Arts & Culture Magazine - January/February 2008 - (Page 65) Roasted Halibut and confit tomato Chef Dylan Elhajoui of minds and hearts, and the perfect combination to make the restaurant a success. Chef Dylan cannot wait to get started. The menu is his. The kitchen creations are his. And, the newly enlarged kitchen is his. Born in Morocco and married to an American, with four children (all home schooled and talented in their own right), Dylan has a multitude of creative flavors drawn from his multicultural life. “I have trouble labeling my food exactly,” he says. “It’s Mediterranean. It’s French. It’s American. It’s more than a category because I like my food to be creative, seasonal and complex. It’s kind of my own expression, whatever I’m thinking about at the time—and market based, of course—but always rooted in tradition. I like to explore new flavors and flavor combinations but I don’t get weird for the sake of weird. I just really love food and I get excited when I taste familiar dishes made in unfamiliar ways.” But mainly, Chef Dylan does not want MoZaic to be “pretentious because basically, it’s about satisfying our basic human need for food. We don’t feel the need to educate our guests but rather to please them.” Thus, the MoZaic menu. “Our guests will let us know what we should keep as our signature dishes. The menu will be affected by what’s fresh and yummy,” Dylan explains. “For example, I have a delicious tagine of slow-braised petite veal shank and fennel with Jerusalem artichokes, scented with orange peel that I can’t wait to serve. And when I find a really fresh halibut, I’ll use a filet and pan roast it with a confit of tomato with asparagus, arugula salad and preserved lemon vinaigrette.” Anne says, “Dylan has a rare ability to marry savory and sweet. He’s great at salads and entrees and sauces. But he also makes the best sweets in town.” Working at both MoZaic and the coffee shop favorite Pastry Art, Chef Dylan has created some inspired creations that would tempt even the staunchest dieter, like mango panna cotta and Belgian chocolate parfait with passion fruit sorbet. As Dylan says, “Yummy.” Or his reinvention of the classic strawberry shortcake: amaretto white chocolate crème brulée with almond strawberry shortcake, a la mode. And then there is his special signature dessert: a Belgian chocolate mousseline and raspberry crème brulée with Grand Marnier sabayon. “There’s just one thing missing in Sarasota,” Anne adds. “When you get out of the opera or the movies, there’s no place to go for a really great dessert.” Well, now there is. In fact, the evening could begin at MoZaic, followed with a performance downtown, and a return to this soon-to-be favorite for a late night coffee and a luxurious dessert that is truly out of the box. Make MoZaic Sarasota’s dessert destination. arts and culture magazine : : 65
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