It's no secret to Coloradoans that Boulder is burgeoning on culinary superstardom; now the rest of America knows it too. Two Boulder chefs— Hosea Rosenberg of Jax and Melissa Harrison of Centro —competed in one of the top-rated food shows on television, season 5 of "Top Chef." Metromix spoke with the pair about their favorite local restaurants, on-air hook-ups and why winning the reality show takes a backseat to cheese.
Let's see how much Top Chef means to you. If you could be guaranteed the title of "Top Chef," but could never again eat cheese, what would you do?
Hosea: Oh God, that's really tough because I love cheese. I'll probably eat more than $100,000 (one of the prizes) worth of cheese in my life so...gosh, honestly I don't know. I think I'd have to choose the cheese.
Melissa: I'd eat cheese. I love my experience and I thank Bravo for everything - the experience they've given me and the chance they've given me - but I mean, man, I could never give up cheese.
So what's it like to be a local celebrity? Are you guys getting mobbed everywhere you go?
H: Yeah, it's really starting to happen now. It's kind of cool. It won't last, so I'm kind of laughing at myself now. People are making a big deal out of meeting me, but I'm not that big of a deal.
M: You know, some days are different than others. Sometimes people don't recognize you and then sometimes everyone and their brother recognizes you. It depends where you are.
How did you prepare for the show? Did you practice using weird ingredients or super-fast cooking?
M: You're so engrossed in your own world, your restaurant and you kind of ...there's nothing really you can do to prepare except for try new things. I read a couple new books, and I tried a couple different ideas and put different things on the menu, different specials and things like that, but you're so busy with your restaurant and your life that it's hard to really put in that time. As a chef, you're just always trying new things and always working on new ideas in your head.
H: I didn't really prepare for the show. I cook every day; it's my job. There's no real way to know what they're going to have you do. I didn't get much notice that I was going; I just got this phone call and there wasn't much time before I left.
What's your favorite local ingredient to cook with?
H: Colorado peaches in the summer.
M: I couldn't really name just one. In Colorado we're so fortunate to have so many farmers and local purveyors. I think Colorado peaches and lamb. I eat a lot of fruits and vegetables in my diet and I think the Colorado peaches are so amazing.
We're obsessed with Velveeta Shells n' Cheese. What's your guilty pleasure food that as a top chef you really shouldn't admit to liking?
M: Everyone loves mac n' cheese! My favorite guilty pleasure food? A lot of them! I eat a lot of candy.
H: Chili cheese Fritos. Bags and bags of those.
What are your favorite restaurants in Denver/Boulder area?
H: I really like Brasserie Ten Ten, which is just around the corner. I go there a lot. There's a lot of places I go-it totally depends on the mood I'm in. A lot of little hole in the wall places. I love Chez Thuy if I'm doing Asian food. I had a Deli Zone sandwich - they make great breakfast sandwiches. I always love Sushi Den, it's one of my favorite places to go for sushi.
M: Obviously all the Big Red F restaurants [Hosea is executive chef at Jax and Melissa was sous chef at Centro]! I love Lola, Jax, West End, Zolo and Centro. In Denver I really like J's Noodles- it's a little Thai place on Federal. In Boulder, Papusa's. And we're opening a new restaurant called Happy Noodle House (835 Walnut, Boulder), and I'm really excited about that.
Yeah, that's your new gig right?
M: I'll be the sous chef and James van Dyke will be the executive chef, so I'm really excited. It will probably open in about a week.
What's the best restaurant no one is going to?
H: That might be Black Cat. I really love Eric Skokan's food, and it just seems like every time I go in there it's empty. But he just really does a great job with the food.
Any favorite local bars up there in Boulder?
H: The Attic.
M: I love the Attic, I love the Sundowner— they're two of my favorites, and Round Midnight. I love the way Boulder is all a community - and the restaurant community especially - that we all help each other out and work together, and it's a big friend/family group.
If you were stuck on a deserted island, would you rather your companion be Emeril or Anthony Bourdain?
M: Anthony Bourdain! That's an easy answer. He's traveled the world, he'd have some ideas of what to do, how to survive. He knows how to open a coconut, he knows how to build a fire. Nothing against Emeril, but I would pick Anthony Bourdain.
H: Bourdain, for sure. I just think Bourdain and I would have more in common than Emeril and I. Not that I have anything against Emeril, but I think I'd have more fun with Bourdain.
So since we're Metromix and we're into the gossip, I have to ask about Leah. Do you guys still talk? Is there any chance of a Top Chef wedding?
H: I don't see a wedding in the near future, but we are still friends and we still really like each other. But we're buddies. We got through this really emotional thing together that definitely impacted our lives while we were on Top Chef, and even moreso when we got home, and then I had to deal with it. But we're cool, we're friends still.
OK so no wedding, but indulge me anyway. Which Top Chef contestant would you most like to cater your hypothetical wedding?
H: Richard Blaze would be the one I'd pick. He would be really wild with the food he'd come up with.
Speaking of your fellow contestants, is Jeff as pretty in person as he looks on TV?
H: Yeah, Jeff's beautiful.
If you could have dinner with anyone— alive or dead —would you have the Caesar or house salad?
M: I would order the house salad. You know why, though? I have a reason. The house salad is different everywhere you go and the Caesar is pretty much the same.
H: I'd have the Caesar.
