Your family has been operating the San Pedro Fish Market for over 60 years, but the restaurant was a later addition to the business.

So why did the family decide to open the restaurant after the success of the fish market?

My uncle [Tommy Amalfitano] had this ambition to have the largest fish market in town since he was 15 years old. I think he just saw the restaurant as a natural progression because we were already selling some cooked seafood like crab and lobster. We’re Italian and everyone cooked, so I think he thought we could take some of those recipes from the family and turn it into a restaurant offering seafood.

Were there any challenges your family faced when opening the restaurant in 1982?

Did you have to make any changes in the first few years?

That [year] was the last time we had a major El Nino here in Southern California, and since all the seating on the new restaurant, 300 seats, was mostly outside, we almost went out of business the first year we opened.
Tommy was like “Well, this restaurant thing isn’t working out so well, and we can’t get people to sit outside because of the rain,” so he had to innovate. He started to look at what other restaurants were doing that seemed to be working and he brought some of those things into our restaurant.
What really became the most popular — that he sort of invented — was that if you see something in the showcase that you like, for an extra fee we’ll cook it for you and you can enjoy it here. In addition to what we have on the menus — clam chowder, fish and chips, swordfish sandwiches, some of the kind of typical seafood items — we let people create their own items.

Then Tommy noticed, in some of the Mexican food restaurants, they’re starting to serve something called fajitas. They add bell peppers, tomato, onion, and a seasoning. We can come up with a seasoning and get those veggies ourselves, adding red potatoes like they do on the East Coast. It just sort of evolved and became this really popular signature option that we’re known for.
If you Google Search “super tray” or “#supertray” and our name, you’ll see a video that was put out by Foodbeast in March that’s been seen 40 million times. that brought in a whole new demographic of customers that we didn’t know existed. So that’s been huge for us.

It seems like quite a turnaround from those initial years with the restaurant. And we know it’s not just Foodbeast that has recognized your success.

Can you tell us about some of your other TV appearances and how “Kings of Fish” came to be?

We’ve been on a lot of shows. We’ve been on “Food Paradise” on the Travel Channel. We’re actually going to be appearing on the Food Network soon in another series called “Best in Seafood,” and we were on the Food Network before and a couple of other channels.
What we noticed is that every time we’d be on, people would kind of call and check in and want to know where we were. It was really interesting how that happens.
I’m a firm believer in if you don’t tell your story, people make up your own version of it. And that started to really concern me because there were plans to develop the Los Angeles waterfront, where we are, and it’s kind of an iconic waterfront, but we weren’t in the plans! And we were like “Whoa, are you going to tear us down? We’ve been here for six decades.”

My brothers and I and my uncle, the family, were sitting there like you know, I don’t think they know who we are. We just took for granted that everybody knew our story, but we never talk about it. So we started experimenting with putting it out on social media in different ways, and people were really receptive to it.
We had a company come out and do a sizzle reel and they were shopping us around as a reality series — like “Duck Dynasty,” but with fish. It looked really good [but we decided to] just hire a company and produce our own content. We can control the narrative so people know who we are and what we do. Hopefully that would help us to maintain this location during the development, as well as build our retail products in the grocery stores.
And that’s exactly what it did.

Now we’re the anchor tenant for this development because now they see who we are and what we do. And our sales are so competitive. We are the second most-visited paid seaside attraction on the West Coast. Number one is Sea World. You’re entertaining people and they’re like “Hey, I didn’t know all these things about this business, we need to go back,” or “Hey, I saw this business or I saw this video and I wanted to check this place out.” It helped build sales for us. It helped secure our spot in the development. And it’s helped to open the door to new locations, so it’s been great all around. All kinds of new opportunities for us.
It’s weird: I’d read these comments [that] would say “Oh it must be some big corporation that owns that whole thing and they don’t care about anybody and they just take money and blah blah blah.” And I’m like, are you kidding? I don’t see my wife and three daughters on a holiday or a weekend for 10 years because I’m down here cutting and cooking fish. I’m just a guy [laughs].
Now, it’s different. Now, people are like, “Oh I saw that! I didn’t know you were the owner!” And people feel connected to you.

For a web series, “Kings of Fish” is very professional and well crafted. What’s your secret?

We use Von Skye Productions. Tim, who’s our executive producer, does “Bar Rescue” and “Iron Chef,” and he brings in guys that also do “Wicked Tuna” and “Deadliest Catch.” They know how to make food look really good, but they also understand drama and story arc.
You know, you’ve got to have conflict and you’ve got to have a resolution. And there’s all that rising action in between that they make a living on. [But] if we go to TV, the kind of drama that a network’s going to require is not the kind of drama that we want to be in. We didn’t want to be cat-fighting and stabbing one another in the back and storming off. We wanted it to be lighter and fun —what we really are like and not what the network wants us to be like. So now we can control the story and produce the return that we want.

Now that they’ve gotten to know your family, your fans must be excited about the new season of “Kings of Fish.”

For those of us who are about to be hooked too, can you tell us what to expect in season four?

The next episodes are going to be released two at a time because we’re trying to push people over more towards YouTube and less on Facebook. We don’t really have the presence there that we’d want to have.
But the storylines are going to be around how we’re going to open these three new restaurants. We didn’t plan to, but we don’t know how to not do that. Because even though we’re going to be the anchor on the redevelopment, there’s so many things that could still go wrong. And we’re concerned it could affect sales. So we’ve got to do this expansion.

