Weekly Chef And Menu Report: 02/13/15

National
Chef Katherine See has been appointed the new corporate executive chef of Au Bon Pain, which was named the healthiest chain restaurant by Grellin—a website that uses publicly available data on restaurants' food to determine and rank them based on healthy options, providing a "Grellin grade." Their updated winter menu (available through March 1), includes dishes like banana and Greek yogurt parfait, turkey and poached baby pear salad, and a revamped chocolate chip cookie.

Charleston
Lee Lee's Hot Kitchen will celebrate their one-year anniversary and the Chinese New Year this Thursday, February 19. The dishes have significance in the Chinese culture and represent good health, strong families and prosperity in the New Year. A few of the dishes offered will be nien gao (rice cake with pork and spinach), yu (fish), and xi xian cai (10 fragrant vegetables). Lee Lee's will also have a dancing lion performance, firecrackers, drink specials and other festive Chinese flare on hand. All items will be priced and ordered a la carte.

Cincinnati, Ohio
Last month, Orchids at Palm Court was awarded the AAA Five Diamond Award, making it the only restaurant in the state to have the prestigious award and one of just 63 in the country. Their menu rotates regularly, and their newest seasonal offerings include seared Hudson Valley foie gras with cranberry gelée, kumquat purée, and goats milk zeppole; shaved red wattle ham with piperade, marinated fennel, espelette, and pomegranates; and more.

New York
On Tuesday, February 17, the team at Grand Central Oyster Bar – Brooklyn is pulling out all the stops in celebration of Fat Tuesday. The Park Slope seafood restaurant has created a special menu for the day including gumbo, hush puppies, crawfish boils, poisson rouge courtbouillon, blackened catfish, seafood etouffee, and more. For lunch, they've added seafood po' boys, shrimp and grits, and other Cajun treats. At the bar, the cocktail menu will include Mint Juleps and Sazeracs, as well as Bourbon Street Hurricanes for $7 all day. They'll also host a masquerade contest for guests where the winner with the most creative Mardi Gras mask will receive a gift card to the restaurant.

This year, NYY Steak is serving a special treat for date night diners: Any couple ordering a bottle of wine or champagne will receive a voucher for two (2) tickets to a Yankees game in April (opening day is Monday, April 6—52 days to go!). Additionally, The Rock Center dining destination is also offering a 3 course prix fixe menu that includes dishes like blue bay mussels cooked in Brooklyn lager, red wine-braised shortribs served with Vermont cheddar and chive polenta, and a salted caramel sundae. The menu is priced at $100.00 per couple and includes an "All-Star Cocktail" to start.

Trumbull, Conn.
In commemoration of the 2015 Girl Scout Cookie season, Parallel Post's executive chef Chris Molyneux and pastry chef Madelyn Rendon teamed up to conceptualize and perfect recipes to best accentuate the unmatched sugar, chocolate, caramel, coconut and mint flavorings of select Girl Scout Cookies. Featured desserts will include the raspberry swirl cheesecake made with Trefoils® Girl Scout Cookies, trifle made with Samoas® Girl Scout Cookies, banana cream pie made with Do-Si-Dos® Girl Scout Cookies, and an ice cream sundae made with Thin Mints® Girl Scout Cookies.