Brands are popular demands: menus stock up on enduring names

Nation's Restaurant News, Dec 23, 1996 by Florence Fabricant

Brand names on menus, as a guarantee of quality, are nothing new. Some of the most enduring ones are on the dessert list, notably Oreo cookie confections and Haagen-Dazs ice cream, frequently mentioned in dinner houses. But recently, even some of those brand names have started appearing with greater frequency in high-end operations.

Anchoring the main courses, Black Angus beef is widely trumpeted. Tavern on Main in Westport, Conn., serves "certified Angus" filet mignon. At Pacific Time in Miami, certified Angus flank steak is served with Indochinese spices, fresh shiitake mushrooms, bok choy, sugar snaps, sweet sake and baked creamer potatoes.

Black Angus beef is grilled for the hamburger and the sirloin steak at Nemo in Miami Beach. And the new Giorgio's Grill in Hollywood Beach, Fla., features a grilled Black Angus New York strip with Provencal sauce and garlic-mashed potatoes.

But more esoteric brands also are making headway. Some are outright endorsements, as at Aureole in Manhattan, where Charles Palmer, the chef-owner, wears a Cervena venison jacket. like a menu listing, it makes a statement that the chef buys a recognized product that to him represents quality. If Aureole prefers Cervena, The Rainbow Room casts its lot with Millbrook, serving a saddle of Millbrook venison. And Flowers in Manhattan has Highland Farm venison prosciutto. Branded lamb includes the Mc Cormack Ranch at Meribel in San Francisco. Summerfield Farms veal chops at Norman's in Coral Gables, Fla., are prepared in a Mongolian marinade with grilled Chinese eggplant and lettuces dressed in a rice wine-vinaigrette. Broken Arrow Ranch antelope chop is grilled at Halcyon in Manhattan. All those brands of meat are fisted on the menus.

When it comes to cheese brand names seem almost unavoidable. Among the more popular ones are Coach Farms goat cheeses, served peppered and warmed with mixed organic lettuces and freshly picked herbs at Pacific Heights in Coral Gables, Fla. Other brand name cheeses include Quillisascut goat cheeses at Rovers in Seattle and Hollow Road Farms fresh ricotta combined with wild mushrooms and truffles in a fresh sheet pasta at the Rainbow Room in Manhattan.

The salad itself might be Stone Free Farm organic baby greens dressed with honey-lavender vinaigrette at Blackhawk Grille in Danville, Calif.; Kenyan Farms baby greens at Seasons in Boston; or Forni, Brown & Walsh organic greens at Brava Terrace in St. Helena, Calif. Brava Terrace also credits the bread, listing its provenance on the menu as Napa Valley Ovens in Calistoga.

Valrhona, a brand of chocolate made in France that has succeeded in lining up many pastry chefs, has become a regular on the dessert menu. At Merlot in Manhattan Valrhona white chocolate is combined with bananas in a cream tart. Meadowood in St. Helena, Calif., serves Valrhona chocolate mousse with dried cherry compote.

Boxer in Los Angeles offers a typical dessert. a warm Valrhona chocolate cake, but here it is served with cassis coulis and vanilla bean ice cream. Maxim's in Manhattan makes a frozen Valrhona chocolate parfait with orange flower water and almond lace cookies.

Valrhona chocolate cake with malted ma chocolate ice cream is one of the desserts at Picholine in Manhattan. At Norman's in Coral Gables, Fla., Cuervo Gold margarita sorbet is paired with spicy tortilla chips. Faz in Pleasanton, Calif., has a Thomas Kemper root beer float on the dessert menu as well as a seasonal fruit crisp with Haagen-Dazs ice cream.

And like Charles Palmer in his Cervena jacket, the espresso coffee in many operations leaves no doubt about the brand. Not only might it be listed as Lavazza or, as it is at Osteria del Circo in Manhattan, as Illycafe, but it is often served in designer cups bearing the coffee company's logo as well. And to sweeten the coffee, most operations serve the little pink or blue packets with the brand names in plain sight.