We’ve got family growing. We’re busting at the seams! We’re shutting down freeways on the weekends. We’re creating problems with the police and the community. So, we’re looking for ways that we could expand and keep creating jobs for family, but we don’t have the money to do it.
[The new season is] just going to be really focused on “How are you guys going to manage to finance three restaurants that you don’t have the money to pay for? And deal with the stress of it.”
Want to learn more about San Pedro Fish Market’s plans for expansion and how they’re planning to keep the business running for the next generation? Check out part two of our interview with Mike Ungaro!
In the meantime, check out the latest in industry news with our free eBook “Restaurant Trends in 2018” today!

The post The Kings of Fish: How San Pedro Fish Market and Restaurant Made It Big appeared first on Rewards Network.

But now not only does America have its own take on pizza, it has lots of different takes on pizza. Everywhere you go in the US you’ll find a different regional version of one of America’s favorite foods.

New York

One of the most well-known types on this list, New York style pizza is known for being thin, wide, and easy to fold over. Its dough is hand-tossed until thin and topped with tomato sauce and a thin layer of shredded mozzarella cheese (although obviously other toppings can be added over the mozzarella). It’s cooked in a deck oven to get that softer crust, making it perfect for folding. Then the pizza is sliced into wide pieces. Whether grabbing a slice after bar hopping or running out for one at lunch, New Yorker’s love their pizza.

New Jersey

What could possibly be the difference between a New York and New Jersey style pizza? A whole lot, especially if you ask a New Yorker or New Jersey native! Both a thin-crusts, pieces cut wide to be eaten by hand on-to-go. But the key difference is what happens when you fold your slice to take that first bite. New York style pizza reportedly owes its suppleness to the water in the city, holding its pliability without cracking. But New Jersey style gives you a nice crackle when you fold it, owing to the stone oven in which it’s cooked.

Chicago

While it’s one of many deep-dish style pizzas in the US, Chicago style pizza is probably the best known deep-dish. It’s the one that immediately comes to mind for many because it’s just that iconic. Every Chicago pizza place from Pizzeria Uno to Giordano’s has its own deep-dish crust recipe, but generally, it’s made from either wheat or semolina flour to give it a yellowish color when baked (and Lou Malnati’s has its famous butter crust). It’s pressed into a round, steel pan before adding cheese, meat and vegetables, and then the tomato sauce and sliced tomatoes — yes, in that order.

After baking, the pizza is sliced right at the table; this is to avoid the tomato sauce and oils from the toppings to soak into the crust before you can enjoy it. If you’ve ever gotten Chicago style delivered and wondered why you had to cut the pizza yourself, that’s why!

St. Louis

For St. Louis style pizza, you’ve got to start with an unleavened dough. This creates the thin, cracker-like crust that is key to a good St. Louis pizza. Tomato sauce is added, and then the special St. Louis cheese blend known as provel — white cheddar, Swiss, and provolone. After it’s baked, the pizza is cut party-style, aka into squares instead of pie slices.

Detroit

Detroit style pizza is deep-dish like Chicago’s, but it’s a very different take from their Midwest sibling. Detroit pizza is made in a square or rectangle tin pan, and the middle of the crust is nearly even with the edges. The dough itself is light and porous, similar to Sicilian dough methods. When cooked, it’s crispy on the bottom and edges but light and soft on the inside.

Like Chicago pizza, the toppings and cheese (traditionally Wisconsin brick cheese, not mozzarella) go on before the sauce, protecting the dough from getting soggy. That’s why this pizza is sometimes called “Detroit Red Top”!

New Haven

Based in New Haven, Connecticut, this brick oven cooked pizza (or “apizza,” as New Haven-style restaurants call it) has its roots in Neapolitan-style pizza but is a delicacy all on its own. New Haven uses a long cold fermentation process for the dough, and the oven gets the pizza nice and charred. A “tomato pie” skips the cheese, and most New Haven pizzerias will treat mozzarella as a topping on its own. Another variation is their white clam pizza, which combined clams, garlic, and cheese.

California

For California style pizza, it’s less about the dough (hand-tossed) or the sauce (usually tomato), but all about the toppings. This pizza leans into the cuisine of the west coast. The flavor profiles can vary wildly, it’s quail eggs or goat cheese and caramelized onions or duck sausage or lobster or smoked salmon, capers, and crème Fraiche. But the focus is always on quality ingredients and a unique pizza eating experience.

Want to explore the true range of Mexican food in America? We have your essential guide:

The post That’s Amore: American Pizza Styles and Why We Love Them All appeared first on Rewards Network.

But with women across multiple professions managing these challenges, not to mention the rising influence of women wine consumers, why don’t we don’t see more women wine professionals influencing what we’re drinking?

Outdated perceptions about wine, including who drinks it and who sells it, may be skewing the field toward men but this view might not last much longer. If market and consumer trends are any indication, the wine industry is headed for a significant image make-over.

The Changing Faces of Wine

There certainly isn’t any doubt that women wine professionals are as capable as their male counterparts. But even though the numbers of women working in wine are increasing, antiquated perceptions of who is (or should be) your sommelier or beverage director still persist, both among employers and customers. More often than not, that perception is still of a man, probably white, catering to other men with big expense accounts.

The lingering assumption that there’s always a man behind the wine list is not only outdated, it also doesn’t represent the majority of customers actually drinking wine. Research from the Wine Market Council indicates that women comprise 57% of wine drinkers in the U.S., and a stunning 83% of total wine purchases.

Women are also driving demand for different varieties of wine, led in part by millennials, who already account for 36% of wine drinkers. Millennials have more adventurous palates, and drink wines from not just from California, but also from Oregon, Washington, and New York. They are also more likely to try bottles from lesser known areas, such as Greece, South Africa, and South America.

This more open approach indicates that millennials are also less likely to hang on to old stereotypes about wine, including who best represents the industry or who should be drinking what.

