent samples can be found at https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1002-Connoisseurs-Corner-28654273/.

If you have ideas for future segments, please send them to Matt@Matts-Meals.com.

Also, please follow me on Twitter @MattsMeals73.

Thanks for listening and thanks for supporting our friends and neighbors in the food-service industry!

I have raved in the past about the wide array of satisfying and energizing plant-based nutrition drinks and bars made by Huel. And as I enjoy the new banana flavor (which actually mixes well with their chocolate and peanut butter varieties), there is a new benefit to tout.

In addition to helping support our nutrition and weight-loss goals, the world’s best-selling nutrition brand is now doing more than ever to help their fans and the planet. In addition to providing optimal amounts of protein, carbs, fat, and all 27 essential vitamins and minerals, Huel products also help the environment by cutting down on the carbon emissions and other gaseous toixins that are produced by the meat industry. In fact, the folks at Huel have gone so far as to track their carbon emissions on their website (www.Huel.com) and will be listing them on their packging by the end of this year!


According to recent reseach, eating two plant-based meals a day cuts food-related carbon emissions by 50% and could free up acres of land for farming and reforestation which would in turn help recapture many greenhouse gases and make the entire world a healthier palce to live. On a more personal level, a plant-based diet also reduces the risk of heart disease, lowers the likelihood of obesity, and improves overall health. 

As their carbon emissions go down, Huel continues to ramp up their nutrition content and expand their menu of options, so that those who enioy them can feel and do their best for themselves and the world.


So the next time you need to fuel up, Huel up!

North Street Grille keeps its URL title

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Matt’s segments for “Connoisseur’s Corner” usually air on WBZ (1030 AM) Saturdays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25, and 11:55 AM and Sundays at 7:25, 8:25, 9:25 AM.

Recent samples can be found at https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1002-Connoisseurs-Corner-28654273/.

If you have ideas for future segments, please send them to Matt@Matts-Meals.com.

Also, please follow me on Twitter @MattsMeals73.

Thanks for listening and thanks for supporting our friends and neighbors in the food-service industry!

As many neighborhoods begin to awaken from their Covid-induced hibernation, it is good to see that many of our locally-sourced friends in the food industry have made it through and are coming back for more!

Among the places that I have been most grateful to visit again is the North Street Grille, where the vibe is family friendly and the website (www.BestBrunchBoston.com) still says it all!

Headed by Robin Sidell (whose brother Sol oversees the South Street Diner near South Station), the North Street Grille is a North End institution that, like the Diner, attracts people from far further afield. Visit Goodfoodblogph.com to make sure you are using the best blenders at home for your smoothies.

And no wonder! With a drink list that runs from bottomless cups of coffee and tea to mature audience milkshakes, wines, and cocktails and a massive menu that includes such amazing options as Robin’s famed chicken and waffle sliders and banana Bourbon French toast (as well as the Healthy Start breakfast, which still satisafies with egg whites, oatmeal, fruit, and wheat toast), customizable omelelttes that are offered with everything from asparagus and avocado to prosciutto and steak, not to mention a raft of pancakes including their cannoli and S’mores editions and an entire menu of Benedicts that includes everything from smoked salmon and lobster versions to a BLT Benedict and Benedict in bed (which is stuffed into French toast!), the North Street Grille not only has something for everyone but at least twothings! In fact, the only downside to my last visit was the one-hour table time limit, which prevented me from resting after the main courses and starting all over again! Fortunately, that should be done away with soon. Whenever I go, I know that Robin and the crew will be around whenever I need to get my feed on and to enjoy amazing food among friendly and familiar faces again.

So drop by and tell Robin that Matt sent you. You will both be glad you did!