6 minute read
Elize Restaurant
Parents’ Night Out: Elize Restaurant
Dine like the Dutch at this Downtown Orlando gastro bar.
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Words by Maddy Zollo Rusbosin | Photos by Jessica Friend
If you’ve ever traveled to Europe, you know that eating out there is an entirely different experience than it is here. There’s no rush to get the check, no multi-page menu offering everything under the sun and no chef who shies away from embracing local ingredients or their cultural heritage. That’s why it’s so refreshing to welcome Elize into Orlando’s dining scene. It’s a Euro-style restaurant that melds together Dutch influences with a creative take on comfort food.
Started by owner Michelle Lagerweij and her sister Anne, Elize is ideal for a date, girls’ night out, birthday dinner or any other celebratory evening. With a spacious bar serving up craft cocktails, a chic yet cozy dining room and a chef’s table with a bird’s eye view of the kitchen, it’s an eatery that exudes warmth while also serving up a scratch-made menu that’s built upon the ethos of “complexity through simplicity.” It includes everything from tuna “upside down” pizza to a 12 Floridian vegetable salad to roasted white shrimp with mashed potato mousseline, brown butter and buttermilk. The inspiration for Elize came from the sisters’ memories of their childhood home — a place where friends and family were always gathering to enjoy the inviting ambiance and the good food that their mother (the restaurant’s namesake) created. “We want guests to experience that same welcoming feeling of never feeling rushed and at the same time enjoying high-quality food and drinks at an accessible price,” explains Lagerweij. At Elize, customers are encouraged to sit back and stay awhile — a feeling that can be summed up by the Dutch word gezelligheid. Elize’s feel-good approach to dining is something that the founders hope guests will take to heart and share with their kids at home. “It’s amazing how much of children’s interest in food and their willingness to try new things seems to be determined by how much they’ve been exposed to it at an early age,” says Lagerweij, which is why she encourages parents to broaden their kids’ taste bud horizons by incorporating more unexpected ingredients into the mix. Even though it can be a challenge to convince little ones to try globally inspired cuisine due to picky eating habits, hesitancy of the unknown or a palette that prefers chicken fingers above all else, a good way to expose children to more international flavors is by serving up classic European dishes disguised as comfort food. Just take inspiration from Elize’s recipe for glazed veal cheeks, mashed potatoes, roasted cabbage and sunflower seeds below. “This dish is the ultimate slow and comfort food,” explains Leon Mazairac, Elize’s executive chef. “It feels like home and it’s something with lots of flavors, but also requires less ingredients.” Another way to keep your children engaged in their meal is to cook with them and allow them play chef. “Give them an apron and decide together what to make,” he continues. “Let them be in charge of the menu.” You can have them perform simple tasks like washing veggies or helping mash potatoes. An added bonus is that the act of cooking together provides children with a greater appreciation for the work that goes into making dinner each night. “And if it’s made with love, what more do you need?” says Mazairac.
Serves 4
THE CHEEKS: THE POTATOES: • 4 nice and clean veal or beef • 1 1/2 pounds firm russet cheeks potatoes (800 g) • 6 cups of concentrated veal stock • 3 1/2 ounces salted butter • 2 bay leaves (100 g) • A few peppercorns (mignonette) • 2 cups of whipped heavy • Some grape seed oil cream – Season the cheeks and fry them in • Fine sea salt some grapeseed oil. – Clean the potatoes under – Once roasted, add the veal stock running water, place them in and the bay leaves and pepper. a pan, and cover with cold water. – Bring to boil, then and let simmer – Add a handful of coarse gray sea salt for 2 to 3 hours. and simmer gently. – When the cheeks are cooked, the – Drain the potatoes and dry in a 285°F sauce (and the cheeks) become (140°C) oven for five minutes. sticky. – Peel the potatoes, then place in a – Keep the cheeks on the side and container set over a double-boiler. reduce the sauce until it is nice and – Mash with a fork, leaving some large glazy. chunks before folding in the salted butter and mixing with the whipped heavy cream. – Season with salt and pepper to taste. HOW TO DRESS THE PLATE: – Place the mashed potatoes in a bowl and serve the cheeks on top. – Add some roasted cabbage and 2 tablespoons of the reduced veal stock. – Finish with a sprinkle of sunflower seeds.
THE CABBAGE AND SUNFLOWER SEEDS: • 1/2 green or white cabbage • Sunflower seeds
– Cut the cabbage in quarters, taking away the root. – Place the leaves in boiling water and cook them until they are done (they should still have a little crunch). – Grill them on the BBQ or gas grill for a few seconds so they burn slightly.
Then put some glazed veal stock on the leaves. – Roast the sunflower seeds in a dry nonstick pan.
ASEKY & CO. Motherhood & Lifestyle Blogger
Aseky Bonnaire — an Orlando woman, wife, mom and social media influencer (asekybonnaire.com) — shares her pain, fear and prayers about the continued racial injustice in the U.S. and the call for change.
"My funny, handsome, smart, athletic, strong, family-oriented [husband]. Every day that he leaves the house without me, I worry ... because he is a
black man in America. "
It makes me sick that I have to fear for when my boys grow up, and sometimes will " only be viewed for the color of their skin. Not their fun and witty personalities, not their intelligence, just a black man in America ... I pray for protection over my black husband, my black children and all the black men and youth of America. "
I’m here to share pieces of my life — the cute matching outfi ts and the hard reality of our " country that my family and other black families are facing. If you don’t want to hear it, you are a part of the problem. To the rest of you who love, support and speak out: Thank you, we all see you. "
