a Q & A with
Chef Matthew Kenney
 This week, we thought we’d change things up a bit and offer some transparency into how we like to do things and, philosophically speaking, where we’d like to go. To this end, we got together with our partner, chef Matthew Kenney and asked him a few questions about the spring menu, his goals for FreeFoods and Duck sandwiches.
What do you feel is the core mission for FreeFoods? It is to be predominantly vegetarian, organic, or just healthy in general?
Freefoods will always be first identified by its ingredients – seasonal, fresh, organic – and by its approach to food preparation – original, creative, exotic. Without compromising flavor or a sense of dining adventure, we want our food to be as healthy as possible.
Matthew, some have voiced concerns over our market table having both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes beside one another. On a personal level, how do you feel about these comments?
As a dedicated vegetarian, I agree with these comments. On the other hand, FreeFoods serves thousands of guests each week, in a very dense part of Manhattan. The business model of appealing to a broader audience works for us. It should be noted that we have become increasingly vegetarian friendly, and continue to evolve in that direction. This philosophy also enables us to introduce countless guests to the benefits of plant-based cuisine. Often our patrons taste vegetarian items after finding them visually appealing and end up introducing more vegetables into their diet. If we were strictly vegetarian those people might never have walked in the door.
FreeFoods entered the Midtown Lunch sandwich challenge this month with a Brown Sugar-Cured Duck Pastrami Reuben that you created. Since you are vegan, would you care to share your thoughts as to why you didn’t enter a vegan sandwich?
Competitive spirit perhaps – I felt it was important to show our diversity and attention to detail with all of our cuisine, not just that which is vegan. It was a personal challenge as well; creating something that would be publicly judged without ever having tasted it myself. Fortunately, our Chef de Cuisine, Leo Monroy, has an amazing palate.
When designing our seasonal menu, what are some of the initial steps you take creatively?
Although our concept is fast-casual, we approach our recipes as if they are for an upscale restaurant and then we engineer them into our style of service. In developing a new menu, I always begin with an outline of ingredients and flavors I would like to include, and then work with the existing menu to create a balance of dishes – spicy, savory, sweet, tart, exotic, comfortable…it’s a big menu and our audience is quite diverse, so it becomes part of a large puzzle. Certain themes dominate seasons more than others – stone fruits in the summer, spices and root vegetables in winter. This spring we’re introducing many new dishes and will be debuting an entirely new concept for our sandwiches.
Which category of the spring menu do you think will be the most creative? What will be the most difficult area to design?
Normally, I’d say our market table, because it’s highly seasonal and is always evolving. This season, our sandwich menu will be the most creative by far – I’m putting a tremendous amount of energy into that menu segment.
The customized salads are the most difficult to design because there are hundreds of different potential combinations – I have to format it in a way that they all make sense, which is a rather complicated mission.
To follow Matthew and his other projects, visit:
www.matthewkenneycuisine.com
Enjoy FreeFoods at home with the
Recipe of the Week
 Raw Chocolate Hazelnut Tart
View the Recipe
This Week's
Market Table Dishes
- Tomato Lasagna, Pignoli "Ricotta", Pistachio Pesto, Sun Dried Tomato Sauce (VR)
- Flaxseed-Herb Crust Pizza, Macadamia "Ricotta", Spinach, Tomato, Basil (VR)
- Basil Black Pepper Coconut Wrappers, Macadamia "cheese", Cherry Tomatoes, Avocado (VR)
- Hijiki Seaweed Salad, Kohlrabi, Sweet Tahini Dressing (VR)
- Chili, Portobello, Almonds, Salsa Fresca, Cashew “Sour Cream” (VR)
- Sesame Crusted Salmon, Hon-Shimeji Mushrooms, Creamy Sesame-Cucumber Sauce
- North African Spiced Free Range Chicken Skewers, Mint Hazelnut Chutney, Pomegranate Sauce
- Beef Filet, Caramelized Potato, Caper Parsley Pesto
- Red Chili and Thai Peanut Glazed Lamb, Marinated Cucumber, Mint, Bibb Lettuce
- Miso Grilled Tuna, Coconut Risotto Cake
- Red Snapper Seviche Verde, Jalapeno, Green Tomato, Cilantro, Avocado, Jicama, Picholine Olive
- Fresh Mozzarella, Beefsteak Tomato, Avocado, Pesto
- Roasted Beets, Walnut Oil, Fourme D’ Ambert
- Farro Grain, Wild Mushrooms, Truffle Oil, Fresh Parsley
- Moroccan Spiced Carrots, Ginger, Mint, Black Olives
This Week's
Soup Specials
- Monday: Green Lentil Chicken Chili
- Tuesday: Sweet Potato, Chipotle, Blue Corn Chips, Lime Cream
- Wednesday: Ginger Immunity, Rice Noodles, White Miso, Shiitake Mushrooms (V)
- Thursday: Spicy Black Bean, Pico De Gallo (V)
- Friday: Slow Roasted Tomato, Chopped Chives (V)
(V) - Vegan / (VR) - Vegan & Raw
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