Terranea Resort Names Charles Olalia Chef de Cuisine of mar’sel
Chef Olalia Brings New Culinary Direction to Celebrated Los Angeles Restaurant
The following is a press release from Terranea Resort. It was my honor and pleasure to shoot the photos of Chef Charles Olalia and his food.
Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif. (Oct. 2, 2014) –Terranea Resort, A Destination Hotel, welcomes Charles Olalia as the new chef de cuisine of mar’sel, the resort’s signature restaurant. One of Los Angeles’ top dining destinations, mar’sel blends old world techniques with new world California cuisine in a spectacular seaside setting located along the prestigious Palos Verdes Peninsula.
I have no recipe to share today. I simply want to take a moment to thank you for your kindness over the years. Your enthusiasm, encouragement, and interest are huge motivating factors. Nothing makes my day more than hearing from you – that you tried one of my recipes and loved it! And not only did you cook my dish, you took the time out of your busy day to let me know. How cool is that? You rock.
Not knowing how to link a website, nor understanding that I should actually say something about the meal, I naively thought Taste With The Eyes would be a blog about food and restaurant photos. I’ve learned a lot since then. I never realized how this little project could lead to making friends all over the world, all the fun to be had, and all the skills I would acquire. It has been such a sweet experience. So, the theme for the anniversary is “blogging is sweet” and since desserts are few and far between here, as I am definitely a savory gal, I thought I would share a few shots of Chef Perry’s house made gelato bars taken at Terranea Resort’s Sea Beans restaurant.
It is my hope that Taste With The Eyes continues to inspire you just as reading your blogs and hearing your comments inspires me. I’m grateful for the people this blog has brought into my life. It has turned into quite a passion over the past seven years! As a direct result of blogging, I am now a food writer and photographer for a local paper, I photograph food for a world-class resort, and have my Korean recipes featured weekly in the Korea Herald Business.감사합니다 K-Herald! And who knows what fabulous people I shall meet and what fabulous opportunities lie ahead? I hope our paths cross soon and often. It is an honor and pleasure to know each and every one of you.
Merci Beaucoup.
Your Friend, Lori Lynn
Vanilla Bean Gelato Bars
“The pleasures of the table, and of life, are infinite – toujours bon appétit!” -Julia Child
Strawberry Gelato Bars
“ I want the amateur diner to enjoy the food as much as the connoisseur.” -Charlie Trotter
“Those who pay careful attention to their taste buds will discover in the complex flavor of asparagus, tomatoes, cheese and meat, a common and yet absolutely singular taste which cannot be called sweet, or sour, or salty, or bitter…” – Dr. Kikunae Ikeda
Eighth International Congress of Applied Chemistry, Washington D.C., 1912
You recognize it in the meaty taste of a sizzling rib-eye steak hot off the grill. Beyond salty, you sense it in the savory tastes of aged Parmesan and cured anchovies on a Caesar salad. Beyond sweet, your mouth waters over the flavor of a warm ripe heirloom tomato picked right off the vine.
Can you taste it yet? In addition to sweet, sour, salty and bitter…it’s umami, the fifth taste sensed by the human tongue.
Umami is defined as the savory taste and round mouth-feel imparted by glutamate and nucleotides such as inosinate and guanylate.
Over a century after its discovery, there is a huge fascination with this fifth taste because understanding the science behind umami can help cooks create more luscious dishes and help foodies better appreciate their meal.
“The mountains were my backyard and the sea was my front yard,” reminisces Chef Bernard Ibarra about growing up in France’s Basque Country.
The Chef has cooked in France, North America, and Asia. Before landing in the Southern California last summer, he worked in Las Vegas for 15 years as Executive Chef at the prestigious Mirage and Aria resorts. Although he loves Vegas, he had longed to be near the sea again. Now he’s come full-circle, with the hills of Palos Verdes at his back and the expansive blue Pacific at his feet.
“It looks very much like where I was raised, except with better weather,” he chuckles.
Imagine his delight to now be the Executive Chef at the coastal Terranea Resort and our good fortune to have this world-class chef cooking in our “backyard.”
Last week, Executive Chef Bernard Ibarra led an exceptionally talented team to kick off the “Chef’s Cooking Series” at Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. The farm-to-table dinner series features an interactive evening with Terranea’s chefs. It was my honor and pleasure to be invited as food photographer for the night. The chefs were awesome, the staff couldn’t have been more gracious, and the food was remarkable in flavor, variety, and creativity.
It began with a cocktail and hors d’oeuvres reception followed by the chef cooking demonstrations where we learned how to prepare items on the evening’s menu. After the demonstrations, diners were seated at a beautiful long table on a patio for an alfresco three-course meal with wine pairing. Guests received recipe cards and special gift items to recreate the experience at home.
For each event in the series, Terranea is partnering with a different non-profit organization, this first dinner – a Coastal Harvest menu theme – benefitted Los Angeles No Kid Hungry. The next event will showcase a Spring Bounty menu theme on March 20, 2014 – featuring wines by Grgich Hills and benefitting the American Red Cross.
