Comments (0) Best Mashup of Two Fad-Foods - 2008
Octopus and pork belly combo at Crush
Watching chefs pile fad-food on fad-food can lead to some amusing results. I admit, a pig's-head terrine with duck egg–yuzu emulsion and smoked-apple powder would certainly be au courant, but would you want to eat more than an oyster fork's worth of it? But some trend-foods do pair in surprisingly beautiful ways, mostly thanks to the skill of the chef. Scott Staples' gnocchi with oxtail ragu and deep-fried bone marrow at Quinn's Pub is one example. Even better, though, is the octopus and pork belly combo at Crush: A couple of braised octopus tentacles crisped up in pork fat take on all the lardy beauty of the redder meat, while the pork itself, having relinquished all of its self-basting lard during its slow-roast, comes out tender and rich. Order it as a dare, eat it as a lover.—Jonathan Kauffman
