Moveable Feast

ALEX THOMOPOULOS: Coming up on Moveable Feast, we're in historic Newport, Rhode Island.

Perched on the rocky coastline of the Narragansett Bay, this historic town is rich in colonial history, Gilded Age architecture, and seafood.

(exclaims): The seafood.

And the chefs here know how to take full advantage.

But first, we're going to need a history lesson with a tour of Newport's Old Quarter with Becca Bertrand, the executive director of Newport Historical Society.

Next, we're headed into the bay with Navy chef Noah Kvochick and the King of Clams himself, Jody King.

Then, we're headed to Stoneacre Garden in the Newport Harbor to meet up with local chefs Kevin O'Donnell and Michael Faccidomo to cook up a seafood feast that celebrates this beautiful city and all of its coastal charms.

You won't want to miss it.

Join us on a mouthwatering journey that takes us all across America, traveling from coast to coast with America's most creative chefs.

They'll be sharing their favorite recipes... ...and sourcing the finest local ingredients.

And it's all served up at some awe-inspiring locations and parties.

It's A Moveable Feast, with me, your host, Alex Thomopoulos.

And together, we're celebrating ten amazing years.

Major funding provided by... Everyone's going to be there.

(car horn honks) Try to have fun.

Hey you.

(music playing on headphones) Let's go!

("Best Day of My Life" by American Authors playing) (singing along): This is going to be the best day Of my life Seriously?

(singing along): My li-i-i-ife ALL: This is going to be the best day of my life I can't believe I'm related to you guys.

Well, you are, so... ALL: My li-i-i-ife Ooh, ooh, ooh (glasses clink) (singer vocalizing) Kick it, kick it like this I like it when you kick it like, kick it like that (waves crashing) ALEX: Well, good morning, good morning.

We are in Newport, Rhode Island, a town steeped in history, and we're going to go learn about it.

But first, I need a treat.

I need a sweet treat, and so does my crew.

So, we're headed to Le Bec Sucr, one of the best bakeries in Newport.

Hello, good morning.

Hi, hi.

ALEX: I'm Alex.

I'm Belinda, nice to meet you.

ALEX: Nice to meet you.

Look at all of these beautiful pastries.

Thank you.

ALEX: Every chef I've talked to in Rhode Island says I have to come to Le Bec Sucr.

First of all, what does that mean?

So, Le Bec Sucr, it's the equivalent of "sweet tooth," so... ALEX: Oh, I get it.

Yeah, so literally translated, it means "the sweet beak."

ALEX: I want to get some nice things for my crew.

Uh-huh.

ALEX: I come with an entourage, and we're very, very hungry because we have a very busy day ahead of us.

Definitely the pain chocolat and then the croissant, as well.

This is, like, the identity of the French pastries.

ALEX: Yes.

And then, I would go with the blueberries, because we make our own blueberry coulis.

ALEX: Our feast tonight is at Stoneacre Garden.

So, I'll see you there, okay?

Yeah, see you there.

Thank you so much.

ALEX: So nice to meet you.

Have a nice day, enjoy the pastries.

ALEX: I will, they will.

We're about to eat, guys.

Oh, thank you, Alex.

ALEX: You're very welcome.

Thank you.

This was a great way to start the day.

(exclaiming) The baguette.

Yes.

ALEX: Oh, my God, hot.

(mumbles with full mouth, chuckles) (laughing) ALEX: Oh, my God, those pastries were so delicious.

I feel amazing.

Crew is very happy.

And now, we are on our way to the Newport Historical Society to meet Becca, who's going to give us a tour of the Colony House, the Great Friends meeting place, and then she's taking us on a driving tour of Bellevue Avenue to look at some of the Gilded Age architecture.

I live for this stuff.

Good morning.

Good morning.

ALEX: I'm Alex.

Hi, I'm Becca.

ALEX: I'm excited to know a little bit about Newport's history.

Great, well, welcome to Newport Historical Society's Colony House.

ALEX: Wow.

So, the Colony House was built in 1739 as one of the five colonial seats of government in Rhode Island.

It has a lot of colonial significance to Newport.

It's where the British occupied the building between 1776 and 1779.

Also, when the French came to Newport, this was where they used the building as their hospital, which was a pretty impressive thing.

Yeah.

