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About the Chef - JB Balingit
Q: What is food to you?
Food to me is not just an art, but more of an emotion. Like when we're sick for instance -- we associate 'soup' with our well-being. A cup of chocolate is soothing. Even our depiction of paradise often involves a coconut!
Q: Whats a perfect meal to you?
The best meal to me is one that brings back a good memory. My style isn't what you would call cutting edge.. I take a simpler approach to my cooking.. plays on classical techniques. It's not rocket science and it should never require goggles and symbols from the chemical chart. My food is relevant to a culture, no matter where you might come from, its probably something you've had before, but never this good..
Q: And why this take on food? Every other Chef in San Francisco seems to be leaning towards the newest trends and cutting edge gastronomic techniques.
Well, I have been fortunate enough to work with all different kinds of Chefs. From the recently Michelin rated, to the self-taught modern day Julia Childs. All equally genius in their cuisine. But one group of guys taught me what I consider to be the most important lesson in my career thus far, and their idea was to "give them what they f*cking want! They'll keep coming back." I believe in that.. Food at the end of the day is intended for nourishment, not an experiment.. Sure, you'll crave the cutting edge creations of the Jeremy Ravetz', Corey Lees, and Ferran Adrias.. But it's the mindful play on American contemporary cuisine that the likes of Sean Baker and David Marcovici create that I allow to influence my dishes the most.. I think my menu reflects exactly that idea, the idea that my kitchen can be an extension of your home... just let me do the cooking! With the Brick Yards new and improved menu - we'll give you dishes that need no further explanation.. dishes that you can already taste just by reading the description.. something you know you've probably had somewhere at one point in your life but, you've just never had it this good.
- JB Balingit, executive chef |
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