More than a Matter of Taste

Certainly, the wine industry is not the first male-dominated profession with women as the primary consumers. The fashion industry is full of men who are lauded for their women’s designs. But consider, for a moment, how the industry might look with more women wine professionals front and center.

A change in attitude and approach toward customers might be one difference. While undoubtedly extremely qualified, women will more often emphasize dialogue with the customer, rather than highlight their credentials as a wine authority. There may be more listening to customer preferences and goals for the meal, and more back-and-forth discussion on wine choices. By contrast men, who also take into account customer preferences, are more likely to demonstrate their vast knowledge and tell the customer directly what to drink.

Differences in how men and women view and taste wine could also influence customer recommendations. Men more often gravitate toward big names and flavors, matching preferences for strong flavor profiles. Women, on the other hand, are thought to have more sensitive palettes than men and the ability to recall what they’ve tasted much faster. This could lead to a more nuanced understanding of wine and ultimately, more finely tailored recommendations and higher customer satisfaction.

How Restaurants Can Support Women in Wine

First and foremost, publicly support women wine professionals, especially if they work in your restaurant! This might seem obvious but when facing inappropriate or critical comments from a customer (“Can I speak to the wine guy?”), the authority of female employees can be undercut by deferring to the customer. If you have a professional, competent woman in the job (and we’re guessing you do!), make it clear to your customers and staff that she is there do her job, and will do it well.

Foster mentorship for women who are interested in wine. Networks for women in the industry are stronger, and a growing number of women are seeking out leadership roles in the industry, both as managers and owners. Encourage women to meet with these professionals on a regular basis.

Likewise, encourage continuing professional development, such as sponsoring wine certification courses or arranging special staff tastings, to broaden knowledge and deepen skill sets. These opportunities should go beyond wine, to include the business foundations of the industry.

Supportive actions like these signal to women entering the industry that they have a viable career path, combining not just in-depth knowledge and tasting skills, but also business and customer savviness. The more support women receive from other industry professionals, the more likely we’ll see women not only as an integral part of the wine industry, but also as leaders and changemakers.

The post Sharing the Bottle: Supporting Women Wine Professionals appeared first on Rewards Network.

Some cities have a thriving BYO culture such as Philadelphia, where strict licensing procedures and a high tax on alcohol has prompted many restaurants to let customers bring their own wine. In other areas, such as San Francisco, proximity to local wineries encourages restaurants to be more open to BYO due to popular demand.

Even if BYO isn’t the norm, many restaurants will allow customers to bring a personal bottle, usually for a fee to cover the cost of opening and serving your wine. Depending on the restaurant, corkage fees can be as little as $10 or upwards of $50 or more, though $20-$35 seems to be the median range. In cities that embrace BYO, some restaurants will even have corkage free days. Whether you’re a BYO regular or new to the term, below are a few considerations to keep in mind about corkage for both customers and restaurants.

BYO Considerations for Customers

Call the restaurant ahead of time to find out their BYO policy. This is not only considerate, but it also gives the restaurant a heads up if you’ll need special glassware or plan to bring several bottles. This is also a good time to find out how much the corkage fee is and if there are any stipulations, such as a bottle limit or not bringing a wine that’s already on the restaurant’s list. You might also learn that BYO is not legally permitted in that state, such as Delaware, Ohio, or Wisconsin, in which case your call will have saved you from bringing the bottle, only to find you can’t legally enjoy it.

Offer your server, sommelier, or beverage director a taste of your wine. Presumably, you’ve brought a bottle that is both special and not on the restaurant’s list, so they’ll likely be interested to know how it tastes. They’ll be appreciative of the nod to their profession and they might discover something they love!

Don’t be cheap with the bottle you bring! It’s disrespectful to both the restaurant and the professionals who work there, implying that they don’t know how to do their job and that you don’t know how to appreciate their work. Depending on the restaurant’s corkage fee, bringing a cheap bottle won’t necessarily save you much in the end. A good rule of thumb is to never bring a bottle that costs less than the least expensive bottle on a restaurant’s wine list.

Don’t argue about the amount of the corkage fee. It’s true that some restaurants purposely charge an exorbitant fee to discourage customers from bringing their own bottle, but it’s at the restaurant’s discretion to allow BYO or not. Restaurants are also considering their investment of time, effort, and money into putting together a great wine list that complements their menu.

BYO Considerations for Restaurants

Don’t make a customer feel guilty for bringing their own wine. It sets a bad tone for the customer’s meal and could ultimately reflect poorly on the restaurant. While honoring the customer’s request, also consider highlighting interesting bottles on the wine list that may have been overlooked.

Closely consider your beverage mark-ups, and whether your wine list is offering something customers wouldn’t normally find in a store. If customers consistently see high mark-ups on average, mass-produced bottles as if they are hard wines to come by, don’t be surprised if more customers bring their own bottles.

Make sure your staff knows your restaurant’s corkage policy and can explain it to customers. If questions about corkage don’t arise very often, it’s certainly understandable that your staff may need to seek clarification. At a minimum, they should be aware of the concept and whether or not your restaurant will allow BYO.

Protect your tips. Remind your servers that it’s not enough to just be OK with a customer bringing their own wine. They need to be as attentive about catering to that situation as any other. Customers may perceive that their level of service is decreased if they have to repeatedly ask for a corkscrew or extra glasses or a bucket of ice. And if they feel like the service is less than normal, the amount of tipping will surely follow.

The post Corkage: What to Know When You Bring Your Own Wine to a Restaurant appeared first on Rewards Network.

What follows are descriptions of 20 different cuts of pure beef you’re likely to see described on a local restaurant menu. Vegans need not apply (but rest assured, we have you covered too).

