Move over ham and turkey! There are Christmas cuisines from other parts of the world that want their time to shine. Tonight we’re checking out how holiday dinner is done Italian style and Venezuelan style.
This is a lot of seafood.
Rocco Honig, executive chef: “The Feast of the Seven Fishes is a traditional dinner you put on the night before Christmas. The origin is to abstain from meat and having some fun with some seafood.”
You can feast on this Italian-American cuisine at Coastal inside The Atlantic Hotel & Spa in Fort Lauderdale.
They’ve put together this special menu for Christmas Eve.
Rocco Honig: “Christmas Eve will be a great atmosphere. I’m hoping for a lot of families and big parties so they can enjoy the feast the way it’s supposed to be served.”
The dishes include black grouper.
Rocco Honig: “We did a pan-seared black grouper, roasted sweet potatoes, garlic spinach, then we did a lobster cream sauce under it. Came out really nice.”
Or how about the lobster risotto?
Rocco Honig: “We sauté up our claw meat, our lobster tail meat, we mix in our risotto, some cream, asparagus tips.”
And with other options like clam pizza and sea scallops, we seriously doubt anyone is gonna go hungry here.
After all, it’s called the FEAST of the Seven Fishes.
Jason Hines, customer: “I have never seen this much seafood on one table at one time! It was delicious. I had never even heard of it, but it’s probably something we’re gonna be doing at home pretty soon.”
Over at Obra Kitchen Table in Brickell, it’s all about hallaca.
Carlos Garcia, chef: “Hallaca is the most important tradition in Venezuela. It’s the Christmas dish for excellence.”
It kinda looks like a tamale, but it’s dough stuffed with a stew made with hen and pork, plus a bunch of different fillings like almonds, olives, raisins and capers.
Carlos Garcia: “You have to put it inside of the banana leaf to keep sure that everything is gonna be inside. Then you have to cook it for around one hour.”
And once it’s ready to be eaten…
Carlos Garcia: “Hallacas have huge flavors. You’re gonna taste it and it’s going to be sweet, salty, acidity.”
If you stop in to Obra during the holidays, they want to make sure you feel right at home.
Carlos Garcia: “For us, it’s very special to do one hallaca. It’s like to share the feeling of being a family in Venezuela.”
FOR MORE INFO:
Coastal at The Atlantic Hotel & Spa
601 N Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd.
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304
(954) 567-8070
atlantichotelfl.com
Obra Kitchen Table
1331 Brickell Bay Dr.
Miami, FL 33131
(305) 846-9363
obramiami.com
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