Garlic, butter and determination beat Bobby Flay
How do you beat Bobby Flay in a head-to-head cook-off? Go heavy on the butter and garlic and don't skimp on the salt and pepper.
Aggressive seasoning is just one of the secrets we gleaned from Newark chef Robbie Jester last week as we watched him cook the decadent shrimp scampi dish that was declared better than one made by Flay on a July episode of the celebrity chef's Food Network culinary competition show, "Beat Bobby Flay."
It probably didn't hurt that Jester, executive chef at the Stone Balloon Ale House, also served his scampi over a bed of homemade pasta. He learned to make pasta while attending the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, and perfected the skill during his years working at Piccolina Toscana in Wilmington's Trolley Square.
Jester's entire dish, including the pasta, came together just under 45 minutes. Three critics who blind tasted it on the TV program liked the 31-year-old's combination of flavors much more than the scampi Flay served over polenta, which was apparently a little too gritty.
"I'm pretty sure his polenta still isn't cooked," joked Jester, who more than six months after the cook-off still can't stop the smack talk.
But the insults are to be expected and savored. The only prize in beating Flay is lifelong bragging rights. So: In your face, Flay.
"When he lost, he was not a happy man," Jester says. "He was very gracious and nice to me. But he wants to win. That's no joke."
Jester might not have received any money for winning, but he says his TV appearance on the popular Food Network show, as well as past stints on "Guy's Grocery Games," another Food Network cooking competition program he appeared on three times, has been great for business at the Stone Balloon Ale House restaurant in downtown Newark.
He says he has seen an 89 percent increase in the amount of business from 2015. Jester says he used to sell maybe five to six dishes of shrimp scampi a night. Now, he's averaging 30 or more plates.
"I'm really surprised how much weight that Bobby Flay's show and name has," he says. Customers have traveled from Philadelphia and Maryland to eat the scampi at the Stone Balloon and love to talk to Jester about beating Flay.
"It's a big deal and I don't take it lightly for a second. It's been really cool and it's been really nuts. You have the people who love Bobby Flay and you have the people who love to see him get beaten."
It's not just strangers who have congratulated Jester. He says he has heard from many members of the Delaware restaurant industry and he got a heartfelt note from his former Toscana boss Dan Butler that brought tears to his eyes.
End of an era? What Hotel du Pont sale means
Fans cheer as Stone Balloon chef beats Bobby Flay
Jester, who has lost 30 pounds since he appeared on the Food Network program, says the win has opened other doors. He has been invited to many culinary events, including the Southern Delaware Wine Food & Music Festival where, on Oct. 8, Jester will compete in a chef throwdown against Doug Ruley, vice president/chef of SoDEL Concepts. The $75 festival, from noon to 4 p.m., will be held at the grounds of Independence Hall at Samuel Adams Circle in Millsboro. Visit www.sodelfest.com for information.
Customers can order Jester's winning dish any time they want. The chef has actually had the scampi on the menu at the 115 E. Main St. restaurant in downtown Newark for several months.
Cavatelli shrimp scampi ($21) is Jester's version of sauteed shrimp with toasted garlic, fresh basil, and juicy, fresh tomatoes in a luscious lemon-butter-white wine sauce. He serves the rich sauce and tender shrimp over hand-rolled herb cavatelli, and sprinkles the top with a crunchy garlic bread crumble.
For several months, the scampi dish has been called, somewhat mysteriously, "a Chef Robbie competition winner" with no other explanation. But the menu wording will soon change and reflect Jester's win over Flay.
Jester filmed his episode of "Beat Bobby Flay," known as "Dancing with the Devil," in a New York City studio back in December 2015. Due to contracts he signed at the Food Network, he couldn't shout about his win until the episode aired on July 14.
It has been shown repeatedly on the Food Network – the most recent airing was Sept. 1 – and can be viewed On Demand.
Beating Bobby Flay isn't exactly easy. Flay, a skilled chef/restaurateur and Food Network fixture since 1994, doesn't lose often. His recent mad skills have included beating an Indian chef during a curry challenge and topping a chef who is so well-known for her tortelloni she put a photo of the dish on the cover of one of her cookbooks.
What does it take to win? Jester says he came down to technique, quick-thinking and confidence.
Flay's longtime friend and fellow Food Network colleague Giada De Laurentiis has said competitors facing Flay, whose New York restaurants have received two- and three-star ratings from The New York Times, need to really know the dish they're making.
"What I think is important to remember is there are a couple of things that are not his strong points. One would be pasta. Number two: desserts," De Laurentiis has said. "Those are the things he feels most uncomfortable with, that he has not mastered."
Jester says before the cook-off began he did joke with Flay that he was thinking of choosing to make a dessert. Instead, he turned to his other strength – shrimp scampi, a dish he first learned to make at age 12 from his late father, who was also a chef.
Jester says his cavatelli is made with a blend of semolina and flour. It includes chives and parsley, salt and pepper and some water. There's no egg or oil in the mix. He kneads the dough for about 8 minutes before rolling it out. Jester also likes to cook his pasta in water that's flavored with both salt and pepper.
To make the shrimp, he says that a pan has to be preheated over high heat before the shellfish is adding. "Hear that?" he says as the shrimp sizzles and makes popping noises as soon as it hits the heat. "That's the perfect sound you want to hear."
This isn't exactly a low-cal dish. Jester's shrimp scampi sauce has more garlic and butter then you probably want to know about. "You're making a beurre blanc," he says, using the French term for a classic white butter sauce made with wine, an acidic ingredient, like lemon juice, and chunks of cold butter. It proved to be a winning combination.
Flay told Jester, off-camera, that he wanted a rematch.
"Who knows if they [the Food Network] will call or not?" Jester says. "I would love the opportunity to go back."
Dishes that segue from summer into autumn
Dog House, Charcoal Pit founder Louis Sloan dies at 86
Contact Patricia Talorico at (302) 324-2861 or ptalorico@delawareonline.com and on Twitter @pattytalorico
Robbie Jester's At-Home Cavatelli Shrimp Scampi
Cooking isn’t always an exact science. Tailor the dish to your own tastes.Adapted from the shrimp scampi recipe Jester used on the Food Network TV program "Beat Bobby Flay."
About 1 pound cooked cavatelli pasta
1/4 to 1/2 cup olive oil
About 2 pounds extra-large or jumbo shrimp, peeled, deveined, rinsed and dried
1 cup halved grape tomatoes
About 7 cloves chopped fresh garlic
1/2 to 1 cup favorite white wine
1/2 stick butter (more or less depending on your taste), cold and cut into cubes
1 lemon (you might need more depending on your taste)
A few handfuls of fresh arugula
Salt and pepper
Dry rosemary garlic parmesan bread crumbs, or you can just crush our favorite croutons if you’d like
Start by placing a large sauté pan over high heat. Pour in the olive oil and and allow to heat for several seconds. Once the oil is just barely smoking add the shrimp. Once the shrimp are turning pink on one side, add the cherry tomatoes and garlic. The garlic should cook until it is beginning to change color, but not fully brown. Flip the shrimp over and add the white wine. Toss in the cooked pasta and allow it to cook and the wine to reduce by half. Now, reduce the heat and start adding the butter and squeeze in the fresh lemon juice. Swirl the pan by tilting it in a circular motion with your wrist so that the sauce emulsifies. Taste and adjust the seasonings, add more butter and lemon juice if needed. Add the arugula and toss gently. Taste the sauce and season with salt and pepper. Taste and adjust the seasonings again. Spoon the scampi into the serving bowl and top it with garlic parmesan bread crumbs. Makes 4 servings.