I first met Kerry Heffernan when he was the executive chef of South Gate, which at that time was at the Jumeirah Essex House; today it’s a Marriott. Sadly, I missed him cooking at Eleven Madison, where he had opened that restaurant as Executive Chef and eventually become a partner before heading to South Gate.

Kerry is currently chef at Grand Banks, the seasonal oyster bar and galley on the deck of the Sherman Zwicker, an historic cod fishing schooner moored at Pier 25 New York. The floating “oyster barges” that lined Manhattan’s waterfront in the 18th and 19th centuries inspired this restaurant that serves up sustainably harvested oysters, ingredient-driven small plates with seasonal fish and produce and waterfront views. Grand Banks will be opening mid-April for bar service, weather permitting, and May 2nd, for full service.

I bumped into Kerry earlier this year at a private event at Emeril Lagasse’s former apartment, now owned by Michael Levine, to generate some buzz about this high-end Manhattan apartment. (BTW if you’re interested, the apartment at The Beekman Regent, 351 E. 51st Street, Apt. L1BC is a 4000 square foot, 4 bedroom apartment for $6,495,000.) At that time, I asked Kerry to be our Guest Foodie and respond to our queries.

– bonnie

BonnieBOTB
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Which food product or gadget would you never give up? A high quality heavy duty stainless steel  saute pan, buy a good one, pass it on to your grand kids!

What do you like to serve when you entertain? Grilled clams in Sag Harbor that I dug myself with whatever herb is growing and can go into a chili flecked lemon butter.

Describe your “last meal?” Fried chicken, lots of it!

What food is your secret guilty pleasure? Chocolate pudding, or really any good decadent chocolate!

What is your go-to neighborhood restaurant? Cookshop, always seasonal always innovating.

What is one food product most people don’t know about, but should? Squid, super fresh and local (it is New York’s #1 commercial seafood product!) sushi, seared, fried stewed its ALL good!

Describe your worst kitchen disaster and how (if possible) you saved it: Recently was when we lost power on the boat in the middle of cooking lobsters for a big magazine event (it was probably my fault trying to cook lobsters, griddle buns and use the oven at the same time, fuse blew!). Wasn’t sure what we were going to do if we’d have lobster cooked in time for all these hungry people. As it turned out we simply let the lobsters continue in the 195° liquid and instead of shocking them in ice as per normal it took about an hour and a half to become fully cool. The meat  was perfectly cooked! So it became both an energy-efficient and more precise way to cook the lobsters that we still use. 🙂

Also, 9/11 we served lunch to any and all who came by 11 Madison, then took most of our team over to the Armory on Park and 26th St to help families of victims, pretty much nonstop for the next 4 days.

Who was your most influential mentor? David Bouley

Describe an event that changed/redirected your career. Top Chef Masters, much harder than expected, constantly challenged myself at a very high level.

To follow Kerry Heffernan on Twitter, click here.