Photo By Chris Joriann
Although Chef Christopher Zabita now presides over one of Palm Beach’s most elegant restaurants, he’s deeply mindful that it was the family-style Italian suppers at his grandmother’s table that first ignited his passion for cooking and led him to reach the pinnacle of his culinary career.
Steak Tartare
Photo By Bronwyn Knight
“As a kid, I saw how food brought the family together. It wasn’t just about eating. It was about spending time with those around you,” the 44-year-old says.
As the executive chef at Café Boulud Palm Beach, a restaurant under the umbrella of celebrated Chef Daniel Boulud’s Dinex Group, Zabita can appreciate how far he has come. And yet, the associations with food that spoke to him as a child continue to be a driving force today.
“I like to create dishes that can make you feel some nostalgia and some comfort but at the same time be elevated and elegant. Something that can remind you of a time when you were around the table with family and friends,” he says.
Zabita’s culinary journey began at 16 when he took his first job at a country club and knew instantly he had found his path. He calls it “the allure of the kitchen,” noting that, while he did not consider himself an artist in the classical capacity, he quickly realized cooking could become an artistic outlet.
The opportunity to work at Disney’s Victoria & Albert’s, a renowned AAA Five Diamond restaurant, brought him to Florida, where he then went on to work at Yachtsman Steakhouse. Both were pivotal to his development as a young chef, each teaching valuable lessons.
“I learned two very different styles of kitchen. Yachtsman was fine dining but on a scale of 350 to 400 people each night. You had to learn speed while keeping food looking proper. V&A’s was super-fine dining. Precision was key. It was all in the details. That’s where I learned to have an eye for all the little touches,” Zabita says.
Photo by Noah Fecks
From there, the up-and-coming chef returned to his home state of New Jersey, taking on the role of executive chef at Battello in Jersey City before moving on to various opportunities in New York City, which included opening Society Café in the Walker City Hotel in November 2016. His time in New York also introduced him to Boulud’s Dinex Group, where he served as a sous chef at Bar Boulud for a year in 2013. Each opportunity presented a new learning experience that would further prepare him for the role he has today. At Battello, Zabita oversaw a staff of 35 serving modern Italian fine dining.
Dover Sole
Photo By Bronwyn Knight
“As in any kitchen, it’s all about teaching the team to work together. You have to create an environment that people are proud of as well as show them new techniques that continue to pique their interest. I brought new plating styles, new cooking methods and a different way of thinking about food to the kitchen. This kept everyone excited about what we were doing on a daily basis, including the service staff who had a fun time selling the food I created,” he says.
Returning to Dinex Group as executive chef at Café Boulud Palm Beach feels full circle to the ambitious chef.
“It’s really amazing to see how far the company has come. It has expanded so much, not just in New York City, but throughout the world.”
While the restaurant, located in the historic Brazilian Court Hotel, focuses on French food, Zabita’s Italian roots shine through.
“Between pizza and pasta, they are my two favorite things to eat. I think it is because they are just vessels to put any flavor you want in a dish — except for putting pineapple on pizza,” he adds with a chuckle.
Still, Zabita is quick to note his cooking style is ever-evolving.
“At the end of the day, I have adopted the style of perfect imperfection — wabi-sabi,” he says, referring to the Japanese aesthetic philosophy. “I don’t necessarily have to place every piece of food on the plate to always be in the exact same place. There’s a bit of beauty in allowing the chips to fall as they may.”
Photo By Libby Volgyes
Photo Courtesy Of Café Boulud Palm Beach
The Best Focaccia You Will Ever Eat
Ingredients:
• 2¼ cup bread flour
• 2¼ cup 00 flour
• 2 teaspoons yeast
• 4 teaspoons salt
• 3 cups water at room temperature
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
Instructions:
Day 1
In a large mixing bowl, add the yeast to the water. Separately, mix the flours and the salt in a medium-sized bowl. Combine all of the ingredients in the mixing bowl of water and yeast. Mix this by hand. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set it at room temperature. Allow it to rest at room temperature for 20 minutes. Remove the plastic, lightly wet your hands with water and fold the dough 4 times, once from each side. Pull the dough up and into its center. Wrap the bowl in plastic and let the dough rest for 25 minutes. Do this process 3 more times. The last time, wrap the bowl and place it in the fridge overnight.
Day 2
Remove the dough from the fridge for 4 hours before baking. Line a 13” x 18” baking sheet with parchment paper. Generously oil the tray and parchment with ¼ cup EVOO. Place the dough on the pan and add the remaining ¼ cup of EVOO on the top of the dough. Wrap it in plastic wrap and let it set at room temperature. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Proof at room temperature for 4 hours. When it has proofed, remove the plastic wrap and stretch the dough to fit the sheet tray. It’s OK if it doesn’t make it all the way to the corners or if it pulls back slightly. Using your fingers, poke the dough. If the dough seems dry you can brush more EVOO on it. Top the dough with your choice of dried herbs such as thyme, rosemary and parsley as well as flaky sea salt such as Maldon. Slide the tray into the oven and bake for 12 minutes.