by Paula Forbes  Eater.com

Today (18) as part of the Cayman Cookout on Grand Cayman, we’re coming at you live poolside at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. (If you’re in the neighborhood, do come say hello.) Watch for Q&As and breaking news tidbits throughout the day. And now: chef Eric Ripert talks recent renovations at his Grand Cayman restaurant Blue, why he went into the chocolate business, and the whole tasting menu controversy.

 

Tell us about the recent renovation of your Grand Cayman restaurant, Blue.
Yes, so we renovated during the rainy season, September and October, and reopened after. It’s more contemporary, has a different feel. It’s more modern. In terms of food, we change the menu all the time, but as for ambiance, it’s just more fun.

We used to have rattan furniture, and now we have a lot of banquettes, leather, contemporary chairs. All the walls changed. We had some fabrics and old paintings, now it’s blue because, you know, Blue. In the lounge we used to have only two little tables, now we can accommodate 15 or 20 people.

So more like Le Bernardin?
A smaller version, sure. We kept the structure of the bar with teak, but now it’s more New York. When you come in, it feels like you’re on a boat, on a yacht.

Recently you’ve gotten into merchandise, with the Good and Evil chocolate bar and the caviar. Why go in that direction?
Well, not to become rich, because the caviar we have only 20 kilos of, and the chocolate we could only do a few thousand bars for the first season. So, I went to Peru last year. Those trees are wild, they grow in the mountains and in the jungle. Farmers have them on their properties and they never capitalized on them. So, some Americans went and took samples, looked at the DNA. There are something like 141 cacao trees on record, but this one has never been recorded.

So I talked to Anthony to see if he was interested in creating something, to have fun with the name but do an amazing chocolate. We have a few hundred kilos, we do it for the fun. Tony said “yes” and then I came back from Peru and we crafted something. We’re going to go back in a few months for CNN. We’re going to film something and show no slave children picking up the cacao.

It will always be an evolution. Every year you have to come up with something new. Every year do Good and Evil, but something new every year. We found another grove of trees. The cacao favas are usually dark inside, but we found a tree that only does white nibs. Four trees. We bought the entire production for the next five, ten years. A few hundred bars and that’s it.

So do you agree with that Good and Evil nomenclature?
No. Tony thought of it. It’s catchy. I’m not good. I’m not better than anyone. I have my moments. Tony likes to provoke, I’m not a provocateur. Good and Evil was tongue-in- cheek. At the end of the day there’s neither a good one or a bad one.

Anything you can tell us about your top secret New York project?
The problem is it’s a secret. I can tell you that in one month I will know, probably because we will have signed. I don’t want to say anything and compromise negotiations. But it is imminent.

What are your thoughts on the tasting menu discussion that’s happening?
Look, I don’t know what’s the issue. At Le Bernardin, we have two tastings and a prix fixe. If you want a tasting menu, to have the long experience, then that’s that. It’s a matter of time and yes, it’s a matter of money.

Now you have restaurants dedicated solely to tasting menus. In New York we have 6, 7, 8. But then you have 15,000 restaurant that don’t have tasting menus. So don’t go. You’re free. In those restaurants uniquely providing those menus, people go for a certain experience. It doesn’t mean you’ll go every day of your life.

Those courses are very small, it’s 15, 20 courses, but it’s a small bite. I went to Eleven Madison Park and I’m dying to go back. I loved the experience because they have a system where you don’t spend an hour between each course. It’s an experience that’s very unique. You want a burger or a steak the next day or anything, go for it. I don’t understand what’s the problem.

There’s not going to be a drop off. People are asking for tasting menus. At Blue, nobody wants the prix fixe, they all want the tasting menu. People come here at the Ritz, it’s a special occasion, everybody wants the tasting menu. It’s a destination.

 

Photo credit: Eric Ripert [Photo: Raphael Brion/Eater]