An abundance of sauce is noticeably absent, with sea salt, black pepper, ume and yuzu playing the back - seldom more than a delicate sprinkle needed to accentuate the fowl’s innate aroma and taste. When cooked over the dense Japanese white oak of the binchotan, the distinct characters of the various bits are revealed, perfumed by chicken fat dripped onto the scorching wood. “These are the types of chickens that smell not necessarily barnyardy but they definitely taste like an animal,” said Lee. The birds themselves come from Green Circle, an Amish farm based in Pennsylvania. “Basically we’re serving each person half a chicken,” said Lee. Each Monday, May would prep, deconstructing the week’s wogs over the course of eight hours. While the omakase-style of yakitori has been fairly common in Japan for some time, it has only recently emerged in the states, with May’s menu being the first to appear in Denver on any kind of consistent basis. “The project came as a result of me knowing Sean and knowing he was one of the few people in Denver who knew how to break down and cook the chicken the right way,” said Lee. With this, it’s all technique, there’s nothing to hide behind,” said May. “I’ve always enjoyed the intricacy of this job. “I did it every day for dinner until I got confident enough to do it in front of people,” recalled the chef. Inspired by a trip to Japan he took in the interim between Frasca and The Wolf’s Tailor - where he split his time between Osaka, Kyota and Iga - May has been honing the craft since returning in 2018. Long before Lee tapped May to bring yakitori to Uncle, May had been developing his skills at home, cooking over a binchotan charcoal grill he’s since loaned to the restaurant. “This is the first job we’ve not worked together in our career,” lamented May. The pair continued to work as a package deal, opening The Wolf’s Tailor and remaining on board until early COVID closures altered their otherwise conjoined course. It was there he met his now-wife Kodi Simkins, with whom he would go on to act as a joint chef de cuisine at Frasca in 2016. “I staged with them for about two months every day until they hired me,” said the chef. In the meanwhile, mark your calendars, as each section of the weekly seatings sold out almost immediately after it went on sale.Īfter attending a semester at Johnson and Wales in 2011, May opted to go straight for the practical route, beginning with a stage at Fruition. Plenty has changed since Hop Alley’s debut, and even though the first omakase series has run its course, it’s set to resume in the spring. “The original idea for Hop Alley was a yakitori restaurant,” said Lee, noting that the restaurant veered into its current setup due to concerns that the style might intimidate the dining public of the time. Kushiyaki encompasses all skewered meats, while yakitori covers the more specific tradition that makes deliberate use of all the parts of a chicken. While western diners have largely been introduced to yakitori as happy hour and late-night bar food, there’s a fairly sizable difference between it and its oft confused relative kushiyaki. The 15-course assembly - done over two nightly seatings of six covers, performed exclusively on Tuesday and Wednesday - carefully toed the traditional line, presenting the cuisine in all its fine dining glory. Over the course of the fall, the Wash Park location amplified the intricacy with the introduction of a yakitori omakase - a seated dinner highlighting the dexterity of chef Sean May. Tommy Lee’s restaurants - Uncle Highlands, Uncle West Wash Park and Hop Alley - have long endeared themselves to Denver diners for a great many things, not least of which is their technical brilliance.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |