September 2012 is shaping up to be quite an exciting month at GW Fins! This weekend and next, we are contributing our fresh seafood dishes to local fundraising events in and around New Orleans. At the end of the month, Chef Tenney is heading northwest (temporarily, of course) to spread the GW Fins love for Louisiana Seafood to Seattle!

At GW Fins, it’s no secret that FRESH is the cornerstone of our operations. To maintain the highest possible standard of freshness, we work with trusted companies all over the map to deliver us the freshest seafood every single day. Take, for example, the New Bedford Sea Scallops…

New Bedford, Massachusetts is just over 1,500 miles away from GW Fins Restaurant in New Orleans. Yet, the scallops we serve on any given day are picked that very morning… Chef Mike Nelson explains the daily process -

Here…take a closer look…

At GW Fins, we literally go the extra mile to ensure that the food we serve on a daily basis is the ultimate freshest seafood possible – in this case over extra 1,500 miles! We go through this process daily with all of our seafood to deliver you the best of the freshest.

We go through all of that just to make sure you enjoy every last bite of this -

ICE CREAM
¹/₂ gallon Vanilla Bean ice cream
¹/₂ cup Malted Milk Powder
¹/₃ cup burned caramel (below)
¹/₂ tbsp. salt
³/₄ cup whipped cream

BURNED CARAMEL
¹/₂ cup Sugar
¹/₄ cup water
¹/₃ cup heavy cream

CRUST
¹/₃ bag of pretzels, crushed
¹/₃ lb. brown sugar
¹/₃ cup flour
¹/₃ cup (¹/₂ medium brown butter & ¹/₂ melted butter)

TO MAKE ICE CREAM:
- Beat ice cream with paddle until creamy & smooth. *Do not over-mix or let melt
- Slowly add malted milk powder until incorporated
- Add salt
- Slowly add caramel. Try to swirl into ice cream.
- Fold in whipped cream to lighten
- Put into pie tins, cover, freeze

TO MAKE CRUST:
- Crush pretzels in food processor
- Mix the rest of the ingredients together and spread onto pie tin(s)

At GW Fins, we go for whipped cream, chocolate-covered pretzels, and caramel drizzle on top to serve!

INGREDIENTS FOR BREAD PUDDING
¹/₂ lb. French bread, cut 1″ cubes
¹/₂ lb. White Chocolate, cut ¹/₂ dice
¹/₄ lb. Dark Chocolate, cubed ¹/₄ x ¹/₄
1 stick butter
1 c. sugar
6 oz. milk
8 oz. cream
7 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
¹/₂ c. pecan halves

CARAMEL INGREDIENTS
¹/₂ c. water
1 c. sugar
3 oz. water (not to be confused with the ¹/₂ c. listed above!)

Serves 8

TO PREPARE
- Cut and weigh the French bread. Then dry in a 275° oven until crisp with no color. Reserve.
- Cut the dark chocolate into ¹/₄” chunks

TO MAKE BREAD PUDDING MIXTURE
- Place cream, milk, butter, and ¹/₂ cup of sugar in a thick-bottomed saucepan and bring to a simmer. Remove from the heat and add the white chocolate. Stir until melted.
- Mix together the eggs, remaining ¹/₂ cup of sugar, and the vanilla extract. Whisk into the hot cream mixture.
- Place in a deep hotel pan and refrigerate. When the custard is cold, add dried bread, dark chocolate, and pecans.

TO MAKE CARAMEL
- Bring ¹/₂ cup of water to a boil in a large sauce pot and add 1 cup sugar.
- Do not stir and continue to cook on high heat until sugar is medium-brown – about 340°
- Remove from heat and gradually add the 3 oz. of water in a thin stream, stirring constantly. *Chef Mike says to drizzle this water into the caramel slowly from a distance and then back off quickly!
- Reserve.
(Unused part may be refrigerated)

TO BAKE
- Spray 8 coffee cups with Vegaline and pour in 1 oz. of caramalized sugar
- Fill to the top with bread pudding mixture and bake in water bath at 325° for about 45 mintues, or until an interior temperature of 170° is reached.

TO SERVE
- Drizzle extra caramel on serving plates
- Invert coffee cups of bread pudding onto plates
- Serve with whipped cream
- ENJOY!!

