Paul Kahan & Jose Garces Go All-In on Iberico

Every year, during the National Restaurant Show, seats are tough to nab in Chicago – at least downtown, where most of the visitors stay. Forget about holding a private event – most private dining rooms are booked by publicists, restaurateurs and manufacturers, hosting their clients and VIPs over the weekend. On Saturday, I got to attend an all-Iberico ham dinner at Mercat a la planxa, hosted by Jose “Iron Chef” Garces and Paul “Outstanding Chef in the U.S.”* Kahan.

The two chefs are friends, and have spent a lot of time working with and talking about pork over the course of their careers. They teamed up – along with Garces’ colleague Cory Morris and Kahan’s friend Brian Huston (The Publican) as well as their respective staffs, to put on quite a show Saturday night: four savory courses and one dessert, which included a duet from both men. I talked to both of them toward the end of the night about their strategy behind their respective courses, and how Kahan has been doing since the big weekend in NYC.

*tied with David Chang for the title, via James Beard Awards.