NEW ORLEANS – Compère Lapin at Old No. 77 Hotel & Chandlery, 535 Tchoupitoulas St., will give NOLA foodies extra reason to indulge their collective sweet tooth when it hosts Josh Gripper, the acclaimed pastry chef of Andrew Carmellini’s The Dutch Miami Beach, for a one-day-only pastry pop-up on Wednesday, September 16, 2015.
“Josh is one of the best in the business and I am a huge fan of his work,” says chef/owner Nina Compton, who became friends with Chef Gripper when she worked in Miami prior to relocating to New Orleans and opening Compère Lapin. “His desserts are simple and artful but, most importantly, utterly delicious. We’re thrilled to have him here, even if it’s just for a day.”
Called one of “South Florida’s Food 50” by The Miami Herald, Gripper has been a dessert demigod on the Miami scene for years, first turning heads at Alfred Portale’s Gotham Steak at Fontainebleau Miami Beach then at The Dutch at W South Beach, where he reteamed with acclaimed chef/ restaurateur Andrew Carmellini, whom the pasty pro first worked with at the iconic Café Boulud. “I’m really excited to go in the kitchen with Nina and her team,” says Gripper, who has never cooked in NOLA. “Her friends back in Miami are very happy for her and all she’s accomplished in New Orleans; she’s amazingly talented and I can’t wait to work with her.”
For his day in the Big Easy, Gripper is pulling out the stops. At Tout La, the restaurant’s grab n’ go coffee and pastry bar, he’ll menu an array of delights, including his signature Key Lime coffee cake as well as carrot cake with cream cheese glaze; passion fruit donuts; The Dutch’s famous chocolate chip cookie; a savory ham & Swiss cheese Parker House roll and a Nutella brioche. During Compère lunch and dinner service, two Gripper temptations will be on offer: Salted Key Lime Pie with fresh passion fruit and coconut sorbet and Cuban Flan with macerated strawberries, pink peppercorn brittle and sour orange sorbet.
Prices vary.
