Chef Jamie Bissonnette’s 10 Favorite Things
The renowned charcuterie chef tells Urban Agenda Magazine the places and products he can’t live without.
By Sarah Emily Gilbert
Jamie Bissonette is a former vegan turned award-winning nose-to-tail chef. Needless to say, the restaurant owner of Toro NYC and Coppa and Toro of Boston, is a fascinating character full of irony, wit, and delicious recipes. Bissonnette’s whole career is based off of his desire to make seemingly disgusting or inedible things delicious. In fact, his favorite thing to confront in the kitchen is offal and other animal parts that are usually disposed of by other cooks.
For such an unconventional cook, there must be an unconventional cookbook to match. Thus, it comes as no surprise that Bissonnette released, The Charcuterie Cookbook: Exceptional Cured Meats to Make and Serve at Home. Yes, Bissonnette has managed to make pork kidneys and liver mousse so delectable that they have moved other offal lovers to recreate his recipes. With no shortage of interesting facts about himself, Urban Agenda wanted to see what Bissonnette’s has on his favorite things list. Below, the exploratory chef reveals his top destinations, go-to brands, and favorite snacks:
1. Flour Tortillas:
“I specifically like 10 inch flour tortillas because they roll up to a perfect snack and you can pretty much put anything into them. I always have them in all of my restaurants and my apartment.” http://amzn.to/1GJqtsj
2. Hijo Ameztoi Sparkling Rose Wine:
“I could drink Hijo Ameztoi Sparkling Rose Wine all the time. It’s from the Basque region of Spain. I crave it. The sight of it makes me salivate.”
3. Tabasco Sauce:
“I like it for the same reason. I crave it, and the sight of it makes me salivate.”
4. San Sebastian, Spain:
“ I love the wine. That’s where that sparkling wine I love is from. I love their style of Spanish eating where it’s a little bit often rather than meals. It’s just kind of grazing around a city all day long.”
http://www.sansebastianturismo.com/en/
5. Record Player:
“I love my record player because I’m a big record collector.”
6. Boston, MA:
“I love Boston. I mostly live in Boston, but I half live in New York, and Boston is just such a breath of fresh air for me because it’s more like a big town and less like a city to me, more neighborhood-y, and I just feel at home. “
7. Apple Products:
“I’m a sucker for Apple, I don’t know why. I won’t get the Apple Watch, but I have the desktop; I have the laptop; I have an iPad; I have an iPhone. It’s like I can’t get enough. It’s silly.”
8. Rag and Bone Clothing Brand:
“I love the brand Rag and Bone. I love their shirts. They fit me great and their boots too.”
9. Vince Clothing Brand:
"They make really nice clothes, but there’s a Vince store right outside my apartment in SoHo, so it’s also wicked convenient for me.”
10. Momofuku Brand:
“When someone says the word “brand”, what I always think of is someone I have a lot of respect for and that’s David Chang and the Momofuku brand. He’s a good friend. I respect him as a chef; I respect him as a business person, but as a visionary and what he’s done for the way the dining community is - I think the Momofuku brand is pretty amazing to give validity to casual, small-plate kind of eateries.”
