My Father’s Place returns with a culinary artist
When My Father’s Place opens its encore existence in Roslyn this week, club-goers will once again hear the groundbreaking music the venue became famous for staging—what fans might not expect is five-star food from a rock star caliber chef.
Swinging its doors open this Friday, June 29, My Father’s Place Lounge at the Roslyn Hotel returns in a new, intimate setting complete with a supper club and restaurant. And helming the kitchen for both will be executive chef Tomoyuki Kobayashi, a highly decorated and ambitious Japan-born and French-trained master of the culinary arts. It is Chef Tomo’s training and eclectic sensibilities that will separate My Father’s Place’s food from the stuff that’s served at similarly styled venues.
“I’m always ready to take any challenges that come my way, especially in the kitchen,” said Chef Tomo, who recently received a diploma from the prestigious Culinary Academy in France, the first ever Japanese chef to do so. “I didn’t know how legendary of a place My Father’s Place was, but when I learned about it I knew I wanted to take the venue and marry it together with beautiful food.”
When patrons enter My Father’s Place, they will be greeted by an elegant lobby area. At one side will be a high-end fine-dining restaurant—also curated by Chef Tomo—and on the other will be a 180-seat club/concert area, which brings accessible, but brilliantly prepared, cuisine to the music-loving masses. The chef said guests can expect upscale bar snacks simmered in his fun, creative style for a taste of gastro-pub approachability with a hint of succulent opulence.
While the restaurant will not go live until July 12 at the latest, the supper club will begin serving food and drinks to patrons as soon as the initial act hits that first chord.
“Some of the most fun is during the creation of the menu,” said the chef. “It’s all about food and ambition. What can I create that people will love to eat, but also excite them enough to come back again and again?”
While the final menu is still coming together, a few of the dishes club-goers can expect include Tiger Shrimp served with quinoa pilaf, roasted cherry tomatoes and petite peas touched with a herb-butter emulsion. Chef Tomo’s Tiger Shrimp dish is distinctively bold and sweet, with a firm texture—it adds up to a taste that some have dubbed “poor man’s lobster.”
Another dish set for its debut is piquillo peppers stuffed with beef short rib atop puréed celery root and a bright citrus emulsion. With much more flavor than a red bell pepper but without any harsh heat, the piquillo pepper is sweet and slightly tart, making it a perfect match for the rich combination of braised short rib and the amazing celery root purée that boasts all the comfort of mashed potatoes. The dish is finished with the chef’s very own stock—a heady, hearty concoction made from chicken stock, sweet soy and lemongrass.
Meanwhile, served alongside pomme frites is Chef Tomo’s classic cheeseburger. Fully dressed, the burger is served on an artisan bun with special sauce. Eaters can also expect salads, along with snacks and shareable plates. And for dessert, the chef indulges visitors with many, including warm, airy and delectably enticing French donuts—mini beignets served with white chocolate and Nutella dips.
The growing menu’s influences borrow from Chef Tomo’s long and accomplished history in the kitchen, where he first cut his teeth with world-renowned Chef Christian Delouvrier at Lespinasse in New York City before landing in spots such as Alain Ducasse at the Essex House and Asiate in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, also in the city. Soon after that, Chef Tomo joined the Poll Restaurant Group, becoming the corporate executive chef. This foray made him intimately familiar with the Gold Coast area, as did his time as executive chef at Louie’s Grill and Liquors.
But it’s Chef Tomo’s emergence at My Father’s Place that could prove to be his most ambitious culinary rock opera to date.
“There is so much joy for me in cooking and eating,” he said. “I want to bring that to people and I feel like this is the perfect place for people to get to know me and my food.”
My Father’s Place at the Roslyn Hotel is located at 1221 Old Northern Blvd. For tickets and more, call 516-625-2700 or visit www.myfathersplace.com.
