You’ll be starstruck once you experience Chef Nico Abello’s Spotlight Dinner Series
What would lure a Michelin-starred chef away from Manhattan to Greenville, South Carolina? It’s a good question for Nico Abello, who garnered a Michelin star as executive chef at L’Appart in New York City. When he moved to Greenville several years ago with his wife and two young children, he didn’t have a job here. “It was a question of lifestyle more than work,” explains Abello, who fell for the slower pace of the Upstate after coming here five years ago to participate in a Michelin event at Restaurant 17.
Shortly after arriving in Greenville, he signed on to oversee the culinary program at the new Grand Bohemian Lodge, a position that turned out not to be a good fit for the creative. But his lucky stars aligned when he landed at Table 301, with the understanding that the group’s founder and president, Carl Sobocinski, would partner with him in a new restaurant venture.
Abello, who grew up outside of Paris, has worked in some of the best kitchens in France and the US. At age 17, he launched his culinary career as an apprentice at the two-Michelin-star Les Trois Marches in Versailles. In France, he reports, he also worked in brasseries and catering companies. “And I tried always to take the best things, the best experiences, from each place,” Abello shares.
This past January, Sobocinski floated the idea of doing a series of pop-up dinners at The Loft at Soby’s. These multicourse dinners would be a prelude to the fine-dining venue Abello and the restaurateur are planning. They started with one dinner and it sold out so quickly that they scheduled more; by the end of July, they’d done 36 of the pop-ups, attracting a clientele with a wide range of ages.
The menu changes roughly each week of a series. “I love to create new dishes. I don’t like much to repeat,” says the chef, who admits, in his lilting French accent, that he was a picky eater as a boy. “[My cooking style] is nothing too complicated to understand, to eat.” Seasonal ingredients, French techniques, and a feast of flavors from around the world elevate his cuisine. Past dinners have woven those elements into dishes such as sweetbreads with asparagus and sauce perigourdine, Andalusian gazpacho with crab and brioche, and a cheese course of Brie de Meaux complemented by black truffle and frisée.
Despite the popularity of his pop-ups, Abello is driven to improve on what he and his team are doing now in terms of the food, execution, and formal service. For his future restaurant, he sets the bar high. “It is better to dream big,” he insists. You can taste those big dreams at the Spotlight Dinner Series, which teases your palate for what’s to come—as Abello continues to reach for the stars.
For more information about fall dates, go to table301.com/spotlightdinnerseries-2023.
Yellowfin Tuna recipe Featured in Spotlight Dinner Series
Caponata, Vierge Vinaigrette
From Chef Nico Abello
Serves 4
Chef’s note: This dish (which appeared on one of the Spotlight Dinner Series’ summer menus) is easy to execute and tastes amazing with a dry French rosé, such as a Bandol.
Tuna Ingredients
1 lb sushi-grade yellowfin tuna, cooked however you prefer, and sliced
Instructions
Easy to cook, this piece of tuna should be only seasoned with olive oil and salt. You can grill it, sear it on a skillet, or serve it raw on top of the caponata.
Everything can be done with this kind of fish, just make sure the freshness is on point. If you want to serve it rare, but with a nice sear, place the tuna in the freezer for a few hours. It’s better to sear the fish when frozen, it will help produce a nice coloration, but the tuna will stay rare on the inside.
Caponata Directions
- 1 Vidalia onion, chopped very thinly
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 large eggplant, cut into small cubes
- 1 cup crushed tomatoes
- 2 Tbsp chopped capers
- ½ cup mixed pitted olives, chopped
- ¼ cup white balsamic vinegar
- 2 Tbsp chopped parsley
- 2 Tbsp chopped chives
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
- Salt to taste
Directions
- In a large and not too deep pot, heat some olive oil. Start to sweat the Vidalia onion and the chopped garlic. Do not let them brown; they need to cook very gently. Add the eggplant, adding more olive oil as needed (eggplant is like a sponge and will absorb all the oil, but do not put too much oil, as the eggplant will absorb a lot and, at one point, will give back everything). Add salt.
- When the eggplant is cooked through, add the crushed tomatoes. Season lightly with salt—the capers and olives will add salinity too.
- Cook the mixture about 10 minutes, tossing regularly until softened.
- Strain the eggplant mixture and put it in a bowl. Add the capers, olives, vinegar, parsley, and chives, plus olive oil if needed.
- Taste for salt, and reserve the caponata in the refrigerator. Caponata can be served at room temperature. It’s also good served cold with crushed burrata as a summer salad.
Vierge Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 4.4 oz tomatoes peeled, cored, and diced
- 1.75 oz chopped sun-dried tomatoes
- 0.5 oz vinegar of your choice
- 0.15 oz shallots, minced
- 1.25 oz extra virgin olive oil
- Maldon sea salt, to taste
- Pinch of chopped parsley
- Lemon juice and zest, to taste
Directions
Place the diced tomatoes, the chopped sun-dried tomatoes, and the minced shallots into a mixing bowl. Add enough olive oil to thoroughly coat and absorb into the tomatoes, then gently fold in the chopped parsley and season with the Maldon salt, the vinegar of your choice, and add some of the lemon zest, then the lemon juice.
You can prepare this vinaigrette—minus the parsley—a day in advance; add the parsley just before serving. This vinaigrette should be served at room temperature.
To Serve
Let the caponata sit at room temperature for an hour before serving (it’s best to cook it the day before to let the flavors develop).
Put 2 spoonfuls of caponata in the middle of the plate. Add the sliced tuna on top. Poor the Vierge vinaigrette over everything, garnish with some microgreens of your choice, and serve.
Bon Appétit!
