Server: Netscape-Communications/1.1 Date: Thursday, 18-Dec-97 00:05:12 GMT Set-Cookie: Am_UserId=8002ce4a0b1c49cd; path=/; expires=1/1/2001 Last-modified: Wednesday, 03-Dec-97 18:48:20 GMT Content-length: 9595 Content-type: text/html Whirlpool: Really Cookin': Around the World

 

Robert Anderson of the Ahwahnee Hotel

Considered one of America's most distinctive hotels, the Ahwahnee is a great American castle nestled in the middle of Yosemite Valley, California. Massive and warm, with huge cathedral ceilings and enormous stone hearths, the hotel was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987. Every year, hundreds of thousands travel to Yosemite National Park and the Ahwahnee to enjoy the breathtaking scenery and to sample refined cuisine prepared by the Ahwahnee's Executive Chef, Robert Anderson. A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Chef Anderson supervises a staff of 60. He is also responsible for all the food served at the hotel's special events, including the Ahwahnee's famed Bracebridge Dinner.

An 18th Century English Christmas
A pageant held each Christmas, the Bracebridge Dinner is adapted from descriptions in Washington Irving's "Sketch Book" of a Christmas Day in 1718 at Squire Bracebridge's Old English Manor. At the Ahwahnee, the main dining room serves as the dining hall at Squire Bracebridge's Manor. It's decorated with elaborate wreaths and massive banners all displaying Yuletide traditions. The entire dining room is a stage for the Bracebridge dinner performance. Chimes and heraldic trumpets announce the arrival of Squire Bracebridge and his family at the great hall. The Bracebridge Singers, the Lord of Misrule (a jester/juggler), a band of villagers, along with the Squire and his family all entertain the 1,675 guests accommodated during the five, three-hour dinner pageants.

What is the holiday menu you prepare for your guests at the Ahwahnee?
The Bracebridge menu is far from typical. Menu selections from past years have included dishes from caviar, ragout of duck and pheasant in a puff pastry with chestnuts, roasted tenderloin of beef with cabernet sage au jus, along with a traditional plum pudding. Every time I sample an interesting entree, I think of ways that I could change it to make it better or slightly different.

What type of planning goes into the preparations for the Ahwahnee's Bracebridge Dinner?
I finish writing the Bracebridge menu by the end of August. Before that, I'm on the phone with my suppliers to explain the ingredients I'm looking for. When the Bracebridge event draws near, I sit down with my staff to explain what will take place. The Bracebridge event is a race against the clock because there is a limited window of time -- five minutes -- in which everything has to be ready to be presented to the guests all at the same time.

What is the most challenging task you face as the Executive Chef of the Ahwahnee?
Our remote location in Yosemite Valley plays a large part in our operations. At times it's a challenge to get our staff members and necessary ingredients to the hotel. Through the years, I've faced numerous uncontrollable events that have disrupted production. We have had 70 to 80 mph winds roar through the valley, forest fires and floods. But that's part of signing on at a hotel located in the middle of a National Park.

Where do you get your inspiration?
I am continuously thinking about food. I eat out a lot and spend time reading food trade publications. My wife and I also travel to various cities to sample the culinary delicacies that other cities have to offer. I always say a person is able to "steal with their eyes." Being out and about also helps. Living in such a beautiful environment helps to clear my head which is when I come up with my best ideas.

Sample recipes from Executive Chef, Robert Anderson:

Minestrone of Lobster
Wilted Escarole
Chocolate and Hazelnut Biscotti


More recipes check back to last year's holiday menus:

Chef Malouf from New York's Rainbow Room
Harriet Roth's Tempting Chanukah Feast

More Cooking Around the World with Whirlpool

Recipe Archive


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