(laughs) ALEX (shuddering): Spooky.

Right where you're standing was their hospital.

And this building served as the State House for Rhode Island until 1901, when the State House was built in Providence.

Then, up on the second floor, there's a courthouse.

ALEX: This looks like a movie set.

Actually, it was a movie set.

Amistad.

ALEX: No.

Mm-hmm.

A whole lot of Rhode Island's history happened right here in this courtroom.

I think that history is all around us, and, you know, I think with everything going on in the world, it's so important to look back to our past because it informs so much of our future.

ALEX: That's beautifully said.

So, this is the White Horse Tavern, which is the oldest tavern in America.

ALEX: And it's still open today?

It's open to the public, and when the Colony House was being built, this is what they used as the seat of colonial government.

ALEX: Wow.

So, this is the Great Friends Meeting House.

ALEX: I can't believe this was built that long ago.

Quakers would meet in silence, um, and it's only when you were moved to speak, but that's where the word "Quaker" comes from.

Quakers are a very peaceful and open group.

So, the Quakers are some of the first abolitionists.

ALEX: I'm learning so much today.

So, this is some of Newport's colonial history, but I'd love to show you some of Newport's more recent history, and we'll take a drive down Bellevue Avenue, and I'll show you some of Newport's summer cottages.

ALEX: So Becca, where are we headed right now?

So, we're headed onto Bellevue Avenue.

On the left-hand side is the Redwood Library, which is the, one of the oldest libraries in the country.

The Naval Academy came to Newport and was stationed here until the end of the Civil War.

In the 1840s and '50s, industrialization happened and cities became more crowded.

You wanted to leave the city for fresh air.

And so, there are some smaller streets that come off of Bellevue that had smaller houses on them, like Kingscote, that we're driving past right now, and that was kind of an original "cottage" home.

But then there were big houses like The Elms... ALEX: Wow.

...that were built.

That's what people think of as a Gilded Age mansion.

ALEX: Yeah.

That is a massive summer cottage.

The Breakers is the most famous of all of the Gilded Age mansions in Newport.

It was built for Cornelius Vanderbilt.

ALEX: Oh, my God.

It's really extraordinary.

ALEX: I'm sure all of their chefs took advantage of the abundance of seafood here.

Certainly.

The bar and restaurant scene in Newport is really great.

Some new chefs have come to town that have brought, like, a really cool fusion of different types of foods to Newport.

ALEX: Well, I can't thank you enough for spending the morning with me and teaching me a little bit about Newport history.

You're welcome.

ALEX: Let's go clamming, shall we?

Chef Noah.

Hello, nice to meet you.

ALEX: Nice to meet you.

And I heard this is the king?

The Quahog King.

ALEX: The Quahog King-- Alex.

Jody King, how are you?

ALEX: Nice to meet you.

Tide is coming in, so we got to get in the water, let's go.

ALEX: Okay, all right, says the king.

Noah, did you grow up clamming?

I've never clammed before.

ALEX: Okay, so it's the first time for both of us.

I'm super-excited.

ALEX: So, tell me a little bit about where we are.

We're at North Kingstown Beach.

I teach a Come Clam With Me class and have been for the Department of Environmental Management.

This is my 18th season bringing people to this beach.

It's a good thing for me.

It's a great thing for Rhode Islanders to come down and play on the beach.

I come here normally on some really good low tides, and I see friends that I've had in class for 17 years, still playing here.

ALEX: Oh, that's so great.

So Noah, you're stationed out here in Rhode Island?

I am, yes-- Ney Hall Galley in Newport, Rhode Island.

ALEX: And you cook out here, obviously, in the Navy?

I do, yeah, so, we do a three-year shore duty here.

So, I'm excited for-- I've been here about a year and-a-half, and it's been really fun since.

ALEX: Well, nice, so I'm excited to get some fresh clams today and... Now he knows a guy.

ALEX: Now he knows... Now I know a guy.

The king.

ALEX: The king.

Come on, Alex!

ALEX: I'm coming, I'm coming.

Don't, don't you worry.

The things I do.

So, what we're going to do is you're going to throw the rake out in front of you.

ALEX: Okay.

You're going to feel rocks, all the time.

You are going to have to hold it like this, and you kind of just pull it through the bottom.

