"NateAppleman" news and stories

At the mid-point of any reality show -- let alone one involving a bunch of ambitious, successful, mostly alpha-male chefs -- a clear villain emerges. And the way things have shaken out on "The Next Iron Chef," we're left with a strange mix: Two are the nicest chefs you could imagine (Jose Garces, Roberto Trevino), two are boy- and girl-next-door types (Seamus Mullen, Amanda Freitag, respectively), and two are the meanest, cockiest, backstabbing-est bastards the Food Network casting director could hope to find (Nate Appleman, Jehangir Mehta).

Picking from among the nice ones is hard -- Garces and Freitag are constantly offering up help to the others and downplaying their talent -- but the heart of banal evil of "TNIC" is a little easier to pin down. Sure, former A16 and soon-to-be Pulino's chef Appleman is your average aggressive, tatted-up, overly confident young chef. And yes, his quote during last night's Indian-themed "pressure" challenge was enough to make us hurl: "I'm a white boy who never cooked Indian before and I just cooked 5 dishes -- I think I've pretty much won this."

But if it's the devious grin, the glint of sabotage, the air of smug condescension you're looking for, there can only be one choice: Mehta. We're sure Graffiti's wunderkind is, as its Web site puts it, "truly a nice guy." But if you've been watching the way "TNIC" editors slice-and-dice Mehta's reaction shots -- not to mention his own proclivity for undermining his co-contestants by hoarding ingredients and gadgets whether he needs them or not -- he's the leading candidate to be the show's mustache-twirling bad guy. And judging by the voting, he'll continue to be.

Marc Dacascos. Photo: Food Network.

Not enough tension in your cooking competition shows? Do you find your blood pressure leveling out to near-normal readings during "Top Chef"? Do you wish that "Chopped" had more creepy smoke-machine fog piped into the set? Would judges' decisions be more exacting if only they were accompanied by loud, metallic wooshing sounds?

You're in luck. Last week brought the return of "The Next Iron Chef," one of the Food Network's variations on the legendary Japanese cook-off show, and with it a heaping helping of adrenalin-fueled, hacksaw-edited mania. After just two episodes, it's clear the show isn't going to give us a moment's peace, whether to pour ourselves a nice glass of sherry or grab our anti-anxiety meds -- or both, should it ever come to that.

3 scoops of ice cream. Photo: jessicafm, Flickr

• 87 flavors later, a tour of the notable seasonal ice cream stands in New York.
• 35 years after kicking off, Oregon wines like Pinot Noir are something to talk about.
• The Temporary Vegetarian makes white gazpacho.
• In honor of the 400 years since Henry Hudson sailed up the Hudson River, the city goes Dutch in flavor and prices. Twenty-four bucks of course, like the 24 guilders paid for the island of Manhattan.
• French names like Michel Bras are descending on the city for a number of food events in September.
• The Minimalist makes muffin-esque corn arepas.
• The amazing story of one family who bought the farm back and now serve restaurants with a selection of rare produce.
• Say it ain't so -- fresh fruit hits the new Yankee Stadium.
• Fighting homemade mayo fear to whip up its tasty cousin, rouille.
• RIP Sheila Lukins, owner of Silver Palate food shop and writer of subsequent cookbooks.
• Troubled times hasn't killed the restaurant industry. Among the closings are chefs changing menus to suit the times and new frugal foodie ventures.
• The Times' Big Restaurant Preview: As the froufrou falls, eateries like Lever House get back to the cheaper basics. Also: a look at Missy Robbins, new chef of A Voce; Tony May of San Domenico is creating "one of the more theatrical debuts of the fall;" Tien Ho is taking over a still-unnamed fifth Momofuku restaurant in the Chambers Hotel; Richard Caring moved from fashion to food in England, and now wants to set up more of his restaurants in New York; and San Fran's Nate Appleman moves to the Big Apple for a slice of Pulino's Bar and Pizzeria.
• Old New York suffers the death of classic restaurant Café des Artistes after money and union woes.
• Restaurant: Kajitsu offers vegan Japanese fare in the East Village.
• New York's dining calendar.

He may be the David Chang of the West Coast. At 29 (two years younger than Sir David) Nate Appleman of A16 and SPQR is on the verge of opening an A16 offshoot in Tokyo, a new restaurant in San Francisco, has penned an award-winning cookbook and been showered with praise. Now, after three years on the nominee list, he is the owner of the Rising Star Chef James Beard Award. We caught up with Appleman yesterday afternoon to chat about his wayward childhood, why he lives in California, whole animals and his favorite kitchen utensil -- a bloody cleaver.

What did it feel like to finally win?
The third time is the charm. It was incredible. It was kind of all surreal.

How did it feel when you were passed over for the second time?
It was disappointing, but I thought, I got next year. (A Rising Star must be 30 or under.)

What's it like to be the only non-New Yorker to win a national award?
That's a huge, huge honor. It's not a secret that the awards are New York-dominated. To win from being outside of New York makes it that much sweeter.