Rockefeller Center Gains a Renewed Appeal Through the Assortment of Chef Talent

Rockefeller Center Undergoes a Food-Centric Renovation

Rockefeller Center has been one of the highlights of New York City for years. However, in recent years, it had somewhat lost its charm. While the major establishments around it, like the glass-and-steel luxury mall Hudson Yards and the Chelsea Market, gathered popular momentum, Rock Center seemed to lag behind.

The Reboot

So, the head of Rockefeller Center, EB Kelly, decided to give it a reboot using food as the main catalyst. With the main thought behind the reboot being, ‘If New Yorkers aren’t eating here, neither will tourists,’ she joined hands with Tishman Speyer, who gave it a destination-dining-worthy renovation.

The Key to Success

To begin with, Speyer started by tapping into one of New York’s strongest creative assets: the chefs. He started building a collection of New York based chefs who wanted to contribute to building the particular neighborhood and wanted to explore the unknown that went along with the re-imagination of this iconic building. Counted among the Art Deco jewels of the city, the Rockefeller Center started its journey of transformation at the hands of the developer, who embraced the varying visions of each professional chef. As per Riad Nasr and Lee Hanson, Speyer focused on these visions to build the new style for the neighborhood.

A Promising Future

A Promising Future

Once the revamped Rockefeller Center was reopened for the public, its future seemed strong, with the chefs attracting the elite from across New York for food and drinks after work. At this point in time, the Rock Center is now home to cuisines like tuna bibimbap, dressed Dungeness crab, chicken liver tajarin, and more. This has been possible through the accumulation of chef talent, including Lee Hanson, Riad Nasr, Clare de Boer, Annie Shi (Jupiter), Ignacio Mattos (Lodi), Junghyun Park (Naro), Jess Shadbolt, Greg Baxtrom (Five Acres), Walker Stern (Le Rock), JJ Johnson (Fieldtrip), and Eli and Max Sussman (Samesa).

These Hacks Will Help Crush Ice at Home

If you’re somebody who entertains regularly, it’s important to have some crushed ice on hand. This item enhances most of your drinks like mint juleps, iced teas and coffees, and many other types of beverages and mocktails. The easiest way to get them is to use an ice maker or a food processor. But if you don’t have either of these items, worry not. Here are four methods that you can use to make crushed ice at home.

A Large Spoon and a Tea Towel

The only things you need for this are some ice cubes, a large spoon, a tea towel, and also a healthy dose of upper arm strength. Start by taking some ice cubes and placing them in the middle of the tea towel. Wrap the tea towel around the ice cubes tightly and twist it, so that the ice cubes don’t escape their confines. Then take the big spoon, smash the cubes into crushed pieces, and voila, you have crushed ice at home.

Sealable Bag and a Rolling Pin

This is a great way to not only get some crushed ice but also deal with some stored anger. For this, take a plastic ziplock or a freezer-safe silicone bag and fill it halfway with ice. Place the water-filled bag in the freezer. When the water turns to ice, take it out and using a rolling pin, turn it into crushed ice. Roll the pin back and forth until you get the desired consistency of ice.

Lewis Bag and a Mallet

A Lewis Bag is an ice bag that is made especially for the bartender to crush ice. The sturdy canvas pouch is filled with ice and then pounded on by the mallet to crush it. The cloth absorbs the excess water, making sure there is limited drink dilution when you add the crushed ice. Also, it’s the opted choice of bartenders as it gives them more control over the size and consistency of the ice.

Cocktail Shaker and a Muddler

These are items in most homes that have a bar in them. And even if you don’t have one, these tools are a great addition to your host equipment. Add the ice to the shaker, making sure that you only add small amounts at a time. Using a muddler, press down on the ice to crush it into pieces. So don’t combine this time with attempts to crush other ingredients like herbs or cherries as these delicate items are not an ideal companion for the hard ice.