And you're going to feel the rocks go in, and then you sort of pick it up backwards.

ALEX: Did I get anything?

Oh!

I got a broken shell.

And I got a quahog.

ALEX: Noah, did you get anything?

Come on, man.

Oh, look at this.

ALEX: Come on, man.

That's my job.

ALEX: I got one!

I got one.

(laughs) She's no longer a non-clammer.

ALEX: We're going to feast tonight, baby.

That's a snack.

Oh, there's another one.

ALEX: Oh, baby.

Oh, baby.

(exclaims) Two, two.

ALEX: Oh, no, I lost it.

Then it was too small.

That's the other gauge on the rake.

Rule of thumb, one inch at the hinge.

If it falls through the gauge, that's an undersize or a juvenile.

We throw those back in-- we keep those.

ALEX: Okay, good.

Those are money.

ALEX: And you grew up on these waters, right?

I cut my teeth here, yes, I did.

ALEX: What's your favorite thing about clamming?

I'm my own boss.

Nobody bothers me.

And if you do, you have to put up with me.

ALEX: Professional.

Well, I think we, we got enough for tonight's feast-- Noah?

I think we're good.

ALEX: He's got his pockets full.

Are you going to come to the feast tonight?

Absolutely.

You have no idea how much I can eat.

ALEX: Well, we should probably keep digging, then.

Fresh clams, baby.

ALEX: Well, that was eventful.

The tide came up a little higher than we anticipated, but we made it work.

Now we've got a trunk full of clams.

We're on our way to Stoneacre Gardens where we're going to meet Kevin O'Donnell and Michael Faccidomo, two amazing chefs here in Newport, and they are going to help us cook some delicious food for our feast.

We are here at Stoneacre Garden with executive chef and partner Michael Faccidomo-- thank you for being here.

Thank you for having me.

ALEX: So can you tell us a little bit about where we are?

We're right in Downtown Newport, in the heart of it, and we have a fabulous location of Stoneacre Garden.

ALEX: Because we are in the harbor and there's a lot of seafood around us and a lot of New England-style chowders, oysters on the half shell, I think it's really interesting what you're doing with this Asian fusion.

Thank you.

ALEX: And then, what are we making today?

Today we're making a lazy Thai lobster.

ALEX: Lazy Thai lobster.

Yeah.

ALEX: Well, how do we get this dish started?

Well, we start with the sauce.

You take a little bit of lime juice.

(sizzles) Some coconut milk.

ALEX: I am a avid enthusiast of Asian flavors.

Like, you have that gochujang that offers a little bit of funk.

You've got the lime that offers some citrus.

There's just so much that goes on on your palate when you're eating food like this.

Yeah, I mean, it's definitely bold flavors.

And then, we add the peanuts and the coconut for texture.

ALEX: And how did you become a chef?

Well, my father owned a pizza place and I started there, and then I went to Johnson and Wales, right here in Rhode Island.

ALEX: What makes being in Rhode Island as a chef special to you?

I mean, honestly, there's one, amazing fishing, all right?

So, some of the guys come in in the summer, they have wahoo, tuna, stripers, and they come in right in the docks.

Then, South County and Jamestown has some amazing farms.

So, we have friends that literally just come to the back door and drop off fresh tomatoes and corn.

ALEX: You've got fresh seafood, fresh produce... Yeah.

ALEX: What more could you want as a chef?

You always want to use cold butter and whisk it in slowly, because it could break.

And so we want to emulsify it, so I don't want it to be too hot.

ALEX: The term "lazy lobster," what does that mean?

So, lazy lobster means we do all the work for you, and, uh... ALEX: I love that.

Yeah, so, we poach it for six minutes, let it cool, crack it, take all the meat out of its shell, and then we save half the shell as the vessel to serve it in.

And so the customer, all they have to do is just eat.

Here at Stoneacre Garden, we serve it with a little green papaya salad.

ALEX: I love the crunch, I love the acidity, I love the spice.

And I think it just is the perfect complement to a dish like this.

The papaya salad will just brighten your palate up.

Yeah, it's super-fresh and it accompanies the lobster... ALEX: Yeah.

...nicely.

Then we take our butter sauce.

ALEX: Oh, I love that.

Beautiful.

We're not shy.

Some toasted coconut flakes.