Bonanza cut

Just conceived this year in a scientist’s lab at the University of Nevada, the Bonanza cut is traditionally one that gets tossed in with the spare cuts to be ground. However, this quarter-moon shaped cut — left on the ribs after the flank steak is cut away — rivals the filet mignon for juiciness, marbling, and tenderness. It’s a small, but mighty addition to the high-end cuts chefs are always on the lookout for.

Brisket

Brisket is generally a larger slab of meat cut from the breast of the cow that benefits from longer periods of cooking time (thanks to its tight connective tissue and one-sided layer of fat). Braising or smoking loosens the meat to a very tender consistency, perfect for barbecuing or serving sliced au jus.

Chuck

Located near the neck and shoulder area of the cow, the chuck can be a little tough given the amount of work it does as a muscle. But with all that work comes flavor, as the economical cuts that come from the chuck — the chuck eye roast and the flat iron steak — become exceptionally tasty, especially when braised or slow-cooked.

Filet mignon

Considered the height of richness and perfection in both tenderness and presentation, the filet mignon is the cut of beef all others aspire to match. Taken from the smaller end of the tenderloin — a snake-shaped cut of meat running alongside both sides of the spine — the filet mignon, when cut properly, is no more than 500 grams per animal. It’s not necessarily the most flavorful cut on its own, as it’s taken from a non-moving part of the animal, but its enhanced preparation generally compensates for that.

Flank steak

A tough, long, and flat cut of meat taken from the abdominal muscles of the cow, the flank steak is typically seen in dishes like the London Broil and in Asian or Mexican-inspired stir-fry and fajitas.

Merlot cut

Located in the heel round just between the shank and the bottom round, the merlot cut is similar in shape and size to the flank steak, but has a finer grain and is much more tender than its tougher cousin. While the merlot cut is fairly economical compared to similarly tender cuts of beef, it’s not readily available in grocery stores, more often found at specialty butchers and on restaurant menus.

New York strip

A cut of steak from the short loin of the cow, the New York strip is particularly tender and does not include the bone as would its neighboring cut, the T-bone. There is a thick layer of flat running along one long edge of the cut and some fine marbling throughout, but no larger interior pockets of fat.

Oyster steak

Also known as the spider steak in Australia and the Pope’s eye in the United Kingdom, the oyster steak is a fairly new craft cut that sits right inside the hip on either side of the cow. This small, semi-circular cut has a web of fat running through the muscles and can be prepared most easily with a quick pan sear.

Pichanha

A very popular cut at American restaurant juggernaut Fogo de Châo — and in Brazilian cuisine in general — the pichanha is referred to as the sirloin cap most often in the US, residing right at the tip of the cow’s tail alongside its lower back. Most often it is grilled with the outer layer of fat still attached, preserving its juiciness and full flavor when sliced onto the plate.

Porterhouse

The Porterhouse is a larger version of the classic T-bone steak, taken from the larger part of the tenderloin. In order to officially qualify as a Porterhouse according to the USDA, the steak must be at least a one-and-a-quarter inch thick, making it a fairly large portion sometimes served to two.

Prime rib

One half of the rib portion of the cow, the prime rib is cut from what’s known as the “prime” area along the ribcage: the 6th through 12th ribs, leaving the tougher meat along the 1st through 5th ribs best served in dishes like pot roast. The ribs themselves are trimmed of the fatty cap, leaving the bones clean and exposed. The prime rib can then be roasted whole and sliced apart for serving in thick pieces.

Rib eye

The rib eye is what’s left behind when a chef removed the prime rib meat from the bone, no longer roasted in standing rib roast form. Unlike prime rib, the rib eye can be cut from any bone in the ribcage, and is most often pan-fried or grilled.

Round steak

The round of the cow is also known by a much less neutral sounding name: the rump. Because of its location just above the back leg, the round steak can be a very tough cut of meat. As a result, this low-fat cut needs to be braised or slow-roasted to tenderize imbruing out its true flavor.

Shank

The shank of the cow (or any mammal) is its upper leg and remains one of the toughest cuts of meat possible due to the overall activity it exerts daily. Because of this, any cuts from the shank are best cooked slowly and over long periods of time, such as the braised veal shank found at the center of a dish like Osso Bucco.

Shoulder tender

A much more difficult cut of meat to extract for many butchers, the shoulder tender arises from much the place you’d imagine in the chuck portion of the cow, right above the shoulder joint. Thought to rival the filet mignon in tenderness, the shoulder tender is a much less expensive cut and can often be found on menus roasted or grilled, then cut into slices.

Sirloin

Best grilled to perfection, the sirloin cuts — including tri-tip, top and bottom sirloins, and filet of sirloin — come from the back of the cow, just past the loin. It is one of the most popular cuts of meat for its tenderness and overall taste.

T-bone

Smaller than the Porterhouse and only required by definition to be one quarter inch thick, the T-bone is much as you would imagine. A T-shaped bone is accompanied by two pieces of meat, one on each long side of the bone — otherwise known as the tenderloin and the strip. Expert chefs must be careful when grilling the T-bone as the two sides are rarely similar in size and can easily lead to being over- or under-temperature on one side or another.

Tripe

Not your typical muscle, the tripe of the cow is simply its stomach muscles with the lining removed. Depending on which of the three stomach chambers the tripe is taken from, its shape and consistency will vary. The first produces a wide, flat, and smooth piece of meat, while the second takes on a honeycomb type structure and is yellow in color. The third resembled a white netting of sorts. Most frequently found in American restaurants in Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean-style cooking, the tripe is fairly affordable and adds a different texture to soups, stews, and stir fry.

