Mosaic

Issue date: 3/23/06 Section: Entertainment

Media Credit: Kerin Lazzaro Martin El-Sahen

Newport is currently celebrating Irish Heritage month. In honor of St. Patrick, local restaurants and organizations are participating in Irish festivities. The Festival of Fine Food is a tasty event welcoming chefs from Newport's sister city, Kinsale, Ireland. The local restaurants included in this year's affair are Café Zelda, The Windward Restaurant at the Newport Hyatt Regency, La Forge Casino Restaurant and Buskers Irish Restaurant. The event is sponsored by many organizations such as the Preservation Society of Newport County, Jameson Irish Whisky and Murphy's Irish Stout.

This year Callahan's Café Zelda hosted Martin El-Sahen of Restaurant d'Antibes at The White House in Kinsale, Ireland. This was El-Sahen's first trip to the states. He said, "I would definitely come back here again." El-Sahen was a big fan of the snow. He hasn't seen it in awhile because it does not usually snow in Ireland. He describes the people as "friendly, nice and really hospitable."

El-Sahen was born in London and moved to Ireland at the age of 14. He has quite a strong British accent. As an early teen, El-Sahen decided that he wanted to be a chef. He "pot washed" on the weekends, so he spent a lot of time in the kitchen. "My first experience with cooking was actually opening oysters," said El-Sahen.

The Irish chef did not have much time to taste the American cuisine during his stay in the United States. He was busy preparing food in the kitchen of Café Zelda with executive chef, John Philcox. Some of the dishes they arranged were Dubliner Leek and Cashel Blue Tart, Irish Smoked Salmon, Herb-Crusted Cod Sauté and Chocolate Stout Spice Cake with Murphy's Stout ice cream for dessert.

Next October, Philcox and Zelda's owner, Tom Callahan, will travel to Kinsale to celebrate the food festival in Ireland. The Irish chefs told the men to prepare themselves because the event is a bigger deal in Ireland, the whole town participates. Callahan nicknamed El-Sahen "The Naked Chef" during his stay in Newport. When asked how he received that nickname, El-Sahen laughs and says, "No comment."

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