ALEX: This is a dish that's on the menu here at Stoneacre Garden.

Correct.

ALEX: Chef, this dish is an absolute piece of artwork.

It is gorgeous.

Can I try it?

Please.

ALEX: Whoa.

Yeah?

ALEX: Mmm.

You have the sweetness of the lobster with the sweetness of the coconut and the gochujang funk in the background.

The lime juice and that papaya salad for texture.

It's really something very, very special.

And I know that our guests are going to really love it.

So, I will see you at our feast tonight up at the rooftop.

Awesome.

ALEX: All right, thanks, Chef.

Thank you.

ALEX: So, we're here with Kevin O'Donnell, owner of Giusto and Mother Pizzeria here in Newport, Rhode Island.

Can you tell me a little bit about your background, how you got into the restaurant business, and your cooking style?

So, I've always loved pasta, pizza.

ALEX: Who doesn't?

You know, everything that's, like, quintessential Italian, right?

Gelato.

And then I ended up going to Italy, and I lived there for about three years working in restaurant, totally fell in love with it, and that was it.

After Italy, you know, I knew Italian food was what I wanted to specialize in.

ALEX: We're really happy to have you here.

Can you tell me what you are making today?

A squid ink tempura-fried calamari with capers and garlic and white wine, and a little bit of tomato.

And this is one of our signature dishes at the restaurant.

This is dirty squid-- dirty squid means that you have to do all the work yourself.

ALEX: And are these coming from the waters of Rhode Island?

Right off of Galilee, actually, in Southern Rhode Island.

The largest fishery in Rhode Island is squid.

ALEX: Oh, I didn't know that.

So, let's go ahead and get started.

So, if you want to pick one up.

ALEX: Yep.

You can feel that there's this, this... ALEX: Beak.

...beak in the center.

So very gently, we're going to try to pull all of the entrails out, everything out in one shot.

These are called the fins.

So, this is the mantle and these are the fins.

Pull the fins right off.

ALEX: And are you rotating the fish that you're serving at your restaurants?

We are.

Whatever you got that's local, that is supporting our local fishermen, that's just the freshest fish that we can get.

And then, the tentacle is what...

Some people either love it or they hate it.

I love the tentacles.

ALEX: I love it.

And then, if you look inside here, there's the little tiny ink sac right in here.

And this ink is really healthy for you.

And you just pinch it and squeeze the ink right out.

ALEX: I really love it.

And you don't need a lot of it to, to really pack a punch.

No, a little bit goes a long way.

It's briny and umami.

We're going to be using the mantle or the, the tube, and then we're going to use the tentacles.

For the tentacles, just cut right below where the eyes are.

ALEX: I have the best memories of cleaning calamari with my nonna.

It's nostalgic.

ALEX: Yeah, it really is.

Yeah, I love that.

So next up, we're going to slice it into the rings that most people are probably familiar with seeing.

So, I am going to go somewhere around, like, three-quarters of an inch.

ALEX: And that will shrink during the cooking process.

That'll shrink.

So, for the batter, we're using a really fine rice flour, baking powder, salt.

ALEX: Those are all ingredients that are going to lend for a very crispy batter.

Crispy and light.

ALEX: Yeah.

Sparkling water-- I'm going to mix it right in.

And when you're making this tempura batter, it's important that you don't make it too far in advance.

That baking powder only stays active for so long.

And the squid ink.

This is what makes this dish really fun.

It gives this, like, visual, stunning effect to it.

ALEX: And how long are you frying this for?

It takes about two to three minutes.

ALEX: Oh, so quick.

Yeah, pretty quick.

We're just going to drop the squid right in the tempura batter here.

You want to mix it really well.

You want that tempura batter to get totally inside those rings.

All right, so this is going to take about two to three minutes to cook.

ALEX: This looks so crazy.

Where did you get the inspiration for this dish?

In Italy, you go to Venice and you get a squid risotto that's jet black.

So, it really came from my love for squid ink risotto or squid ink pasta.

Takes about two minutes or so.

Isn't it beautiful?

One out of ten times when we serve this at the restaurant, it drops in front of the guests and they see it and they think, "What's going on here?

What's wrong?

It's burnt, send it back."

But then they taste it and they're, like, "Okay, I get it."

ALEX: Talk to me about this sauce.

