March 27, 7:00 P.M. A Tribute to James Beard: Featuring Chefs Larry and Marc Forgione
March 27, 2024 07:00 PM
Celebrate James Beard and His Friendship with the Forgiones for Platform’s One-Year Anniversary
25 11th Ave, New York, NY 10011, USA
In 1986, Larry Forgione, along with several culinary icons—Julia Child, Peter Kump, Barbara Kafka, and others—formed what is now known as the James Beard Foundation to maintain the legacy of the “Dean of American Cookery,” and their friend, James Beard. Inspired by his mentor and friend, chef Forgione forged a path that centered on, as the New Yorker described, “American American cooking.” His celebrated New York restaurant, An American Place, only opened two years before Beard’s death, but was soon lauded for its cuisine that forever changed the way we eat today.
Forgione shared that passion with his son, Marc, who started working at An American Place at just 16 years old. Marc went on a culinary journey that took him through some of France and New York’s most notable kitchens and eventually opened his eponymous TriBeCa hotspot. He’s since taken over New York’s beloved Peasant and recently opened Trattoria One Fifth where he focuses primarily on his Italian influences. (He has also gained national attention for his time on Food Network’s Iron Chef.)
Together this father-son chef duo will create a menu inspired by their deeply personal connection to James Beard, showcasing the foods Beard used to enjoy himself, and his tremendous impact on American cuisine. Please join us for this unforgettable dinner and storytelling, shared by chef Larry and Marc Forgione.
Dining Table $250 | Internal Chefs Counter $275 | External Chefs Counter $200
MENU
Hors d’Oeuvre
Warm Saratoga Chips
Long Island Escargot with Persillade
Scrambled Eggs in the Shell with Shad Roe
Crispy New England Whitebait with Smoked Onion Rémoulade
Jim's Salt and Pepper Lamb Riblets
Dehours & Fils Grande Réserve Brut NV
Dinner
Yukon Potato Rolls with Cultured Butter
Cedar Planked Wild Salmon Crudo with Orange–Radish Salad and Red Pepper “Hot-ish" Sauce
Ryme Cellars Vermentino 2023
Vermont Crowley Cheese Agnolotti with Morels, Baby White Asparagus, and American Country Ham
Grgich Hills Estate Fumé Blanc 2020
Native Buffalo with Jim's Hash Browns, Sweet Peas, Young Onion, and Parsley Salad
Pax Sonoma Hillside Syrah 2022
Dessert
Apple Pandowdy with Whiskey Sauce
Mrs. Beard's Wild Huckleberry Shortcake
Wines generously donated by Skurnik Wines & Spirits, Polaner Selections, and Wilson Daniels.
About Larry Forgione:
Larry Forgione, hailed as “the godfather” of America cuisine, is responsible for changing the way Americans eat today by embracing the virtues of our national cuisine and using only seasonal, local ingredients, beginning the entire “farm-to-table” movement. After graduating from the Culinary Institute of America and then working in some of the best kitchens in Europe and America, Forgione opened An American Place in 1983, earning three stars in the New York Times.
The Culinary Institute of America has named him “Chef of the Year” and the James Beard Foundation honored him with the “America’s Best Chef” award in 1993. His American Place cookbook was also honored with a James Beard Foundation award for “Best American Cookbook” in 1996. Forgione’s accomplishments have also been recognized by numerous publications including Life Magazine, who named him one of the “50 Most Influential Baby Boomers.” Forgione has provided his unique expertise in culinary consulting for numerous hotels and restaurant groups and was most recently the co-founder and Culinary Director of the Conservatory for American Food Studies, located at the Greystone Campus of the Culinary Institute of America in Napa Valley, CA.
About Marc Forgione:
Marc Forgione is an acclaimed chef and the owner of three iconic restaurants in New York City: the wood-fired Italian destination, Peasant, his eponymous Restaurant Marc Forgione in Tribeca, and Trattoria One Fifth in Greenwich Village. In 2022 Forgione partnered with hospitality firm Apres Cru to launch a new vision: R.E.S.P.E.C.T. Hospitality, to oversee his current restaurants as well as new projects. Forgione has always lived and worked by the mantra of “respect" as it touches so many aspects of hospitality, from ingredients to history to employees to the art of service and more. His hope is that respect will become contagious.
Hospitality is in Forgione’s blood. He began his culinary career at the age of 16, joining his father, Larry Forgione (known as “the godfather” of American Cuisine), in the kitchen at the celebrated restaurant An American Place. After earning a business degree then working at some of the finest restaurants in New York City and France, Forgione opened his first highly-acclaimed restaurant and now Tribeca-favorite, Restaurant Marc Forgione. Forgione prides the restaurant as being an approachable place "that people walk by and are compelled to enter and where the ingredients are the star." The restaurant earned esteemed accolades such as consecutive Michelin stars, a two-star review from the New York Times, and being named “Key Newcomer” by Zagat . As the chef and owner, Forgione was awarded "Star Chefs Rising Star of the Year.”
In 2020, Forgione took over the iconic Nolita destination Peasant, the wood-fired Italian restaurant that has been a downtown New York City fixture for more than 20 years. Originally opened by chef Frank DeCarlo in 1999 in Nolita, where Forgione was a longtime resident, Peasant was his favorite restaurant. When Frank was ready to retire, he asked Forgione to take the restaurant over, and Forgione jumped at the chance of keeping the spirit of the longtime neighborhood favorite restaurant alive. Forgione’s menu is an ode to simple rustic wood-fired Italian cooking and uses seasonal, local, and thoughtfully sourced ingredients.
Trattoria One Fifth is the newest member of the Respect family. This restaurant is also in an iconic building with a rich restaurant history. Housemade pasta and a special pizza dough from Forgione are the stars of the menu, along with seasonally driven entrees and vegetables and some of the best gelato in the City from pastry chef Jami Callao.
Forgione is known for his role on Food Network as one of the seven Iron Chefs on Iron Chef America. He is also a partner of New York City’s Laotian hotspot Khe-Yo, and author of Marc Forgione: Recipes and Stories from the Acclaimed Chef and Restaurant. Donating his time to worthy charitable causes, Forgione acts as a Chef Ambassador for Chefs for Kids Cancer, City Harvest, and Feeding America.
Tickets to events held at Platform at Pier 57 by the James Beard Foundation cover the cost of food, education and a unique dining experience. Meals are prepared by culinary masters from all regions of the United States and around the world. Unless otherwise stated, alcoholic beverages are provided on a complimentary basis and are not included in the ticket price.
James Beard Foundation events permit guests age 21 years and older to attend events where alcoholic beverages are served.