Foodie Adventure: Hell’s Kitchen Winners Dinner

My girlfriend Rachel is engaged to a really cool dude. His name is Paul Nidermann and he was Hell’s Kitchen’s Season 9 Winner. After the show, he went to work at BLT Steak and is now the Executive Chef at SALT7 in Delray Beach.

SALT7 is a vibe – it’s a social club and modern steakhouse hybrid. Any time that my friends and I can support Rachel and Paul, we’re all very eager to come together and do so. On Thursday, August 1st, SALT7 hosted a Hell’s Kitchen Winner’s five-course wine dinner to kick off Delray’s Restaurant Week. Each chef prepared their own course and dessert is supplied by Two Fat Cookies.

Hell’s Kitchen Winners

  • Paul Nidermann – Season 9 Winner and SALT7’s Executive Chef
  • Kimberly Ryan – Season 16 Winner
  • Michelle Tribble – Season 17 Winner
  • LaTasha McCutchen – Season 13 Winner

It was a foodie adventure and I’m so glad I was able to experience it with my girlfriends Rachel, Michelle, and Denise. Here’s a recap of each course. Please remember that this isn’t a scratch and sniff. All photos were stolen from Rachel’s Instagram.

First Course

Chef Kimberly Ann Ryan prepared a baby heirloom tomato and watermelon salad paired with La Chapelle Gordonne Rosé. It was light and crisp along with a surprise of cucumber ice.

Second Course

Chef Paul treated me to my first foie gras and I was pleasantly surprised! He prepared a seared Hudson Valley foie gras “PB&J” style with toasted brioche, wild berry jam gastrique and a toasted peanut foam. This is was paired beautifully with Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc.

Third Course

First off, I am rarely the one to order fish off the menu. I’ll tell you right now, Chef LaTasha McCutchen’s pan roasted halibut with lobster succotash and citrus beurre blanc KNOCKED MY SOCKS OFF. She told us that she wanted to make succotash sexy and represent her Southern roots. It was delish paired with the Oyster Bay Chardonnay.

Fourth Course

A steak is normally where I gravitate to on the menu, but it’s usually not after 3 other delish courses. Chef Michelle Tribble prepared a citrus marinaded New York Strip with a jalapeño cream, corn polenta, chili braised cherry tomatoes, and grilled baby zucchini. This course was paired with a Folie a Deux Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.

Dessert Course

Two Fat Cookies is located next door to SALT7 and Paul has mentioned that it’s so difficult to work and smell brownies and cookies just wafting through the air all day. For this evening’s dinner, we enjoyed a white chocolate wild berry molten cake with Charles Lafitte Brut Prestige.

Are you hungry yet and sad you missed out? Don’t miss another event! SALT7 is often hosting experiences similar to this. If you need a partner to eat, drink, and be merry, holler at Sassy. The more the merrier! And you’d be surprised how much you can enjoy a menu curated and prepared by experts. It was quite marvelous and fun to test my tastebuds. Until the next one, cheers!

xx – Sassy