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Tuesday, September 29, 2009

I Was in Ina Garten's Kitchen! Part II

When Mom called one summer morning to suggest we just hop into the car and drive into Manhattan to see a reconstruction of Ina Garten's Easthampton kitchen, who could resist? We parked on 53rd Street very close to Rockerfeller Center, passed the elephant...


("Hey elephant, did you happen to see Ina's kitchen nearby?")

And spied the rooftop of the solarium. The kitchen was built right near the Rockerfeller Center skating rink in New York City. The rink is used in summer as outdoor seating for the Rockerfeller restaurant...

Walking right around the rink, heart pounding, here it was! C'mon, we're going in!

Inside we were able to walk around all over the place! Ina will be the first to say her kitchen is a work kitchen. The view is all stainless steel and white.

Ina really does not use fancy equipment. She loves her Viking stove and always has three timers above it for various dishes that may be brewing. Guests were able to open all the drawers. The drawer set up was supposed to be an exact replica of Ina's Easthampton kitchen set up. See the white crock above the stove (left) filled with stainless steel spoons? She's an advocate of either stainless steel or wooden spoons and strongly believes they should be in a white crock within easy reach. Even her pots are hard workers...white Le Creuset iron Dutch ovens flank both ends of the stove.

Here, a view of the diningroom set off to the side of her working island. The ambience is relaxed and comfy; slipcovered chairs can be easily washed in case of guest spillage and plates are simple white. She believes white plates make the best food presentation. (I believe they were Crate and Barrel). Flowers and fruit, bounty from nature, complete the table. Don't you just want to pull out a chair and sit down?

On the other side of her working/cooking island is a sitting alcove. Where else would you want to be as you wait for a cake to finish baking or eggs to boil?

You can just put your feet up by the fire until one of the three timers go off (hee-hee!)

Or maybe catch one of her recipes on Food Network. She says she likes to have a computer area in the kitchen. It is great to be able to Google what to use as a substitute when you don't have buttermilk for a recipe but thought you did!

Cooking demonstrations took place all week long. Mom and I cozied up to the island, took a stool, and watched a chef from Bertolli make a bruschetta appetizer, Chicken Alfredo main dish, and a dessert. Ina had been in earlier in the week so we didn't spy her. But that was just fine, the food was delicious! You'll see the chef is using the front stove on the cooking island. This stove is smaller than the one against the back wall and is the one Ina uses in her TV show to demonstrate her dishes.

When the demonstration was done, guests were welcome to sample all the food. Having a close seat, we tried it all...

I loved the bruschetta best of all!

After eating, guests were welcome to sit outside on the veranda by the Rockerfeller Center flags and have a coffee specifically made for you by Ina's helpers from House Beautiful.

"I'll take a Hazelnut coffee, please! Lots of cream!"

What a great day, thanks to Ina, House Beautiful and one eager Mom who came up with the idea to just do it! I hope you enjoyed the journey with me!
And what did we do for the rest of the afternoon? Well, went shoe shopping on Fifth Avenue, of course! :0)

16 comments:

Cottage Contessa said...

Tara sweetie, can you hear me sqeeeeeeeeeling with delight from all the way down here!!!!!????? How exciting for you both...and for me too! Thanks for the tour sweetie, have a great day!
Amanda (aka Cottage Contessa)

pve design said...

Everything that Ina makes is tasty - she has such a way with making the simple things so elegant.
Looks like a great day!
pve

Edie Marie's Attic said...

HI Tara!

I felt like I was there with you! Thanks for the wonderful experience. I love the simplicity she uses in everything, it always makes me want to re-think all the dishes and what-nots I have stashed. I especially like the table cloth on her table, just on the top surface of the table like a giant placemat. No one has to worry about all the excess fabric hanging down. Too cool!

Big hugs, Sherry

Thanks for stopping by to wish my hubby a happy!

Janet said...

still jealous!

Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...

Tara...what a fun day! I would have jumped at the chance to see Ina's kitchen, too! :-) Susan

Donna said...

Oh my gosh, what fun, Tara! Ina's kitchen is the greatest. I wish mine looked like that!

Hugs,
Donna

Joyce said...

I would be so over the moon with all of this. Thanks for sharing.
Joyce

annechovie said...

Hi Tara! So glad you visited me today - I have missed you! I have so many blogger friends now and less time that I cannot keep up with all the blogs I enjoy. The trip to Ina's kitchen looks like it was so fun. I absolutely love Ina! Thanks again for your comment - hugs to you!

Pat @ Mille Fiori Favoriti said...

Hi Tara

It all looked so amazing --I'd love to have a kitchen like Ina's ..and better yet, I'd love to have someone from Bertolli cooking for me! ;-) lol

It looked like a perfect Mother/daughter outing!

Pamela Terry and Edward said...

What fun!
I love Ina! All her recipes are delicious and they all work!
And, I'd heard she loves orange flowers!!

Unknown said...

How fun! I love Ina...I would love to have gone to that! Her kitchen looks perfect.

annie

Betty said...

That would be so fun! I love Ina. I could listen to her talk all day.

Carol said...

What a great day! and ending with shopping. Doesn't get any better!

Gina said...

so great to see you back Tara!..looks like such a fun and yummy day!..I love the orange and white table setting and the bruschetta sure does look delicious! Have a great weekend Gxox

anne said...

Sooooo envious!

Ele at abitofpinkheaven said...

I bet it was fun! It looks like a great kitchen. I love the table setting with the oranges and salmon colored flowers.