Tournedos

Small and round pieces of meat cut from the very end of the tenderloin, tournedos are the perfect size for experiencing “haute cuisine” in all its glory. Known for smaller portioning and creative pairings of protein and sauces decoratively fashioned on the plate, haute cuisine finds the perfect centerpiece in this tender portion of beef.

Vegas strip steak

A newer cut of meat “hidden” among the chuck section of the cow, the Vegas strip steak is an oblong piece of marbled beef weighing about 14 ounces when butchered correctly. When separated from the chuck that surrounds it, this steak is free from gristle and connective tissue, leaving behind a tender cut rivaling much more expensive pieces of meat in flavor and quality.

But enough about beef. Have you heard about the latest trends in menu meats for 2017? Download our free ebook to read up on that — and so many more trends for this year — in our latest eBook “Restaurant Menu Trends in 2017”:

The post What’s Your Beef? 20 Cuts of Beef and How They Differ appeared first on Rewards Network.

Still, Filipino cuisine is dynamic on its own, with bold flavors of coconut, citrus, slow simmered marinated meats, and mildly sweet notes. There’s a lot to explore in this cuisine, but it can be difficult for non-Filipino diners to know where to start. Here are ten items that can be a strong start to a rich cuisine for any curious eater.

Lumpia

The Filipino version of spring rolls, this crepe-like lumpia wrapper has a savory filling, usually with pork, beef, or shrimp and vegetables like cabbage, green beans, bamboo shoots, leeks, and carrots. While there are unfried variations, many love fried lumpias for the great crunchy texture of the wrapper as they bite into it.

Chicken Adobo

This dish has the chicken marinated in vinegar, soy sauce, and garlic for several hours. The chicken is pan fried until it develops a nice brown crust, then the marinade is added into the pan to create a thick glaze before the chicken is served with rice. “Adobo” refers to the vinegar marinating process originally used for food preservation, and while many other cuisines have incorporated the technique in different ways, it’s believed to have originated in the Philippines.

Ube

Subtly sweet with earthy notes, this purple yam is a key ingredient in a wide variety of Filipino desserts, from cakes to jams to ice cream. The mild sweetness of the root vegetable makes it perfect for those diners who want to enjoy a pleasant end of a meal without worrying about a sugar bomb in their mouth. More than anything, ube desserts are most recognizable for that striking color — when we say it’s purple, we really mean it’s purple.

Pancit bihon

“Pancit” refers to any type of Filipino noodle dish, but the most popular and common is pancit bihon. Bihon noodles are an especially thin rice noodle that’s stir fried with soy sauce, a citrus element, some fish sauce, a protein (chicken, shrimp, pork, and Chinese sausage are all very popular), and a mix of vegetables.

Atsarang Labano

This pickled radish is more of a condiment than a dish in itself. However, the atsarang labano brings a balance of sweet and acid notes to a variety of dishes, including fried fish and noodle salad. The radish is often pickled with carrot or onion.

Sisig

Also known as “sizzling sisig,” pork sisig features meat from the pig’s head (including the ears and snout) marinated in vinegar and served with chicken liver. This indulgent, fatty dish is often served on a sizzling plate and topped with a raw egg, making the egg whites cook right on top of the food. While pig’s head is traditional, you can get really creative with this dish. For instance, San Francisco’s Elena Una restaurant offers you a choice of oyster, tofu-mushroom, or bagnet (crispy pork belly) sisig!

Sinigang

This pork soup owes its distinctive sour flavor to the tamarind fruit as one of the main ingredients (although it can also be made with guava or a “sinigang mix” powder that’s sold specifically for the dish). Tomato, onion, and garlic round out the flavor components of the broth, although daikon radish, long chili pepper, taro, bok choy, kang kong leaves (also known as water spinach), cabbage, and other vegetables can be found in sinigang as well.

Bibingka

With the holidays upon us, it wouldn’t be right to leave off this holiday dessert. Traditionally served at Christmastime in the overwhelmingly Roman Catholic Philippines, the bibingka is a coconut rice cake that’s mildly sweet. While another tradition includes cooking the cakes in special terra cotta pots and banana leaves with hot coals surrounding it (giving the bibingka a pleasant charred crust), modern cooks can replicate that caramelization by placing a nearly done bibingka under the broiler.

Halo-halo

Sometimes spelled hulohalo, halo-halo is a mix of evaporated milk, shaved ice, and various other layers. The dessert can include fresh fruit, sweet preserves, plantains, or even a scoop of ube ice cream on top. No matter what the flavor components, the most important thing to remember is freshly shaved ice to give it the right texture.

Arroz Caldo

Arroz Caldo is the Philippines’ version of chicken congee and a true comfort food. Rice and bone-in chicken are simmered until the chicken is fall-off-the-bone tender and the rice has broken down into a porridge consistency. Green onion, calamansi (a particularly sour citrus) juice, and fried garlic can be added to deepen the flavors. It’s often a mid-morning snack, but could also be a light lunch.

Want to explore another cuisine from the other side of the world? Check out our comprehensive glossary of Indian dishes now:

The post Sweet and Savory: 10 Filipino Dishes You Must Try appeared first on Rewards Network.

No matter! We have an easy glossary for all you foodie adventurers that want to learn about what they’re eating and why — or maybe just don’t want to sound dumb in front of the waiter. Rest assured, however, servers in restaurants of all styles are used to questions and are generally happy to oblige. But if you’re on the shy or curious side, this list is for you:

Aloo

[a lu]

The Indian word for potatoes, most often found in aloo gobi (spiced potatoes and cauliflower), aloo palak (curried potatoes and spinach), and aloo tikki (Indian version of a potato pancake).