*Before you get started! Here is a word from our wise Chef Mike Nelson…
“We only use French bread from here in New Orleans; using French bread from anywhere else gives the bread pudding a slightly different consistency for some reason. There’s something about the airy-ness of French bread from New Orleans that makes this recipe just right.”

September was such an exciting month at GW Fins! We contributed to local fundraising events around town, featured a wonderfully tasty assortment of fresh Maine Lobster dishes in the restaurant, and sent Chef Tenney Flynn off to Seattle to teach the culinary crew a thing or two about Louisiana cooking aboard the
Seattle-based USS Louisiana.

While he was in the Northwest, Chef Tenney also appeared on Seattle’s local morning show, King 5 New Day Northwest, to demonstrate how to prepare Louisiana Shrimp…NOLA BBQ style, of course! For a look back at all the fun we had last month, check out our September 2012 Flickr album.

Now we turn the page into October, which brings even more fun and fresh fish. Every Saint’s homegame, we open at 4 PM! We welcome all to feast on delicious seafood on game-days, or watch the game while you enjoy drinks and cuisine in our bar area!

The October/November issue of Garden & Gun Magazine has a special food feature on Chef Tenney and his famous Smoked Sizzling Oysters! Speaking of our Sizzing Smoked Oysters, they are set to make a come back on our menus within the next 2-3 weeks!

Stay tuned to GW Fins’ announcements, news, and special seafood features by Liking us on Facebook and Following us on Twitter!

Call (504) 581-FINS or CLICK HERE to make your reservation at GW Fins today!

On November 1^st, Chef Tenney Flynn flew in 25 pounds of perfectly fresh, never frozen Alaskan King Crabs. Within mere hours of putting the word out, all 25 pounds of the sweet, succulent crustacean were all sold out!

The season is very short, but very sweet, so if you missed the boat on reserving your fresh Alaskan King Crab meal at GW Fins this year, there is always next!

And until then, you may feast your eyes on the photo below – Chef Tenney served the crabs chilled with spicy blue crab slaw and Creole mustard cream…

The 2012 Oak Street Po Boy Preservation Festival was a great success over at the GW Fins tent! We were having fun selling (literally) thousands of Fried Maine Lobster Po Boys from 10:30am until 5:15pm.

We want to thank everyone for waiting so patiently in that long line to get their GW Fins’ Lobster Po Boy fill for the day. We had so much fun out on Oak St. serving all the hungry patrons, so eager to get their hands on the Fried Lobster Po Boy!

This year, we ran a social media contest offering a $50 GW Fins gift certificate to the person who takes the BEST Fried Lobster Po Boy photo and shares it to Instagram or Twitter by tagging #gwfins. There were so many amazing Lobster Po Boy shots captured that it was very difficult to pick the winning photo! Ultimately, it came down to @earlyewing’s Instagram photo…

INGREDIENTS FOR BISCUITS
- 4 c. White Lily self rising flour
- ¾ c. Lard
- 1 ½ c. Milk
- 4 tbsp. (OR ¼ c.) Sugar
- Vegetable oil spray

*Serves 8

TO PREPARE
- Set oven to 400°
- Mix flour and lard together with a pastry blender (or fork) until the fat is worked in and the mixture is a coarse crumb consistency.
- Add sugar and stir in milk to make soft dough. Allow to rest for a few minutes.
- Scoop onto a baking sheet sprayed with vegetable oil spray
- Bake for 8 minutes.
- Serve immediately with soft, sweet butter.

We hope everyone is saving their appetites for a lavishly appetizing December at GW Fins! Holiday cheer has never tasted so good, and here is a peek at what’s to come!

Chef de Cuisine Michael Nelson is bringing a decadent Feast of the Seven Fishes to the restaurant on Thursday, December 13th, which will be followed by special holiday lunches on Fridays, December 14th and 21st. Finally, we will bring in the year 2013 over a celebratory pre-fixed dinner menu on the Eve of the New Year.

GW FINS BRINGS THE POPULAR ITALIAN HOLIDAY TRADITION, THE FEAST OF THE SEVEN FISHES,
TO NEW ORLEANS

On Thursday, December 13th, GW Fins’ Chef de Cuisine Michael Nelson will replicate one of the most popular Italian holiday traditions, Feast of the Seven Fishes, or “La Vigilia.” The tradition is held throughout Italy every year on Christmas Eve and this year, GW Fins is bringing the culinary celebration to 808 Bienville Street on Thursday, December 13th. Of course, Chef Nelson will put his own creative, modern day spin on each of the time-honored seafood dishes.

