 SPECIAL ROYAL VISIT 2005
Royal Ambrosia
REGINA - It's not everyday that a chef has the honour of cooking for The Queen. To earn the privilege, they need to know more than how to make bangers and mash and Yorkshire pudding. An impressive list of credentials and oodles of experience is the recipe.
Last week, the Queen kicked off the province's Centennial celebrations. Select chefs, caterers and restaurants were given the rare honour of cooking up some Saskatchewan hospitality. Here is a peak at what it's like to cook and serve Her Majesty.
Private Chef for a Day or Two
Queen's Private Dinner Menu
Radisson Plaza-Hotel Saskatchewan
Prepared by Executive Chef David Flegel
Tues May 17, 2005
Mizuno and Frisée Lettuce Salad with Simple Vinaigrette
*
Pan-Fried Zest-Coated Lake Diefenbaker Steelhead Trout, Parsley Buttered Parisienne Potatoes, Sautéed Julienne of Root Vegetables and Balsamic Reduction
Wed May 18, 2005
Tomato & Arugula Salad with Olive oil
*
Prairie Sage and Pepper-Rubbed Grilled Saskatchewan Beef Tenderloin, Mashed Maple Syrup-Enhanced Sweet Potato, Grilled Romaine Lettuce Hearts and Canadian Whiskey Sauce
Thurs May 19, 2005
Mango and Mixed Green Napoleon with Mint and Basil with a Lemon Vinaigrette
*
Roast Prairie Lamb Chops, Buffalo Narrows Wild Rice Cake with Fresh Herb Sauce, Oven-Roasted Tomatoes and Asparagus
No Appetizer or dessert were served.
|
Several months ago, after pre-screening his resumé, the Assistant the Master of the Household, Andrew Farquarson, crossed the pond to interview the Hotel Saskatchewan's Executive Chef David Flegel. Since graduating from the Culinary Institute of Canada in 1987, Chef Flegel has travelled the world preparing food in the finest hotels and even at a Michelin two-star restaurant. He cooked for President Clinton and other world leaders and even The Queen. During her visit to Canada in 1988, although a cook at the time under Executive Chef Fred Zimmerman at the Westin Hotel in Calgary, he remembers the appetizer that was served - smoked trout with a saffron mayonnaise garnished with two chives. Chef Flegel passed the test, and according to Farquarson, was found to be more than capable so it was deemed not necessary for the Royal Chef to accompany The Queen to Saskatchewan.
During a tête-à-tête, Farquarson and Chef Flegel reviewed The Queen's itinerary as well as her likes and dislikes. "The Queen pretty much likes everything," says Chef Flegel. "However, we were specifically requested not to make Roast beef and Yorkshire Pudding, and not to serve seafood, strawberries and nothing spicy."
A daily private menu for the Queen and Prince Phillip (no public functions were held at the hotel) was drafted by Chef Flegel, where he included appetizers, main courses and desserts. But the returned revised menu specifically omitted all appetizers and desserts, and requested that a small salad be served at every meal. "She is very pleased to see creativity, but really she doesn't want fancy, high-society presentations. She and The Duke just want well-prepared food," he says.
The Queen is keen to taste local specialties so Chef Flegel personally prepared many Saskatchewan-grown product for her, including Lake Diefenbaker steelhead trout, Buffalo Narrows wild rice, and Prairie lamb chops.
The Queen dislikes any kind of waste, so everything was served in small portions. For example, one lunch included an oven-roasted grain mustard marinated Saskatchewan free-range chicken breast, which was not more than 3 oz. For the most part, The Queen's private menu was very straight forward, except for cooking her meat. As Chef Flegel normally serves meat rare to medium, cooking to that degree of doneness proved somewhat trying.
Cooking with a Stop Watch
Cooking and serving for a public function differs markedly from serving The Queen privately. For public appearances, the royal couple's schedule is measured exactly and chefs time their meals accordingly. Delays and early arrivals can wreak havoc in the kitchen. "It was a little hair raising when we learned that The Queen would be arriving fifteen minutes early," says Executive Chef Leo Pantel of the Saskatchewan Centre of the Arts. But, a pro at maintaining schedules, The Queen chatted with guests longer to make up for her early entry, allowing the kitchen time to put the last touches on the canapés they had prepared for the Government of Canada sponsored luncheon.
Royalty has dined in the past at the Saskatchewan Centre of the Arts, so Chef Pantel and his team were very familiar with demands and expectations. "We had a federal health inspector from Ottawa in the kitchen the whole time," says Chef Pantel. "Everyone here has the proper food safety training, so it wasn't a problem." The inspector took samples and tested temperatures of everything that was served to The Queen.
