My colleague Holly Haines introduced me to the treasure of a restaurant that is Agi’s Counter in Brooklyn; she lives in San Diego and when she comes to New York she rarely misses a trip to Agi’s. A few months back, she and Abi Balingit and I went there together, and it was so good; it’s definitely cool Brooklyn food, but in the best way, and it’s Hungarian, which is close to my heart. Like: the dip and chips is beets, caramelized onion, sour cream, egg jam, dill, chive, and smoked trout roe. Jeremy Salamon, the chef/owner, is doing his ancestors right by updating Hungarian Jewish food in a way that appeals to people not just of our tribe.
One of the most endearing things about Jeremy, maybe, is how he got his start in the culinary world: scooping ice cream and peeling potatoes at a local country club in South Florida when he was just 11 years old — he knew he wanted to be a chef that early. And now not only does he have Agi’s, but he’s written a cookbook, one that I think is super accessible and beautiful, called Second Generation; with recipes from Agi’s and beyond. Mark and I left our conversation with Jeremy feeling like we were family — many of our creature comforts are the same and we talked a lot about Florida, where Jeremy grew up and where my grandparents — Mark’s parents — were snowbirds (Florida in the winters, NYC the rest of the time).
Get Jeremy’s recipes for Poached Radishes and Nokedli in Chicken Broth with So Much Dill here and here.
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