This sumptuous dinner will be comprised of seven seafood courses. The first three are individually plated dishes. The final four courses will be served family style, with several dishes on each table for everyone to share and enjoy.

Below is the preliminary menu that Chef Mike has created…

Feast of the Seven Fishes

Thursday, December 13, 2012

INGREDIENTS FOR POTATO GNOCCHI
- 3 large Russet potatoes
- 1 ½ c. grated Parmesan cheese
- 3 c. all purpose flour
- 10 egg yolks
- ½ tsp. ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp. Kosher salt
- ½ tsp. fresh ground black pepper

TO PREPARE
Bake the 3 potatoes in a 300° oven for 50 minutes. Allow them to cool slightly — they should be barely soft to the touch. Then, peel them with a knife — the skin should just peel right down the side without a lot of effort. Once the potatoes are peeled, shred them…

Use a large cutting board or a big counter for your surface — cover both with parchment paper.

Put the shredded potatoes onto the parchment paper and make a well in the middle. Add ingredients one at a time as pictured below. Finally, add 3 cups of the flour (not pictured below), leaving out about ¼ cup for dusting later.

TO MIX
Mix the ingredients gently, incorporating them together without overworking the dough. *Do not work the dough too hard, as though you’re kneading a bread!

Work it until you have a big dough form. Wrap that up and let stand for 20 minutes.

CHEF MIKE’S 3-STEP GNOCCHI-GROOVING PROCESS
This is where Chef Mike’s recipe gets a little different! Gnocchi Paddles are commonly used to cut off each gnocchi individually to give the all the pieces grooves that hold the sauce. This process takes a long time, so Chef Mike came up with a much more efficient gnocchi-grooving process…

STEP 1: Dust your surface with flour. Cut out a piece of gnocchi dough and roll it out on your surface into ½ inch tube. Cut into 6-8 inch pieces.

STEP 2: Take a cooling rake and pop each piece on it at a slight angle. Roll each piece down the cooling rack until it leaves little lines all the way down.

STEP 3: Line them up and cut into ¾ inch pieces. Dust them again with flour and use your cutting tool (not your hands) to transfer the little pieces to a sheet pan.

After all the pieces are grooved and transfered to the sheet pan, refigerate for 30 minutes. That way, when they go into the water, they will hold their shape.

Now it’s time to make your pesto sauce!

INGREDIENTS FOR PESTO SAUCE
- 1 c. firmly packed fresh basil
- 4 cloves garlic
- ½ c. lightly toasted pine nuts
- 3 oz. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- The zest & juice from 1 lemon

TO PREPARE PESTO SAUCE
Put everything into the food processor and start pureeing. Add the olive oil gradually. Keep pureeing until it’s nice and smooth.

Now, back to the gnocchi!

Bring water to a boil and add salt. Now that the gnocchi pieces are a little firmer from being cooled in the refrigerator, it’s time to toss them right into your boiling water.

Boil until they float, and once they are floating, give them another 60-90 seconds to boil. Use a strainer to pour them directly into a large bowl with olive oil.

Gently toss the boiled gnocchi in the olive oil to keep them from sticking together.

After tossing the gnocchi in olive oil, immediately transfer to a large sheet pan. Allow to cool.

To sauté the gnocchi, melt butter in a nonstick pan. Cook on medium heat until gnocchi are a slightly golden brown color. Then, add some pesto and a small splash of cream to loosen it up a little.

Finally, add shaved parmesan cheese on top of your plated dishes.

Now, all there is left to do is ENJOY your delicious Potato Gnocchi with Pesto Sauce!

‘Tis the season to…imbibe! What better way to fill your friends and family full of Holiday cheer than with your all time favorite GW Fins cocktails?

We promised our Facebook fans the recipe for the signature Chocolate Martini, but in the spirit of giving, we decided to give y’all some good ‘Old Fashioned’ lagniappe.

People are always asking us which wines to pair with their seafood dish. So today we wanted to share six of our favorite parings.