Cider Glazed Salmon
With an Apple and Leek Nage, Celery Root and Potato Quenelles
Served at Government of Canada Luncheon
at the Saskatchewan Centre of the Arts
Prepared by Executive Chef Leo Pantel
Friday May 20, 2005
Recipe
|
Chef Pantel prepared a lovely menu which started with a Terrine of B.C. Wild Mushrooms with Baby Curly Endive, Fromage Blanc, and White Truffle Essence followed by a main course of Cider Glazed Salmon with an Apple and Leek Nage, Celery Root and Potato Quennelles. People are still raving about the salmon served that afternoon. "It was the best meal I've ever had the Centre," recalls Nicki Makris, owner of Nicki's Café and Bake Shop.
Don't think about daudling over your food when dining with The Queen. Service and portion sizes are dictated by her wishes and preferences. For example, dishes are small. At the Government of Canada Luncheon, the Passionfruit dessert was made 2" in diameter for The Queen and the head table, and 3" for everyone else. But sitting at the head table does have its perks. At this event, each of the twenty people was assigned one server. "It was really something to see twenty servers arrive at the head table to serve at exactly the same time," says Chef Pantel. The Queen takes the first bite and once she's finished, her plate is removed and so is everyone else's. Each course proceeds the same way. If you haven't finished in time and still feel your tummy rumbling, consider stopping at your favorite restaurant on the way home.
Following in Her Father's Footsteps
During the Queen's stay here, she requested to visit a small rural Saskatchewan town. In 1939 King George apparently visited Lumsden, so a Provincial Centennial Community Luncheon was held at the Lumsden Arena in her honour. Chefs Greg Quarrie and Fuzum Mesghinna of Randy Kuntz Catering prepared a cold plate that included a Wild Rice Salad of smoked turkey, julienne peppers, green onion topped with a Greek dressing served in a radiccio lettuce leaf. Alongside was sliced roast beef, breast of chicken with sweet chili sauce, assorted cheeses, pickles and olives. The Herb Garden Café, thanks to an impressive reputation for their baking, provided the dessert - a White Chocolate Unbaked Cheesecake on a white chocolate cake base, topped with a Saskatoon berry mousse. Nestled next to the dessert was an exquisite Prairie lily, which was moulded of sugar and air brushed.
 Owner Linda Little is still high from the experience. "I still wonder how it all happened," she says. "We designed this dessert especially for The Queen. It took about a month to get the look that we wanted." The lilies took hours and hours to make, says Little, but the colours of the orange lily, the purple mousse, the white cake and green mint leaf were striking. "We were very pleased with the result." And the public was clearly were taken with the garnish. Not a single lily was left in the arena and many asked for extras to bring home as a keepsake.
Breakfast - Wholesome and Simple
The typical Canadian breakfast of bacon and eggs won't get the royal nod of approval from the Queen. Buttery French croissants and sweet Danishes won't either. Instead a simple continental breakfast of warm milk, natural yogurt, whole wheat and white toast with salted butter, Muslix or All-Brand, fruit and tea and coffee, is enough to send The Queen off for a morning of Royal duties. Atkins might not approve, but with The Queen nearing 80 and The Duke 83, they must be doing something right.
A Break with Protocol
When you're The Queen, you're allowed to break any rule you want, including your own. It's highly unusual for anyone, other than The Queen's staff to have access to her but during this visit, a select few from the hotel staff were permitted to serve her in the Royal suite. "The Queen told us that she wouldn't mind seeing other faces apart from her pages," says Chef Flegel. "This was far from normal," says Marcus Ellam, Director of Operations at the Hotel. "We were very honoured."
Roast Prairie Lamb Chops,
Buffalo Narrows Wild Rice Cake
with Fresh Herb Sauce,
Oven-Roasted Tomatoes and Asparagus
Served to the Queen in the Royal Suite at Radisson Plaza-Hotel Saskatchewan
Prepared by Executive Chef David Flegel
Thursday May 19, 2005
Recipe
|
About 30 minutes prior to dinner, which was eaten at around 8 pm, hotel staff would lay the table and return at precisely the required time for service. A quick buzz via an electronic paging system summoned the staff to enter and the meal was carried into the Royal dining room and presented to The Queen and The Duke. Gloved staff lifted off the high silver domes to display the salad and main course, both presented on Wedgewood china. Even though The Queen had approved the menu months earlier, each dish was described in detail for the couple. No wine was served. The staff then exited and waited until the couple had completed their meal. A short while later, the plates were cleared and both were served a cup of coffee, The Queen's with sweetener, The Duke's with raw sugar.
