Guest Chef Dinner with Daniel Esses
Chef Esses visited the farmers market with Ericka and created a fantastic four-course dinner that showcased the bounty found in the Pacific Northwest prepared with a New Orleans twist.
Ericka Burke and Heather Earnhardt have been the best of friends since they met at Carmelita over ten years ago. Daniel Esses knew Heather from their days at Canyon Ranch Spa in Arizona. When Daniel arrived in Seattle a few months after Heather, not only did Ericka hire him as a line cook, but she became buddies with him too — and the rest, as they say, is history.
These three friends have stayed in touch as Daniel cooked his way from Seattle to New Orleans to New York to France and back to New Orleans. They've visited each other often and have maintained this long distance friendship through great dinner parties, lively conversation, and constant inspiration.
Well, it was Daniel's turn to visit Seattle, and he wanted to cook! Ericka opened up her kitchen on Saturday evening, August 22. Daniel hit the farmers market with Ericka and created a fantastic four-course dinner that showcased the bounty found in the Pacific Northwest prepared with a New Orleans twist. He brought some andouille sausage in his carry on, so a seafood gumbo was a must!
Ericka and Heather were on hand to help out and enjoy this "guest chef" evening, but Daniel was the one in the kitchen.