The restaurants’ wine experts have paired this refined dish with an exceptional vintage. Tablas Creek Patelin de Tablas Blanc is a blend of Grenache Blanc, Viognier Roussanne, Marsanne from Paso Robles Ca. These wines are aged in a balance of stainless steel and neutral French oak barrels to allow the subtleties of place to show through. The 2010 Patelin de Tablas Blanc is a blend in the style of French Cotes du Rhone whites, with flavors of lemon and mineral, a hint of tropicality from the Viognier, and a long finish with surprising richness. This wine perfectly accents the flavor profile of all aspects of the Scalibut dish.

The history of Scalibut…

When we created our “Scalibut” dish two years ago, the chefs knew it was delicious, but had no idea what a national sensation it would become.

Our very own Chef de Cuisine Michael Nelson created this dish that adheres delicate, thinly sliced Nantucket Sea Scallops to the outside of sweet, flaky Alaskan Halibut. Together the flavors combine to create a wonderful texture and seemingly natural blending of flavors. This scallop crusted halibut or “Scalibut” is then sautéed and served with Maine Lobster Risotto and Pea Shoot Butter for a decadently fabulous dish.

As with all of the seafood served at GW Fins, this innovative creation is only served when both Halibut and Scallops are at their seasonal peak. Although fabulous New England Scallops are generally available year-round, the same is not true for Halibut, which is fished from mid-March through October or November. The first delivery of the year is expected on March 23rd, the start of “Scalibut Season” at GW Fins.

French Quarter Festival is here! It’s finally time to bring back our famous fish tacos. We’ll be selling our fish tacos throughout French Quarter fest, Thursday through Sunday, in Woldenberg Riverfront Park, near the river (enter from Conti Street to find our booth).

What’s so special about our fish tacos? These tacos feature fresh white corn tortillas, wood-grilled local sheepshead, chipotle slaw, and ancho tamarind salsa. Do you like it hot? Garnish your tacos with special hot sauce made by Chef de Cuisine Mike Nelson. This hot sauce was made with four types of chilies and has been mellowing for more than a month.

To celebrate the return of our special fish tacos, we will be holding our #greatfishtacos contest again this year! The winner will receive one GW Fins gift certificate for $75 and will be chosen at random.

Here are the rules to play:

• To enter, post an original photo of our fish tacos our Facebook wall, via Twitter and/or via Instagram.
  

• All photos captions must include the tagline #greatfishtacos AND #gwfins on Twitter/Instagram. If you post to our Facebook wall, include “GW Fins” in your caption
  

• For each photo posted, you will receive one entry (for a maximum of 3 entries)
  

• Winner will be chosen via random drawing
  

DATES: The contest will run throughout the duration of French Quarter Fest (Thursday, 4/11 through Sunday, 4/14) and the winner will be selected at random and announced Tuesday, April 16.

By posting, you are certifying that the photo is your own, and may be shared by GW Fins. To post a photo on our Facebook wall via your mobile phone, search for our page on Facebook mobile. Then, go to our wall and click “share photo.” Easy!

Good luck to everyone who plays along and we look forward to seeing y’all out there this weekend!

We are excited to announce the Lange Twins Family Winery and Vineyards from Lodi, California as our vintner partners for the wine dinner we are hosting for this year’s New Orleans Wine and Food Experience. Our chefs are working with the Lange Twins to craft the perfect five course wine and cuisine pairing menu, which we will announce upon its completion.

The dinner will be held on Wednesday, May 22 at 7pm. Please call the restaurant directly to book your reservation for this event at (504) 581-3467.

Click here to see pictures from the NOWFE Wine Dinner we hosted last year!

We are seeking to hire an experienced new member to our highly professional management team.

To be considered for the position, candidates must have a minimum of two years of progressive Management experience in a Fine Dining restaurant.

At GW Fins, our mission is to “Create Raving Fans of our guests and each other.” As such, we seek a candidate capable of communicating with guests and staff in a proactive, positive manner.

We also require candidates to possess a proven and consistent track record of sales building, as well as the ability to effectively carry out profit & loss responsibilities.

GW Fins employees receive a full line of benefits, a professional work environment, and competitive wages.

If you or someone you know is qualified for the position and interested in joining the management team of a successful, respected restaurant please send a cover letter and resume to restaurant owner, Gary Wollerman at gw@gwfins.com. We will contact you within 24 hours if we feel that you are a potential fit for the position.