Biryani

[bih ree ah nee]

Mixed rice dish, often combining spices and some type of meat with rice, and partially fried. It is generally the central part of a meal, not a side dish.

Chana

[chah nuh]

The Hindi word for chickpea, most often found in chana masala (chickpeas with onion, chopped tomatoes, garlic, chilis, ginger, dried mango powder, and garam masala).

Dal

[dahl]

Dried split lentils served in a stew-like consistency with spices alongside roti or rice.

Garam Masala

[gah ram mah sah luh]

An Indian spice mix consisting of cumin, coriander, cardamom, black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.

Ghee

[gee]

Clarified butter used to prepare many different Indian dishes. Ghee is prepared by simmering butter on heat until the milk fats separate from the butter’s watery residue, leading to a nutty taste and aromatic flavor.

Gosht

[gahsht]

A Persian word meaning “meat,” most often used to refer to lamb or goat in a dish, such as saag gosht (lamb with spinach) or gosht vindaloo (hot, spicy lamb).

Gulab jamun

[goo lahb jah muhn]

Milk solids that are heated until separated from its water content, then rolled out into a doughnut dough and deep-friend as small balls. This dessert item is served warm, soaked in a syrup that incorporates green cardamom and rose water.

Kofta

[kahf tuh]

Minced or ground meat served most often as a meatball mixed with onion and other spices.

Korma

[koar muh]

Meat or vegetables served in a curry sauce consisting of yogurt, cream, garlic, ginger, coriander, garam masala, cumin, turmeric, and chili powder.

Kulcha

[kool chuh]

A round North Indian flatbread made from wheat flour, made either in a tandoori oven or skillet.

Kulfi

[kouhl fee]

Often described as “traditional Indian ice cream,” kulfi is a frozen dairy dessert available in flavors such as cream, rose, mango, cardamom, saffron, and pistachio.

Lassi

[lah see]

A savory or sweet drink blended from yogurt, water, spices, and sometimes fruit. Salted lassi can contain roasted cumin, while sweet lassi are flavored with mango, strawberry, rose water, or another sugar.

Makhani

[muh kah nee]

The Hindu word meaning “with butter,” most often associated with the popular rich, creamy dish made from butter and a combination of curry spices. Served in the sauce is often murgh (chicken), paneer (cheese), or dal (lentils).

Masala

[mah sah luh]

Masala refers broadly to any spice mix used in Indian cuisine.

Mattar

[muh teh]

A vegetarian tomato sauce that includes peas as its main ingredient, often paired with paneer.

Mulligatawny

[muh lih guh taw nee]

An English soup that originated in India during the era of its British colonization, mulligatawny is a curry soup, made most often with chicken, vegetables, apple, and rice. Its name literally means “pepper water.”

Murgh

[moorg]

The Hindi word for chicken, most often seen in murgh makhani (butter chicken), murgh tikka masala (chicken in a tomato-coconut cream sauce), or murgh korma (curry chicken).

Naan

[nahn] or [nan]

A pita-like flatbread, leavened and baked in a tandoori oven. It is often triangular in shape and brushed with butter, with crispy spots where bubbles form in the hot clay oven.

Pakora

[puh koar uh]

An Indian-style fritter of potato, onion, cauliflower, spinach, or paneer, dipped in chickpea batter, deep fried, and served as an appetizer.

Paneer

[pah near]

A non-melting fresh cheese made by curdling heated milk with lemon juice until the cheese curds are separated from the whey. It is then compressed until solid and cubed for inclusion in dishes like mattar paneer (cheese with peas), makhani paneer (cheese in butter sauce), or saag paneer (cheese with spinach).

Papadum

[pa puh duhm]

A thin, crisp wafer made from lentil or chickpea flour, fried or cooked with dry heat. Papadum are typically served at the beginning of a meal, with chutney or a combination of chopped onion, tomato, and herbs.

Paratha

[puh rah duh]

An Indian and Pakistani unleavened flatbread consisting of layers of cooked dough held together by a brush of ghee or hot oil.

Pulao

[pull laow]

A one-dish rice pilaf cooked in broth with mild spices and vegetables.

Raita

[ry tuh]

A condiment often used to cool the palate, raita is a yogurt-based sauce, most often paired with cucumber, coriander, mint, or carrot.

Rogan josh

[row guhn joh-sh]

An aromatic lamb or goat dish cooked in oil at very high temperatures, rogan josh is often bright red from the high chili content.

Roti

[row dee]

A round, unleavened flatbread made from wholemeal flour, also known as chapati.

Saag

[sag]

Any leaf-based Indian dish, although most often spinach, as in saag paneer (cheese with spinach) and saag gosht (lamb with spinach).

Samosa

[suh mow suh]

A pyramid shaped dumpling, filled with a combination of spiced potatoes, onion, peas, lentils, or ground meat, and deep-fried until crisp and brown. This is a popular appetizer, often served with tamarind or mint chutney as an accompaniment.

Tandoori

[tan door ree]

Any dish prepared specifically in a tandoor, a cylindrical clay or metal oven with heat generated by charcoal or wood fire. Of all the dishes cooked in a tandoor, tandoori chicken is the most common, marinated first in a spiced yogurt sauce that gives it a trademark bright red color when cooked.

Tikka

[tee kuh]

A marinade made from aromatic spices (including coriander, cumin, garlic powder, paprika, garam masala, ginger, mint, and chili powder) and yogurt, often used on chunks of boneless meat before cooked in the tandoor oven.

Vindaloo

[vin duh loo]

A classic curry dish known for being especially spicy and hot, made from vinegar, sugar, ginger, spices, and chili peppers. This one is not for first-timers unless you have an iron palate!

