Our Chef Gary King has a passion for fresh spices, and it turns out where he seeks them out is from our neighbor a few blocks away on 11th Avenue. La Boîte functions as a high-end spice lab and trading post. Their founder Chef Lior Lev Sercarz “has worked with some of the world’s best chefs, including most notably spice master Olivier Roellinger…” and “…is inspired by his passion for spices and the stories they tell. Lior began his own journey studying spices and their origins, eventually creating his own blends. Each of them is a reflection of a place, a moment, or cultural influence. To create the blends, Lior uses the best spices from around the world to obtain fresh, aromatic, and powerful flavors.”
The scent of the spices alone will awaken your senses and bring inspiration into the kitchen. We are using an array of them to bring out flavors in various ingredients and enliven many dishes. Aleppo pepper adds fruity and spicy heat to the ricotta inside the delicate fried squash blossom atop a raw zucchini salad. A blend of Calabarian chilies steeped in olive oil add a depth of kick to our local tuna poke. Even foundational spices such as Telicherry peppercorns add vibrancy to each ingredient we season. Come take in the aromas and taste for yourself these storied spices!