We hope everyone is saving their appetites for a lavishly appetizing December at GW Fins! Holiday cheer has never tasted so good, and here is a peek at what’s to come!

Chef de Cuisine Michael Nelson is bringing a decadent Feast of the Seven Fishes to the restaurant on Thursday, December 13th, which will be followed by special holiday lunches on Fridays, December 14th and 21st. Finally, we will bring in the year 2013 over a celebratory pre-fixed dinner menu on the Eve of the New Year.

GW FINS BRINGS THE POPULAR ITALIAN HOLIDAY TRADITION, THE FEAST OF THE SEVEN FISHES,
TO NEW ORLEANS

On Thursday, December 13th, GW Fins’ Chef de Cuisine Michael Nelson will replicate one of the most popular Italian holiday traditions, Feast of the Seven Fishes, or “La Vigilia.” The tradition is held throughout Italy every year on Christmas Eve and this year, GW Fins is bringing the culinary celebration to 808 Bienville Street on Thursday, December 13th. Of course, Chef Nelson will put his own creative, modern day spin on each of the time-honored seafood dishes.

This sumptuous dinner will be comprised of seven seafood courses. The first three are individually plated dishes. The final four courses will be served family style, with several dishes on each table for everyone to share and enjoy.

Below is the preliminary menu that Chef Mike has created…

Feast of the Seven Fishes

Thursday, December 13, 2012

FATHER’S DAY LOBSTER FEAST

Sunday, June 16, 2013

ICE CREAM
¹/₂ gallon Vanilla Bean ice cream
¹/₂ cup Malted Milk Powder
¹/₃ cup burned caramel (below)
¹/₂ tbsp. salt
³/₄ cup whipped cream

BURNED CARAMEL
¹/₂ cup Sugar
¹/₄ cup water
¹/₃ cup heavy cream

CRUST
¹/₃ bag of pretzels, crushed
¹/₃ lb. brown sugar
¹/₃ cup flour
¹/₃ cup (¹/₂ medium brown butter & ¹/₂ melted butter)

TO MAKE ICE CREAM:
- Beat ice cream with paddle until creamy & smooth. *Do not over-mix or let melt
- Slowly add malted milk powder until incorporated
- Add salt
- Slowly add caramel. Try to swirl into ice cream.
- Fold in whipped cream to lighten
- Put into pie tins, cover, freeze

TO MAKE CRUST:
- Crush pretzels in food processor
- Mix the rest of the ingredients together and spread onto pie tin(s)

At GW Fins, we go for whipped cream, chocolate-covered pretzels, and caramel drizzle on top to serve!

As you know, we print our menu daily based on the freshest fish available around the globe on that day, and so the Fins Feast Menu will also change daily and include the freshest seafood available at that moment. Each evening there will be three choices of appetizers, entrees and desserts, with each of these dishes being specifically created for the “Fins Feast” Menu.

Here are just a few of the dishes Chefs Flynn and Nelson will be serving up this year -

Appetizers

Olive Oil poached #1 Gulf Yellowfin Tuna Salad Stuffed Creole tomato
Deviled eggs & Green Goddess dressing

Seafood Coctel Veracruz
Shrimp, Crabmeat and Squid

Salmon Tartare
Capers and Vidalia onions, crispy parsnips and fresh horseradish.

 

Entrées

Louisiana Barbeque Shrimp
Stone Ground Grits

Gulf Seafood Cassoulet
Shrimp, sausage, canneloni beans and a cheese crust

Sauteed sheepshead
Spoonbread, country ham and crawfish maque choux

Gulf Seafood Cioppino
Shrimp, Crab, Crawfish and local finfish

Wood grilled drum
Vietnamese style mirliton slaw, blue crab fritters and chili oil

 

Desserts

Ice cream sandwich
Coconut sorbet

Flourless chocolate cake

Pecan Pie

Panna Cotta

Frozen Fruit Soufflé

 

“Through our Fins Feast, we have created a way to offer guests a fabulous value along with an extraordinary dining experience,” states GW Fins’ Owner, Gary Wollerman. “This is our way to really focus on our wonderful local guests and offer them a great summer treat,” concludes Wollerman.

This wonderful three course Fins Feast is priced at just $35, exclusive of tax and gratuity and is offered Sunday through Thursday. GW Fins’ complete daily changing menu of the freshest fish available will also be offered.

 

CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RESERVATION