Cravings: Brooklyn chef helps launch Culinary Institute’s new dinner series

Though chef-restaurateur Edward Lee seems a world away from Hawaii — he hails from Brooklyn, N.Y., and has opened restaurants in Washington, D.C., and Louisville, Ky. — his signature cuisine is reminiscent of the mixed and multi-ethnic way we eat here: He melds Asian and Southern ingredients to create soulful food with influences from his Korean heritage.

Lee will be in town for two dining events that will launch the Culinary Institute of the Pacific’s Ignite Dinner and Conversation Series, which focuses on culinary innovation and education. Both events will be held at the institute.

>> Nov. 16: Dinner Under the Stars, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on the institute lawn, features a five-course meal that includes compressed watermelon with KY Country Ham; pickled shrimp and grits; duck confit with smoked maitake mushrooms and fried kabocha; smoked and braised beef short ribs; and chess pie with green tea powder. Cost is $125.

>> Nov. 17: Chef’s Table Dinner, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the institute’s new culinary lab, will seat just 24 guests for a five-course meal, along with a predinner cocktail and hands-on activity led by Lee. Guests will make the chef’s famous BBQ Bacon Trail Mix and receive a copy of his book, “Buttermilk Graffiti: A Chef’s Journey to Discover America’s New Melting Pot Cuisine.” Master sommelier Patrick Okubo will pour four wines and a bourbon selection to go with the meal. Cost is $225.

Lee is owner of Succotash restaurants in Washington, D.C., and Maryland, and 610 Magnolia, MilkWood and Whiskey Dry in Louisville. He was featured on PBS’ Emmy Award-winning series “The Mind of a Chef” in 2014.

RESTAURANT WEEK HONORS LEGACY OF LATE FOUNDER

This has been a tough year for folks connected to the Culinary Institute of the Pacific at Diamond Head, site of Hawaii’s advanced culinary program. In June, the institute’s longtime director, Conrad Nonaka, died. Nonaka dedicated years to planning and building the institute. Its first phase opened last year.

Nonaka was also instrumental in launching Restaurant Week Hawai‘i, a 10-day event featuring dozens of Hawaii restaurants offering prix-fixe menus and discounts. A benefit for the institute, Restaurant Week also shines a light on Hawaii’s dynamic culinary scene. This year, the event runs Friday through Nov. 18.

Eateries participating are diverse, from Foodland Farms and Dunkin’ Donuts, to Paina Cafe and Piggy Smalls, to Hoku’s and Senia.

To honor Nonaka, Alan Wong’s is featuring a four-course menu that includes Chef de Cuisine Paul Matsumoto’s interpretation of oxtail soup, one of Nonaka’s favorite dishes. A surf-and-turf dish recalls an entree Nonaka enjoyed while traveling with Wong, one of his closest friends. For dessert, lilikoi chiffon pie is a nod to what Nonaka, also a chef and restaurateur, served at his own Kauai restaurant many years ago.

At Hank’s Haute Dogs, chef Hank Adaniya honors Nonaka, whom he calls “a man with great vision,” with his Restaurant Week offering, Truffle Cheese HankBurger. The decadent assemblage comprises a third-pound of beef, char-grilled and served with Hank’s truffle cheese sauce, bacon, onion, lettuce and tomato.

First-time participants include Appetito Craft Pizza & Wine Bar, Hau Tree Lanai, Japanese B.B.Q. Yoshi and Yield.

To see the lineup of participating restaurants and their special menus, visit restaurantweekhawaii.com.

— Joleen Oshiro, Star-Advertiser

A LITTLE EXTRA CRUNCH

Cristina Nishioka sought to honor her grandmother with a cookie.

A chocolate chip cookie with kakimochi, specifically, and it won the My Cookie Corner Creation Recipe Contest.

The Kaimuki resident won a trip for two to Las Vegas, but perhaps more important, her cookie is now for sale at Cookie Corner locations with a portion of sales, up to $5,000, going to Nishioka’s charity of choice, the Society of Women Engineers’ Mae Nakatani Nishioka Scholarship Fund.

The fund honors Cristina Nishi­oka’s grandmother, Hawaii’s first female engineer.

The Kakimochi Crunch cookies combine Ghirardelli chocolate chips with bits of arare. It will be available for six to eight more weeks at the 14 Cookie Corner locations on Oahu.