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LET THE CHOPPING BEGIN

NBC

The British chef joins other celebrity chefs-turned-TV-stars as the host of a new NBC cooking-themed reality series.

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By JEFF HOUCK

jhouck@tampatrib.com

Published: March 5, 2009

Updated: 03/06/2009 01:47 pm

Marco Pierre White is a heavyweight.

Anthony Bourdain once called him "the original rock-star chef, the guy who all of us wanted to be." Writer Bill Buford, author of the book "Heat," described him as "the most influential chef since the invention of fish and chips." He was top chef before "Top Chef" was "Top Chef." (Did that make sense? You get my drift.)

White joins the roster of celebrity chefs-turned-TV-stars as the host of the new NBC cooking-themed reality series "The Chopping Block." The British chef offers chefs and restaurateurs working in couples a chance to compete for opening their own Manhattan restaurant. The show debuts at 8 p.m. Wednesday.

That's not to say White is a TV novice. He's hosted the UK version of "Hell's Kitchen" and was featured on Bourdain's Travel Channel show "No Reservations."

He also knows about restaurants, having achieved three Michelin stars - the youngest British chef ever to do so. He has mentored such culinary luminaries as Mario Batali, Heston Blumenthal and Gordon Ramsay.

When I spoke to White recently by phone, he was, to put it mildly, intense. An NBC publicist warned me ahead of time that there might be extended pauses in the conversation. "Marco likes to think about what he's saying," she told me. There also were a few words of advice on how to approach the subject of Ramsay, who once ambushed White's wedding with a hidden film crew. White recently said of Ramsay, "If Gordon were made of chocolate, he'd eat himself."

I decided to bypass all that and talk about what it takes to be a great chef and run a superb restaurant. White goes on at length about the topic in his outstanding 2007 memoir, "The Devil In The Kitchen: Sex, Pain, Madness and the Making of a Great Chef," (Bloomsbury USA, $24.95).

A restaurateur should sit at every table in his own restaurant, he says. "He must know what that person sitting there will experience." Chefs also must taste the food they make - something that sounds simple but can get overlooked in the process.

"A chef also must continue to ask, 'Why?'" White says. "'Why am I doing this?' All things lead from that question."

Known for his mercurial moods, White says he eschews the practice of screaming at underlings in a kitchen - a nudge in the ribs at Ramsay's spittle-fueled rages on the U.S. version of "Hell's Kitchen."

He also became animated when I asked what being a hunter and fisherman added to his repertoire as a chef.

Knowing the stream a fish was pulled from or a thicket where a pigeon was bagged can tell a chef more than a cookbook can. "Unless you've seen the pigeon eat cherries in the field, you might not think to pair pigeon and cherries," he says. "You might not know that dill or other herbs are growing along the bank of a stream unless you've stood there fishing."

You can listen to my Table Conversations podcast with White by going to my blog, The Stew, at TBO .com, Keyword: Stew, or by subscribing to the podcast for free on iTunes.

SAY 'CIAO' TO BELNERO

The Capital Grille restaurant chain, including the location at International Plaza in Tampa, is partnering with Castello Banfi to debut the Italian winemaker's 2005 BelnerO Sangiovese di Montalcino label.

To celebrate the partnership, the restaurant has created a five-course Italian menu it will serve through April 5. The menu includes courses such as swordfish roasted in parchment paper with roasted tomatoes, oil-cured olives and capers and herb-marinated tenderloin with garlic, red peppers and cipollini onions. Oh, and don't forget the black truffle mac 'n' cheese.

I was amazed at how versatile the wine was, as it showed different notes for the creamy porcini mushroom soup starter as well as the finishing lemon sorbet.

The five-course menu costs $49, with an additional $69 for the BelnerO pairing. For reservations, call (813) 830-9433.

STEP TO THE BAR

Tuesday, I'll be attending the debut of Burger King's first Whopper Bar at Universal CityWalk in Orlando.

Yes, I walk in the fast lane.

The much-anticipated restaurants will be miniature, modernized versions of Burger King's regular outlets.

Details about the new concept have shifted in recent months. The Wall Street Journal reported that it will have one-third the items of a typical Burger King, including about six to eight varieties of the Whopper. The bars also will feature more grab-and-go items to cater to walk-up traffic, possibly including salads.

A T-shirt that arrived last week with a press kit announcing the debut cryptically hinted at a raft of options available on the bar, including parmesan peppercorn sauce, burger relish, jalapenos, bourbon sauce, "angry sauce" and "angry onions."

You can read the updates I'll be filing on Twitter throughout the day at www.twitter.com/TheStew.

PADDY PARTY

In time for St. Patrick's Day, Whole Foods and NoHo Bistro are partnering for a food and beer pairing event at the restaurant, 1714 N. Armenia Ave.

Chris Lovett of Whole Foods will walk participants through new beers and uses for beer in recipes as he pairs beers and cider with tapas-style plates by the chefs at NoHo.

Pairings will include Apple-Blackberry Cobbler with a stout cheese biscuit with Murphy's Irish Stout.

The event is $30 per person; a percentage of the proceeds will be donated by NoHo to the Pediatric Cancer Foundation. For reservations, call (813) 514-0691.

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