Jimmy Schmidt

I think my cuisine has actually become more intricate, but more subtle. In years past, I did like to combine wild tropical flavors with more staid, standard-type dishes. However, I never really got into stuff like “blueberry vinaigrette on sweetbreads” or things like that. But now, I really work on a lot of contrasting flavors and textures and such that add a certain depth and complexity. At the same time, it’s a little more subtle, so that you kind of get the overall flavor and then if you really like food and really want to delve in more, you can pick out all the components. It’s more rounded, more subtle—although I don’t know if I should use the word “subtle, because it still kind of jumps out at you! I’m much more careful about combining ingredients than I was ten years ago. Over the course of time, I’ve come to the realization more and more that I need to make all of the ingredients tie together—that the flavors have to work together. I don’t just combine ingredients to shock or to create controversy, but to enrich the palate and to enrich the dining experience.