Confused about your local Mexican food restaurant menu too? We have an easy glossary for that, as well!

The post Indian Food Glossary: 32 Words to Demystify a Restaurant Menu appeared first on Rewards Network.

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The post Millennial Employees: How to Effectively Manage the Next Generation appeared first on Rewards Network.

Combine that fact with the wide variety of Tex-Mex cuisines that overlap with Mexican in the American market and it can be hard to keep different dishes straight – especially if you don’t speak Spanish!

When you open your menu, do you know the difference between enchiladas and chalupas? What about chimichangas and taquitos? We’ve compiled some of the more popular Mexican food words and what they mean to help you know exactly what to order.

Burrito

One of the more common Mexican dishes in America, a burrito is a flour tortilla filled with a protein (usually chicken, pork, beef, or steak), rice, beans, and other fillings like lettuce and salsa before being wrapped so it’s easy to hold in your hand.

Enchilada

This is a rolled up tortilla with filling (which can include meat, beans, and vegetables) and covered in a chili pepper sauce.

Burrito Suizo

A burrito suizo means a burrito with melted cheese or a cheese sauce on top. “Suizo” means Swiss in Spanish (as in Swiss cheese), but the term is used to refer to any type of cheese.

Molé

This is a popular sauce with dark color and lots of spices. While chocolate is one of the ingredients, the sauce is not necessarily very sweet, so be prepared. While the sauce doesn’t necessarily need to cook for long, this is a particularly labor-intensive sauce; it’s common for molé recipes to require dozens of ingredients (including spices ground by hand) to create that perfectly balanced flavor.

Chalupa

Similar to hard tacos, the shell of a chalupa is made out of masa dough and then deep fried before the filling is added.

Chimichanga

A chimichanga is simply a burrito that is deep fried. Sometimes a cheese, green chille, or sour cream-based sauce is put on top.

Chipotle

Chipotle peppers are jalapeno peppers that have been smoked. If a dish says it includes chipotle peppers, expect it to have some of that smokiness throughout.

Churro

This fritter is typically made from choux dough (a versatile light pastry dough that’s also used to make éclairs and beignets) that’s pushed into long, ridged shapes before being deep fried. Commonly sold by all types of food merchants, from restaurateurs to street vendors, they can be eaten as a breakfast dish or simply a sweet treat.

Taco

Another well-known dish, tacos use smaller tortillas than burritos (either hard shell or soft, usually corn-based) and can come with a variety of fillings, usually including some kind of protein (commonly beef, but also fish or chicken), cheese, salsa, vegetables, and/or sour cream.

Gordita

Gorditas are cornmeal flatbread stuffed with a meat filling (braised beef stew, pulled chicken, and slow-cooked pork are all popular choices). First the flatbread is deep fried, making it puff up and hollow out. Then the cook makes a slit in one side of the bread and stuffs it with the filling.

Taquito

Taquito can mean two different things: in some areas of the American Southwest, taquito simply refers to a small taco (the word literally means “small taco” in Spanish). A taquito can also be a small tortilla and filling that’s rolled with the ends left open and then fried. This version’s alternate name is flauta, or “small flute.”

Huarache

A huarache is an oval masa tortilla that’s fried and topped with some combination of protein, potato, salsa, onion, and fresco cheese. Huarache gets its name from the popular type of sandal of the same name, since the oblong tortilla has the same shape as the shoe.

Quesadilla

This is a wheat or corn tortilla that’s cooked flat on a grill with cheese, vegetables, and often protein on top before being folded over to make a half moon. This can be eaten as an appetizer or entrée, depending on size.

Tamale

Tamales consist of a spiced meat mixture that’s covered completely with a cornmeal dough. Each tamale is then steamed in a corn husk (note: tamales are usually served with the husk wrapping for presentation, but make sure not to eat the husk itself. You just want all the stuff inside it).

Cemita

A very popular sandwich from the city of Puebla, the cemita has a distinctive sweet, egg-rich roll (similar to brioche) topped with sesame seeds. The filling is very particular, specifically avocado, meat (beef, pork, ham, or chicken), a white cheese like queso oaxaca, onions, sliced jalapenos, the pungent Mexican herb papalo, and a little red chili sauce. Some restaurants will also include lettuce, tomato, and a refried bean spread.

Want to explore more menu items that might confuse? We have the list for you:

The post What the What? Definitions of 15 Mexican Food Menu Items appeared first on Rewards Network.

Tofu?

For most restaurant foodies and home cooks, Thanksgiving may be synonymous with turkey , but for vegetarians and vegans, the holiday can be fraught with trouble from the get go. With so many classic dishes built from ingredients outside their chosen diet (like turkey and turkey broth, butter, and cream soups), vegans especially can be left with little to celebrate.

Enter Vegan Thanksgiving, a growing phenomenon but not nearly as new as one might think.

Mark Rasmussen, executive chef and vice-president of recently opened Violette’s Vegan in Las Vegas, Nevada, is embarking on his new restaurant’s first vegan Thanksgiving celebration this Thursday, but this is certainly not his first ever vegan take on the holiday. Rasmussen is the author of the 2001 cookbook, “Veggie Works Vegan Cookbook,” and a thirty-year veteran in introducing vegan cooking to the Jersey Shore. Now, he’s helping bring vegan cuisine to the Entertainment Capital of the World.

“I think my style of cooking has always lent itself to be a bridge between the mainstream diet and the stricter vegan diet,” shared Rasmussen. “I’m a big believer that all flavor comes from the vegetable kingdom originally. We know it as corn-fed or grass-fed beef or whatever, but it all comes from vegetables originally. We concentrate vegetable flavors and achieve meaty flavors that way.”

