US Open Concessions Preview

I was recently invited to attend a preview of the food being served at the US Open this year in the space called ACES (cute!).  Very open and gorgeous layout – you’ll see. 

I arrived a few minutes late (the place was hard to find, and security was super, super tight) to hear the tail end of executive chef Michael Lockard’s explanations of the various dishes plated on the bar for us to photograph. 

I love when press events have displays set up for photography and

little tags displaying what each dish is.

It makes my job much easier

and picture taking also comes out better, usually

Even for dishes that are not very photogenic.  Quesadillas? not that pretty. 

Lobster rolls are also not that pretty.

Unfortunately, since I was a bit late,

I had to sit down and was unable to take pictures of everything, but as soon as I sat down, food descended upon me…

The Rick Moon-n-doggie was really interesting, slightly seafood-y and topped with potato chips, lending it night crunch.  I would have liked some sort of sauce or relish on this; I found out later that there was a relish tray going around with “horseradish hell” “honey ginger goo” or “chipotle dude” but was not offered any of this.  Ah well, it was interesting. 

Lobster BLT with avocado – very tasty, but how can you go wrong?  Lots of chunks of lobster, and not too much mayo (but more mayo than those who don’t really like mayo would proabbly want).  Mmm. 

Easily my favorite item of the day, the crabcake – hardly any filler/breadcrumbs, just chunks and chunks of crab meat, yummm!!! 

Tuna – description above – I have to say, I’m the kind of person who, when I see bite sized food, I put the whole thing in my mouth.  You’re meant to have a bit of everything in each bite; it’s already bite-sized; so shove the whole thing in your mouth!  Problem is when someone walks by just as your mouth is working furiously to get it to a more seemly size… and your face is all misshapen from the food you shouldn’t have put in there… and you can’t say “Yes, I would like that, please” – doh! 

Also yummy, the baked clam with prosciutto.  Nom!

The mozzarella plate… I was not served the meat plate that was meant to come with this, I think because I was alone. 

Pulled pork slider- not saucy enough. 

BLT with avocado served on grilled sourdough – I loved the textures here, the chewy sourdough, the creamy avocado, and the crunchy bacon… mmm, so good. 

Sushi ‘curated’ by Morimoto – toro (!), eel, soft shell crab and a lobster roll.  The toro was, as it should be, fatty deliciousness, and to find it at a tennis match of all places (I often try to order it at sushi places to find they’re “out of it” – or never stocked it, and just put it on the menu, more like…) – well, yum.  The two rolls were really good – what elevated them to a new level is the use of asparagus instead of cucumber.  The crunch factor is still there, only slightly less watery, and with a lot more flavor.  Yum! 

I was handed one of these and told it was a slider. 

There was a lot of flavor, though I could swear there was a bit of lamb mixed in there!  Probably not my favorite item though I do like lamb.

I didn’t try the lobster quesadilla. 

The lemon tart was fabulous – the top merengue was airy and lightly sweetened, while the lemon tart was, well, tart and tangy.  Loved it, and I don’t like dessert.  But this wasn’t overly sweet, I think I could eat these by the boxful…

Seafood platter… I didn’t partake

The gorgeous, high ceilings at ACES – too bad it rained all yesterday, or I bet the light would have been amazing. 

These are just some of the offerings available at the Open this year – I missed out on a prime rib sandwich that I heard was good, and a chowder that passed by a bit too quickly for me to snag one.  Doh!  Also, their signature cocktail has honeydew balls in it, nom!  I’m actually considering getting tickets to the Open just so I can wander around and eat my way through everything

Happy eating!