Chef Spotlight > Graziano Tecchio, the Downtown Cafe

Tuna Tartare

Ingredients
¼ tsp. Toasted Sesame Oil
¼ tsp. Soy Sauce
4 oz. Sushi-grade Tuna
Pinch of minced fresh Ginger (1/8 tsp.)
1 tsp. Toasted Pine Nuts
Large Sea Scallop
Truffle Oil
Pint of Balsamic Vinegar
3 oz. Maple Syrup

Method

1. To toast pine nuts: swirl in very hot,
dry pan until golden brown, one or two minutes.

2. Chop tuna very fine. Add sesame oil, soy sauce,
pine nuts, and ginger to bowl with tuna and mix well with a spoon.

3. For Balsamic reduction: Take vinegar and maple syrup
and reduce in saucepan until it is one-quarter of original volume.
(A spoon should easily coat with the syrupy texture at this point.)

4. Crust sea scallop with fresh cracked white pepper and sea salt.
Sear sea scallop in hot cast iron or Teflon pan, one minute on each side.

5. Arrange tuna in mound on a plate.
Top with scallop and drizzle with balsamic reduction and truffle oil.

Notes on the dish

This dish serves 4 as an appetizer.

Tecchio stresses that as the tuna in the dish is not cooked, it is
imperative to use the freshest tuna. Be sure to ask your fishmonger
for "sushi-grade," which usually retails for $16-$18 per pound.

Graziano Tecchio opened the Downtown Cafe in 1998, crowding 20 seats and a bar into a corner storefront on the Strand in Kingston. The space was so small, in fact, that there was just one refrigerator, two kinds of wine, a short list of dishes, and specials that changed nightly; one customer related to the Zagat Survey that quarters were so tight that you could “feel the heat from the [single] stove.” The restaurant expanded in April of last year into larger, more luxurious quarters, and, according to the New York Times, Tecchio is still cooking “with such gusto that even dishes falling a little short leave a diner smiling at the effort.”

Tecchio, a native of Portogruaro, Italy, a town 30 miles north of Venice, started cooking at an early age and began working in restaurants at the age of 13, the age Italians graduate from the equivalent of our high school. In Venice, Tecchio worked at Antico Pignolo (roughly translated: “The Ancient Scrooge”), an upscale landmark that served traditional Venetian fare—whole grilled fish, seafood pastas, risottos—to a celebrity clientele.

Arriving in the US in the fall of 1987, Tecchio worked at his family’s restaurant, Mary P’s, in what is now the Mariner’s Harbor space across from the Downtown Cafe. Although Tecchio reluctantly accepts the term fusion for his cuisine—“I guess it’s fusion,” Tecchio says. “I don’t like to stereotype anything. That’s probably why it’s fusion.”—he credits the diversity of cuisines available in the US for opening his eyes to the possibilities of fusion cuisine. Tecchio explains that in Italy, in the 1980s, it was difficult to find a Chinese or Japanese restaurant, let alone something more exotic. “There’s no Russian restaurants in Italy, no Ethiopian restaurants, no Egyptian cooking anywhere,” says Tecchio. The day we spoke, Tecchio was working on a special of grilled sea bass (a traditional Venetian dish) served with tostones (fried plantains) and chimichurri sauce, which married his background in traditional Venetian fare with his flair for experimentation.

It should be noted that Downtown Cafe is a family affair. While Tecchio runs the kitchen, his wife, Emily Trask—the couple were married in May of this year—runs the front of the house as maitre d’ and general manager.

Downtown Cafe
One West Strand, Kingston. (845) 331-5904.
Brunch: Sunday, 9AM-2PM. Lunch: Monday, Wednesday-Friday, 11AM-3PM. Dinner: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, 6-10PM;
Friday and Saturday, 5:30-11PM; Sunday, 4-9PM. Closed Tuesdays.
www.downtownkingston.com