So, this sauce, we've sauted some garlic, really thinly sliced, in olive oil until it was nice and soft and translucent.

Added white wine, cooked the white wine down, added some really nice Sicilian tomato paste, and then capers and chili peppers... ALEX: Wow.

Just tons of flavor.

ALEX: Do you want me to add more sauce?

We're going to do a little bit more sauce over the top.

ALEX: I love all of these flavors together, the tomato, the garlic, capers.

All right, so you got your sauce on.

Next, if you want to put a little bit of the fennel fronds and chopped parsley on there.

Beautiful.

I love the flavor of parsley.

ALEX: So do I.

It's not just, like, a garnish.

It's fresh, it's, like, cleansing.

ALEX: Little lemon?

Little squeeze of lemon and that it's it.

That's our squid ink fried calamari with capers, garlic, and chili peppers.

ALEX: And now, the moment of truth.

Mmm.

It's so tender.

Mm-hmm.

ALEX: Perfectly complemented with the tomato sauce.

It feels quintessentially Italian, but inherently Rhode Island.

Does that make sense?

Love that.

That's what we were going for.

ALEX: Well, thank you so much for sharing this recipe with us.

That was a lot of fun.

ALEX: I am here with culinary specialist submarine Second Class Petty Officer Noah Kvochick-- thank you for being here.

Yeah, it was fun clamming.

You know, it was a good adventure, getting nice and wet.

A little deeper than we thought, but it was good.

ALEX: I wanted to collaborate with you, do a little bit of a steamed clam dish but with ginger, scallions, some Thai chilies, just to kind of tie this meal all together.

All right, so we're going to start this dish, like any other steamed clam dish, with some oil and aromatics.

Okay.

ALEX: Do you mind chopping these garlic scapes and then halving about four Thai chilies?

So, I've got about four inches of ginger that we've grated, and a lot of scallions.

This is, like, ten scallions.

Okay, we've got the Thai chilies.

Normally, this recipe will call for garlic, but here in Rhode Island, there are garlic scapes right now, growing in the summer.

So I thought, why not use some local Rhode Island produce?

Okay.

ALEX: They're like a love child between garlic and scallions.

So, we'll add that to the pot.

So, when you're cooking for the Navy, you're cooking in bulk, right?

Yes, yeah.

So, right now, we're feeding about 1,000 people a meal.

ALEX: What?!

So, 3,000 people a day.

It could be anything from chicken cordon bleu to minute steak, or, like, Philly cheese steaks.

Really have a wide range of seafood.

It's hard to get, like, the fresh stuff, like these fresh clams we're cooking with today.

ALEX: I'm going to add all of our hard work.

These have been rinsed and scrubbed.

Yes.

ALEX: And to open up these clams, we're going to add some liquid.

You could use sake, you could use white wine.

Today we've got both, so I'm going to use both.

(laughs) Okay, why not?

ALEX: Yup, so, you just want a little, but I do want to bring this up to a boil, just to cook off some of the alcohol.

And clams are super-salty, but I want to add a little umami kick to this.

I'm going to add my favorite ingredient, fish sauce, about a tablespoon.

How did you become involved in the service?

I've always wanted to serve.

Like, joining the Navy was one of my biggest things I wanted to do.

I've always had a love for cooking, cooking in my family growing up.

You can cook on submarines, so why not enlist and become a culinary specialist?

ALEX: All right, chef, would you mind grabbing this plate here because I think these are... (exclaims): ...starting to open, and yes, they are.

Beautiful!

So, if you want to plate these clams and I'm going to start the brown butter miso panko breadcrumb.

So, I've got some butter here that I browned.

I'm going to take some miso for a little salt.

And then I'm just going to add a ton of these breadcrumbs and I'm going to let the panko drink up all of that brown butter and miso.

This is going to add texture.

And then we're going to take all of this beautiful garlic scape, scallion, ginger broth and put it all over the clams.

That looks really amazing, and the smells coming off it are really good.

ALEX: I'm going to add a few little Thai chilies on the side, just for warning to people, "This is warm."

So chef, if you wouldn't mind just garnishing, this is just some scallion we soaked in ice water.

And then, I'll come in with these breadcrumbs in here.

We'll add a little pea shoots.

Before our guests arrive, we should definitely try... Definitely.

