'You have to keep food as simple as possible and let the flavors speak for themselves,' Hamilton says
(Credit: Jori Klein)
For Matthew Hamilton, that answer was Tuscany. For two years, the chef—whose past stints include Prune and Uovo in New York, and Zuni Café in San Francisco—lived on an olive farm, where he served as a hired hand for two seasons. It’s the perfect example of the chef’s devotion to his food, which betrays strong Euro and Mediterranean influences drawn from places as far-flung as Lebanon and Tunisia.
Then again, it’s probably in his DNA: The St. James, Long Island, native is the great-grandson of a butcher. His grandfather was a chef and restaurant owner, and he grew up surrounded by the freshest catch brought daily by the area’s fishermen.
Hamilton is now at the helm of Belcourt, a cozy Parisian-style eatery in the East Village that provides a showcase for his seasonal approach to Euro-centric fare. Here, he takes us on a tour.
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