Tea Fit for a Queen
Tea is sacrosanct for The Queen and she brings her own Royal blend with her when she travels abroad. Itineraries almost always include scheduled private time for her, as well as her staff, to stop and sip a spot of tea around 5 pm. "We knew that tea was a very important time to her, so we got very fussy," says Gilles Gobin, Executive Pastry Chef at the Hotel Saskatchewan. "Each day I made something different for her," he says. Bite-sized scones were baked in various flavours - currant, cheese, poppyseed with lemon zest, and served with Devonshire Cream; small eclairs, tiny fruit tarts, lacy Brandy snap purses, and pretty dainties. Gobin would spend hours decorating the petit fours with flowers and chocolate bows so they would ressemble beautiful tiny gift boxes too pretty to taste.
Chocolate-Almond Petit Fours
This recipe is for one of the small dainties served to The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh at tea time.
Prepared by Executive Pastry Chef Gilles Gobin
Radisson Plaza-Hotel Saskatchewan
Recipe
|
Executive Chef David Flegel took over preparing the finger sandwiches. The Queen likes her bread sliced quite thin, so white and whole wheat bread were cut while frozen to ensure ultra-thin slices. The bread was then filled with cucumber and watercress, smoked salmon and cream cheese, roast beef and horseradish, and egg salad.
Presentation is paramount and Chefs Flegel and Gobin ensured that the plates looked beautiful. "It really looked like a true British magazine-style of high tea," says Chef Gobin.
Turn-down chocolates were also specially made for The Queen and The Duke for bedtime. "We bought special moulds just for them," remembers Chef Gobin. He and Chef Flegel made some special chocolates including a dark chocolate filling of Saskatoon berries and milk chocolate.
It's high stress baking for the Queen and even the most seasoned chef can have his moments. "The hardest thing was to cut her butter perfectly into pats. We ordered in salted butter just for her. Her staff told us she wanted pats, not curls, not rosettes. That was my most challenging moment," Chef Gobin says. If the knife was too hot, the butter melted, too cold and the butter crumbled. "The night before she arrived. My dog woke me up and I couldn't get back to sleep thinking about how to make things perfect. If I was going to bake her a croissant, it was going to be the perfect croissant."
Saskatchewan Specialies Grace the Plate
During her stay in Saskatchewan, Her Highness enjoyed many Saskatchewan-made products. Over The Hill Orchards in Lumsden supplied a large quantity of their Prairie Cherry Chocolates. "The Office of Protocol contacted us to supply chocolates for the Queen's visit after they sampled some of our chocolates that I delivered to the office in January," says owner Dean Kreutzer. They supplied eight boxes of eight chocolates and two boxes of four chocolates for The Queen and her entourage as well as 675 chocolates for the luncheon in Lumsden. These cherries, some of which were donated by fruit breeder Dr. Bob Bors of the University of Saskatchewan, were individually wrapped in the centennial colours of light blue, yellow and red. "My mother and my grandmother helped us with the huge job of wrapping the chocolates, which took approximately 17 man hours of labour. I gave the honour of wrapping The Queen's specific chocolates to my grandmother ...it was so cute to see how more diligent she became when wrapping that particular chocolate!" Kreutzer is still pinching himself at the honour of having The Queen sample his product. "It is still hard to believe that The Queen actually had one of our chocolates!"
The Bushwakker Brewpub was the unofficial supplier of beer for the Royal couple. Brewer Dave Rudge remembers stocking the couples frig with their Palliser Porter, Sodbuster Brown, and their specialty Centennial Wheat Wine. "This is a very new style of beer that not many breweries attempt to make," says Rudge. "It's actually an aperatif similar in style to our Strathdee Barley Wine." Rudge specially bottled the beer for Prince Phillip that morning. Ingredients were totally locally grown - local wheat, barley from Prairie Malting Company in Biggar, and Lumsden honey. "This beer pours like a Saskatchewan sunset," he beams. And apparently The Queen agreed, making favourable comments about the colour of the beer as it was being poured. This beer will be released to the public on the labour day weekend with a beer release party. The Bushwakker also provided its Sodbuster Brown, Palliser Porter, and Bombay IPA for the luncheon in Lumsden.
A Crown Jewel in a Chef's Hat
 If you're lucky enough to get a private audience with The Queen, do not speak unless spoken to, do not shake her hand, and never ask a question that requires an answer. Such was the protocol when Her Majesty requested a private audience with general manager, Marla Preston of the Hotel and four other hotel staff. The Queen and Prince Phillip met with Chef Flegel on the day of their departure, told him that everything was very lovely and thanked him very much. As thanks, he was presented with a signed photograph of her and Prince Phillip.
It's a honour to cook for royalty, but to cook for a reigning monarch is the crown jewel in a chef's hat. "It was obviously an exciting time for me and everyone in the kitchen. It was a pleasure to serve them." says Chef Flegel. "What amazes me is how you study British Royalty as a child growing up and all of the sudden you're in the midst of serving a person you've always studied. It's really quite something," says Chef Gobin. "It was a honour to be considered and chosen," says Chef Pantel. "It was the pinnacle of my career."
|