One night, in a group that included chefs Donna, Richard, Jeff Buben (Vidalia and Bistro Bis), Todd Gray (Equinox) and Enzo Fargione (until last month at Barolo), they kicked back at Vidalia. According to Gray, as they ate and drank, they complained that people seemed to take their contributions for granted. At what point should they start to say no? There should be guidelines about what chefs need to participate, they agreed. Why not unify as a group to make their points and have more muscle?
And why not get together more often? "We should do it once a month," said Donna.
One From the Chefs' Club
Braised Veal Shanks
With Vegetables
4 to 6 servings
This hearty entree from Galileo's chef-owner Roberto Donna is typical of the family-style food the chefs serve each other at meetings of the Chefs' Club About Nothing.
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 pounds veal shanks (preferably cut 1 1/2 inches thick)
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
14.5-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, undrained
2 1/2 cups water
3/4 cup dry white wine
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh basil
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 medium carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
15-ounce can white beans, drained (may substitute 2 cups cooked dried beans)
2 cups lightly packed fresh spinach, cut into wide strips
In a pot over medium heat, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil. Working in batches, add the shanks, being careful not to crowd them, and cook, turning as necessary, until browned on all sides. Transfer to a plate; repeat with the remaining shanks, adding the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the pan if needed.
Add the onion and garlic to the oil remaining in the pot and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally and scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pot, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their liquid, using a spoon to break them up. Add the water, wine, basil, thyme, salt and pepper and stir to combine. Return the shanks to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 60 to 75 minutes, or until the meat is tender.
Transfer the shanks to a plate; set aside until cool enough to handle. Remove the meat from the shanks and return it to the pot; discard the bones. Add the carrots to the pot, cover and continue to cook until the carrots are almost tender but still a little crisp, about 5 minutes. Add the beans and spinach and cook just until heated through.
Recipe tested by Jill Grisco; send questions to food@washpost.com
Per serving (based on 4): 613 calories, 64 gm protein, 37 gm carbohydrates, 20 gm fat, 210 mg cholesterol, 4 gm saturated fat, 868 mg sodium, 11 gm dietary fiber
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Ever since, they have -- at Friday-evening bashes that start around 11:30, center around food and drink, and finish at 2 or 3 in the morning. The club has no formal meeting place -- no dues or official membership -- they meet at their restaurants. One chef plays host and provides the food. The others are encouraged to bring a bottle or two of wine, and as well as other members of their staffs.
This month the group met at Donna's Galileo, where platters of Italian cold cuts were followed by plates of bollito misto, an Italian dish of mixed boiled meats -- that night a capon, a cotechino sausage, a veal head, veal shanks, pig's feet and a brisket -- served with two sauces and a fruit-laden Italian mustard.
"We do home-style food, not show-off food," says Donna, who hosted this month's get-together. "That was clear from the beginning. We're there to relax."
As the club has grown, however, there's usually a little business to conduct; this month, it was deciding who would cook what for a six-course dinner at the James Beard House in New York.
Given the late hour and abundant wine, final decisions about anything are often hard to come by. But some of the chefs persevere, in particular Donna and Kaz Okochi, the chef and owner of Kaz Sushi Bistro. "Everybody has his own opinion," says Okochi. "But somebody has to say 'Okay, this is what we're going to do.' Roberto is very busy, and I have a little more time."
One noticeable characteristic of the chefs' club is, with one exception, the absence of female members. Not that they aren't welcomed, say Donna and Okochi. But what they describe as inevitable guy talk might be a barrier.
Ris Lacoste, executive chef at 1789 and the only woman in the group, was asked to join for years before she agreed. But her hesitation wasn't because she is a woman. "Friday night is not my best time," she says. "I'm just exhausted." She agreed to join after cooking at a charity event one night last year; she realized she loved getting to see so many of her colleagues.
Does she feel out of place? Not at all. "I'm a chef, and this is a chefs' club," she says.
There are other groups that provide a sense of community to chefs in the area: There's an informal one known as the Family that meets on Saturday nights, and is smaller and younger than this chefs' club. Some of that group's members also belong to the chefs' club. There's the local chapter of the Council of Independent Restaurants of America. And there is the local chapter of Women Chefs & Restaurateurs.
The Chefs' Club About Nothing stands out with its boistrous collegiality. And its next project is a very personal one. One of its members, Jim Swenson, executive chef at the National Press Club's Fourth Estate restaurant, and his wife, Karin, have a 2-year-old son who has been diagnosed with autism.
"When you catch it early, there's hope that the child can lead a normal life," says Swenson, who shared his concerns with the chefs' club. The group immediately responded by planning a series of fundraising dinners for the Swenson family. The first one is May 16 at the Park Hyatt Hotel, 24th and M streets NW.
"The club's reaction was humbling," says Swenson.
"We do this all the time for other people," says Donna. "Why not do it for one of our own?"
The fundraising dinner will include a cooking class at each table for 10 by one of the chefs, for $150 per person. For details or to make a reservation, send
an e-mail to swensonevent@galileodc.com.
