Gem City Style: March 2024

Jessica Hunter

Jessica Hunter asks some of the creators of our Can't Miss Dishes for 2024 some fun questions about their fantasy meal. Check out these answers from the owners and employees of Give A Crepe, Herb & Honey Bakery, Lucero, and Tandoori Hut.

This month, I caught up with some of the chefs and creators behind a few of the items that were featured in our annual Can't Miss Dishes. Each proprietor was also featured as an Erie Reader 40 Under 40 honoree in the past (2023 alumna Jessica Schultz invited her staff to chime in).

I asked each of them: If you could invite any person to dinner, who would it be? What would be on the menu? What would you talk about?

Stephani Klassen, owner Give A Crepe, La CrepErie LLC

(Featured Can't Miss Dish: Saumon Sale Crepe)

My first instinct is to say one of the greats who has passed, but then again, I would just take that as an opportunity to learn instead of wanting to cook for them, so truly: my whole family. I come from a blended family, and to get all of us together (including those who have passed), that's roughly 80 people. And for one event, that hasn't happened in about 23 years, and it wasn't even on my radar back then that I would love cooking for others as much as I do now!  So yeah, my WHOLE family. It would be an honor to have the opportunity to thank them with a meal for all their influence and guidance over my life.

In terms of the menu, oh golly. Definitely items would have to be gluten free, vegan, and also meat heavy! So:

Appetizer: Butternut squash bisque finished with a vegan sage cream

Entree: Wine-braised short ribs, English roasted potatoes, sauteed asparagus, and herb-marinated roasted mushrooms

Salad: Roasted radicchio finished with blue cheese and a white balsamic pomegranate reduction. A fromage board with Gravlax.

Dessert: Pavlova (it was the first thing I ever made on my own) and panna cotta

We would talk about all the culinary influences on their lives and favorite dishes they grew up with — the best memories of life, really. I would hope to hear about what kept them "giving a crepe" about their lives, because without them, I wouldn't be the Crepe Lady now.

The Staff of Herb and Honey Bakery

(Featured Can't Miss Dish: Almond Bear Claw)

Jessica Schultz (Owner)

I'd like to have dinner with my great, great granddaughter and make her my grandmother's pierogi recipe. I'd love for her to share with me what the future is like: Are there finally people in positions of power who will be around for the consequences of their decisions? What's the current concept of gender? Has AI been used for good? How does her generation view millennials? Did we make the world better or worse?

Ameliarose Wagner

I would invite Carmen Maria Machado to dinner. We would talk about authors transcending conventional genre boundaries in literature, what art means to the artist vs. those who consume it, and why works exploring the experiences, societal expectations, and personal identities of marginalized groups face censorship in modern-day America. The menu would include fettuccine alfredo with fresh basil, sourdough garlic bread, and roasted asparagus.

Vince Bartone

So the answer from my heart: a small party of older women who have cooked throughout history and we'd just have a bunch of finger foods and unending tea and we'd just sit and spill the tea. I feel like so much cooking has been done overwhelmingly by minorities and women but the people that get credit are the men who have commodified it.

Alana Sabol

Anthony Bourdain. We would talk about food and travel. The meal would be cacio e pepe.

Vicki Wont

I'd love to just eat dinner with all of my friends, ideally sitting on someone's living room floor, sharing communal platters of food prepared by someone's mother or grandmother without the use of a recipe. No one's quiet, everyone shares, everyone leaves refreshed.

Dan Kern, owner of Lucero

(Featured Can't Miss Dish: Saffron Butter Candle with Sourdough Bread)

If I could invite one person to dinner it would have to be the late Kobe Bryant (rest in power). He's one of my personal heroes and has taught me many things about myself. He unabashedly loved his craft and never apologized about his competitiveness or intensity. He loved and was dedicated to his family (fellow girl dad) in the same way that he loved basketball. I'd love to talk to him about his passion for the game and how he balanced that with his family life. Stories about his championships won and lost and how he remained a student of the game.

I think the older I get the more I crave simplicity when cooking for others, so focusing on creating a great evening more than what I am cooking would be my preference. A warm summer night in August with a few killer bottles of wine, some shellfish over a wood fire, some crusty bread with softened butter and flaky salt. Maybe overlooking a beautiful body of water somewhere sounds nice!

Dharma Amrita Gurung, owner of Tandoori Hut

(Featured Can't Miss Dish: Vegetarian Thali)

I would love to invite the former CEO of the Erie Downtown Development Corporation, John Persinger to dinner. The menu would be a beloved Indian dish which is Chicken Tikka Masala with rice and naan. I would just truly want to say thank you — because of their development plan,  Tandoori Hut Indian Cuisine landed in a safe, good location, and became even more popular in the city.

Jessica Hunter can be found at jessicahunterphotos.com