QuickBites
Baci closes, Ferno opens

Baci closes, Ferno opens

Baci restaurant at Restaurant Row has changed its name, menu and personnel as of yesterday. The new name is Ferno, meaning fire or heat. Its menu will change from Italian to Mediterranean, incorporating the flavors of Italy, France, Spain and Greece with moderate pricing for lunch and dinner.

Chef Philippe Padovani of Padovani’s Bistro and Wine Bar takes over the kitchen with menu concepts; Jorge Fernandez will oversee the execution. Baci owner Bill Duval is retaining ownership of the restaurant, teaming up with Padovani and restaurateur J.P. Damon. "We’re trying to combine the positive aspects of Padovani’s and Baci," Duval said.

Duval is also looking to open a take-out lunch spot on Merchant Street between Richards and Alakea streets in downtown Honolulu. He anticipates opening sometime later this month.

At Padovani’s Bistro and Wine Bar, former island resident Lassaad Riahi has returned from Boston and is the new face at the door. Riahi worked with Padovani at Manele Bay Hotel on Lana‘i; he will manage the front of the house operations for Padovani and Damon.

Celebrate Irish early at Murphy’s

St. Patrick’s Day is another 10 days away, but Murphy’s Bar and Grill will be celebrating on Saturday with the fourth annual Irish Fry from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Food will be bountiful: Galtee Irish bacon, bangers, black and white pudding Gaelic fried tomatoes, scrambled eggs, Mrs. Murphy’s soda bread and corned beef hash, all accompanied by a pint of Guinness or Harp and a Bailey’s Irish coffee. The $20 per person brunch will benefit Coaches vs. Cancer, an annual fund-raising effort by the University of Hawai‘i basketball program that supports patient programs and services in Hawai‘i and research by the American Cancer Society. 531-0422.

Family stories pair with cooking

Mark your calendar and set up your VCR now: "Nick Stellino: Food, Love and Family," an hour-long special with Italian chef and family advocate Nick Stellino will air March 13 at 8:50 p.m. on KHET Channel 10. In this cooking show and storytelling hour, the zealous Stellino recounts personal experiences that warm the heart and teach lessons about the importance of family, all of which are tied to memories and recipes of classic Italian dishes. Some of the themes he touches on are the sacrifices parents make for their children, forgiveness among family members, the importance of following one’s passion, the challenges and rewards of balancing love, marriage and career, and how true richness and success in life should be measured not in dollars but in the strength of family relationships.

It’s a different kind of cooking show but one that has his audience on the set laughing and crying, as well as delighting in Stellino’s culinary prowess. The show is produced by KCTS Television in Seattle.

New pastry chef at Alan Wong’s

Karen Schooley, a returning Island resident, will be taking over as pastry chef at Alan Wong’s Restaurant on King Street. Schooley worked in a number of Island restaurants in the past two decades and has most recently been the pastry chef at the Sir Francis Drake Hotel in San Francisco.

Bi bim bap served hot in Korea

Something I never knew: bi bim bap, the traditional Korean dish of rice topped with seasoned vegetables, meat and an egg (kind of a Korean plate lunch all in one dish) is served in a sizzling hot pot in Korea. The pots are either ceramic or made of cast iron and the dish remains very hot while you make your way through the tasty morsels. What’s really good is that the rice at the bottom of the pot gets golden brown, toasty and crunchy. Several Korean restaurants in Hawai‘i duplicate the delicious experience: I had it recently at Shillawon in the Pacific Grand Hotel at 747 Amana St. 944-8700.

Margarita picked as favorite drink

According to Dallas-based restaurant chain T.G.I. Friday’s (there are outlets on Ward and Kuhio avenues), the most popular mixed drinks last year were: margarita, Long Island iced tea, bloody Mary, 77 Sunset Strip and strawberry daiquiri. According to the March edition of Bon Appetit magazine, margarita tops the list of favorite cocktails in its 2001 Reader Survey on How America Eats, followed by gin and tonic, mimosa and vodka martini. In the same survey, readers say their favorite drink at a party is domestic wine, followed by specialty beer, imported wine and vodka. Merlot, chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon top the list of wine favorites.

Quick Bites runs every Wednesday in The Advertiser food section. Food Editor Joan Namkoong welcomes tidbits of food news .Write to her c/o The Honolulu Advertiser, P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802. Call: 525-8069. Fax: 525-8055. E-mail: jnamkoong@honoluluadvertiser.com

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