And developing a menu that’s going to appeal to a wide variety of customers is always a challenge. Meeting that challenge for over 32 years is the nationally (and internationally) recognized Chicago Diner in Chicago, Illinois — a meat-free restaurant specializing in comfort food dishes. The restaurant has hosted its own vegan Thanksgiving every year since opening, with modern classics like the Veggie Roast and Lentil Loaf taking their place alongside other recipes rendered vegan for those looking to eat healthier and more ethically.

“It’s about balance.” Michael Hornick, vice-president and general manager of The Chicago Diner, said. “How many seitan items? How many tempeh items? Tofu? Pure vegetable? And really making sure we have a nice variety. It’s the same with a beer list. We can’t just run IPAs, even though IPAs sell really well. We need to make sure we have a nice balance of different types of beer.”

At the end of the day, however, it’s about quality and consistency for Hornick. “No one should be able to taste our desserts and say, ‘Oh yeah. That’s vegan.’”

Guess who’s coming to dinner

Rasmussen has only seen Vegan Thanksgiving increase in popularity over the years, having held the event at his restaurants since 1994. This year, however, is the first for Violette’s Vegan, and the chef and his staff are ready for a cross section of customers who have different needs. “In most of my restaurants, I have more omnivores than I do vegetarians.” Rasmussen related. “I try to appeal to what everybody likes. We also have a lot of fresh food and appeal to a wide variety of tastes.

“But this is Thanksgiving. It’s about comfort food. We have always had a very accepting, open, and eager customer base interested in having Thanksgiving with us. And then there are a lot of people who get a portion of or an entire vegan Thanksgiving dinner to-go and take it to their relatives’ homes. While everyone else is having their dinner, our customers can have their own vegan dinner,” said Rasmussen.

It’s been really important to Hornick that the Chicago Diner provide options for its customers on what could also be a really stressful holiday.

“There are some people who have families that know to make sides vegetarian,” said Hornick, “so the entree is really all that’s needed. Some other people may be going to an aunt’s house and know that there’s going to bacon in everything, so they would get the whole meal for one. Or, it’s families that are saying, ‘Hey. This is our whole meal. Let’s get the family pack and get sides by the quart.’ And they make their entire meal from that.”

Rasmussen agreed. “It’s a combination of different approaches.”

Talking turkey

So, how do vegan chefs manage Thanksgiving for their guests without putting its star player, the turkey, into play?

“We’ve been doing a couple of classics year after year. We’ve just changed the names a little bit.” Hornick related. “Originally, we called it the Tofu Turkey Roll, which is seasoned tofu filled with traditional stuffing. The name ‘Veggie Roast’ seems to be sticking around, although ultimately, our goal is really to season it and make it taste like turkey.

“Another dish we’ve been doing for awhile is the Wellington. It is so delicious, it’s unbelievable. Seitan in puff pastry done with a mushroom demi-glaze. The flavors are fantastic and they happen to reheat really well. They finish so nicely and crisp just like they were out of the oven originally.”

It’s not all about the turkey — or its protein equivalent, anyway.

“We want to feature the feast itself, comprised of all these different, wonderful components.” Rasmussen described. “The protein portion of it is not the most important part. The turkey is not the most important part.

“People like to think of all the different fixings, the pies and all the sides, as part of one big feast. And you only do some of these things once a year and you look forward to them. Who doesn’t like stuffing with gravy, and how often do you eat that?”

And then there are the desserts. The Chicago Diner has become known for these delectable delights, and no one gets more excited about them than Hornick himself.

“We have our cocoa mousse cake, a carrot cake (which definitely falls into those autumn flavors), and a caramel crunch torte. Our cheesecake we make during the fall is our Pumpkin Chocolate Cheesecake. It’s kind of a mix between a pumpkin pie and a cheesecake. It’s a little bit richer than a typical pumpkin pie,” Hornick described.

And not to break too far from tradition, Hornick also makes sure they have plenty of whole, traditional pumpkin pies for Thanksgiving to meet demand as well.

The main event

With Rasmussen and the team at Violette’s Vegan prepping excitedly for Thursday to arrive, Hornick’s chef and staff at Chicago Diner are already in the thick of it dealing with carry-out orders. For the first time in 32 years, the diner will be closed on Thanksgiving itself, allowing its employees to spend their holiday with family and friends, not the public.

“One of the biggest factors for me this year is that our staff is happy we showed them respect by closing for Thanksgiving this year,” Hornick describes. “Our guests calling in are appreciating it as well. We want to take care of everybody. Not just animals, but people too. It’s fantastic when we can go ahead and put our culture first.”

Orders are closed for this week’s holiday at the Chicago Diner — although much of their Thanksgiving menu is available in the coming weeks to enjoy through dining in or ordering out. But for those lucky enough to be spending the mother of all comfort food holidays in glittery Las Vegas, calling Violette’s Vegan now is still the way to go. Demand is going to be high.

“The plant-based lifestyle is becoming more than a trend. It’s almost a revolution in this society,” Rasmussen concludes. “People are starting to take control of their lives, away from the manufacturer and the processing plants, and putting it back on the table from simpler sources. I like being part of that, and opening up vegan menus for communities wherever and whenever I can.”

Want to learn more about making the transition to a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle? Check out our newbie’s guide now:

For reservations/orders:

Violette’s Vegan
Las Vegas, NV
(702) 685-0466

The Chicago Diner
Lakeview, Chicago, IL
(773) 935-6696
Logan Square, Chicago, IL
(773) 252-3211

The post Flip the Bird: Leaving the Turkey Behind for Vegan Thanksgiving appeared first on Rewards Network.