ALEX: At least one.

Mmm.

Mm-hmm?

That's amazing.

ALEX: Mm-hmm.

You get just, like, that tinge of heat from the Thai chili.

Yup, not too spicy.

And those scallions, really nice texture to it, and that breadcrumb, that's good.

New England is bringing the Army-Navy Game here.

ALEX: Oh, I heard.

Yeah, so, it's going to be a really big deal, you know.

A nice tailgating dish like this, definitely bring the spirit.

You know, go, go Navy, beat Army.

ALEX: Well, thank you so much for cooking with me today.

And as always, thank you for your service.

All right, thank you, it's been a pleasure.

ALEX: Thanks, chef.

Hello, everybody!

Hi!

ALEX: Welcome to our Rhode Island feast.

(people talking in background) Look at what's in front of me.

Very delicate.

ALEX: I want to thank everybody for coming to our Newport feast.

I have been completely blown away and I cannot wait to come back.

We, we started our day with some fabulous pastries from Le Bec Sucr, and Belinda, thank you so much.

No, thank you.

ALEX: And we got a little bit of a history lesson with Becca over at the Newport Historical Society.

We went to the Colony House, the Great Friends meeting place, and we drove down Bellevue.

I got to see all the beautiful architecture that you have here.

Then, Chef Noah and I spent the afternoon with the one and only King of Clamming, Jody King.

He took us clamming.

Quahogging.

ALEX: Quahogging.

We went quahogging.

Kevin, why don't we start with you, what you made for tonight's feast?

So, this is one of our signature dishes at Giusto, down the street.

This is our fried calamari that's, has a squid ink tempura with garlic, capers, lemon juice, some fresh herbs.

ALEX: And Chef Michael, what did you make for tonight's feast?

We made lazy Thai lobster.

Korean chili paste, coconut milk, lime, and butter.

And it's garnished with toasted peanuts, scallions, and toasted coconut flakes.

ALEX: And to go along with the Asian fusion flavors of Stoneacre Garden, a ginger, scallion, Thai chili steamed quahog with a little white wine and sake.

And we topped it with... Some miso brown butter panko.

ALEX: Dig in and enjoy, and cheers.

Cheers.

(glasses clinking) Would you like to try this?

Yes, pass it on.

That flavor they have, when they're fresh... This happened today.

I think there's more somewhere.

Thank you, though.

Here... ALEX: This is so fun!

Actual Newport, yeah.

The infamous bread.

ALEX: The infamous bread.

(talking in background) My mouth is already watering.

(groans) It's so good.

You did me good.

ALEX: Oh, thank you.

(talking in background) Oh, yes.

ALEX: Yeah.

Is she going down there?

Is it good?

Oh, this is so good, Thank you.

ALEX: I want to say thank you to Nicole for having us here at Stoneacre Garden.

Oh, it's been such a great day and it's been so nice to have all, all of us together and kicking off, kicking off a great season.

ALEX: And Katie and Matt.

Hi!

Matt and Katie Gray.

We're the owners of Ragged Island Brewing Company.

We are a ten-barrel brewery on a 37-acre farm in Portsmouth, Rhode Island.

ALEX: Thank you guys so much for bringing all of that.

Thank you for having us.

ALEX: On that note, I want to thank each and every one of you for coming to this feast.

And if you want any of these recipes from today's episode, make sure to go to moveablefeast.com.

And who knows?

Maybe next episode, we'll be feasting in your city.

Cheers, everybody.

Cheers.

Cheers.

ALEX: For more information about this episode, recipes, and behind-the-scenes fun, make sure you go to moveablefeast.com.

Follow us on Instagram.

And don't forget to like us on Facebook.

We'll see you next time on A Moveable Feast.

Major funding provided by: Everyone's going to be there.

(car horn honks) Try to have fun.

Hey you.

(music playing on headphones) Let's go!

("Best Day of My Life" by American Authors playing) (singing along): This is going to be the best day Of my life Seriously?

(singing along): My li-i-i-ife ALL: This is going to be the best day of my life I can't believe I'm related to you guys.

Well, you are, so... ALL: My li-i-i-ife Ooh, ooh, ooh (glasses clink) (singer vocalizing) Kick it, kick it like this I like it when you kick it like, kick it like that (waves crashing)