David Burke Fromagerie

HAM AND CHEESE OMELET STREUDEL
My favorite meal to dine out is SUNDAY BRUNCH. And my family and I like a leisurely brunch at that. A while back we had a phenomenal four hour brunch at David Burke Fromagerie in Rumson, New Jersey.

HANDMADE CAVATELLI & BRAISED SHORT RIBS
wild mushrooms, truffle mousse and mushroom chips

For nearly 35 years, Fromagerie has been a landmark in Rumson. In his teens, New Jersey native David Burke worked in the kitchen here. “I didn’t become a cook because I love food, I became a cook because I love the kitchen.”
As he became more successful, Chef Burke remained friends with the original owners. It was his dream to one day buy Fromagerie when it came time for his friends/mentors to retire. This dream came true in 2006.

PETITE FILET MIGNON & EGG BENEDICT
home fries

HAND CUT BACON “for the table”

Our family has a dining custom we call “for the table.” It first came about in the 90’s at a new restaurant in Vegas where our waiter said we would be remiss if someone did not order the Chef’s truffle risotto. My brother said, “Well, just bring one for the table,” thus ordering an additional entrée for all to share. Over the years this has become Standard Operating Procedure. Ordering the Chef’s recommendation or a dish to share “for the table” even has it’s own gesture: Outstretch arm and make a circular motion with the hand toward the middle of the table.

TITANIC FRENCH TOAST
two marmalades & strawberry consomme

What to drink with Brunch? Bloody Marys are good. But we are in love with Grüner Veltliner. This darling Austrian white wine pairs with all brunch foods. All? How can that be? Salad, artichoke, omelette, asparagus, hollandaise, bacon, crab, cheese, French toast??? Yes. I plan to keep drinking GrüVe, affectionately called groovy, with brunch and I promise to let you know if something doesn’t work. I suspect it has something to do with the time of day as well as the wine’s character: Juicy. Complex. Bright. Balanced. Intriguing. Johann Donabaum is one of a new generation of younger winemakers producing wines from the western end of the Wachau, Austria’s great dry white wine region. Johann Donabaum Grüner Veltliner Smaragd Berglage Loiben 2005

The Hirsch winery is among the best white wine producing estates of Austria. Josef Hirsch and his son Johannes, with a love of nature and honed oenology skills respectively, combine old style and new style produce wines of exceptional character. Speaking of Austria, if you want a real treat, please visit my blogger friend Merisi, whose Postcards from Vienna photography will give you an amazing taste of this gorgeous country. Hirsch Grüner Veltliner Qualitätswein Trocken Kamptal Kammern Lamm 2005

FRESH SEASONAL FRUIT
lemongrass-ginger consommé & “chai tea” whipped cream

MOLTEN CHOCOLATE S’MORES
bourbon vanilla gelato, crisp meringue mushroom

DAVID BURKE CHEESECAKE POPS – The staff could not have been more gracious. To top off the experience, they presented all six of us with a gift box of cheesecake pops to take home (or for some of us, on the plane).
We just returned from Las Vegas where we celebrated my mother’s 75th birthday and enjoyed another fab David Burke meal at his restaurant in The Venetian. More to come…

16 thoughts on “David Burke Fromagerie”

  1. I am dying! The first dish had me and then it just kept getting better and better! Ohhhh how blogging is bad for the waistline but of course nothing I presently have on hand is anywhere close to this. I can’t even choose which I want most!

  2. Dear Lori Lynn,

    you are such a kind soul, thank you so much for mentioning my blog,
    I feel truly honored! 🙂

    Would you believe that I haven’t yet tasted a Grüner Veltliner I didn’t like? I was always partial to Italian vines and, lately, to Australian ones, but since moving to Vienna I am drinking mostly Austrian wines.

    Have you ever tried Austrian Zweigelt reds? I tasted a 2006 Zweigelt Reserve Barrique a few weeks ago, at a small vintner in Illmitz, Burgenland (in the National Park Lake Neusiedl area), one of the best reds I ever had. Six Euros the bottle, straight from the vintner!

  3. I’m with Darius. I could have sworn I caught a whiff of it, too. But I’m truly smitten with those molten s’mores. Your posts rock, LL. Thanx!

  4. what a decadent brunch……I can already taste the omlette streudel and the desserts look luscious. what a great afternoon, look forward to your vegas posts!

  5. Hi Candy – “for the table” is now an institution. If we only have a single chance to eat at a famous Chef’s restaurant, we want to make sure we try as much of his/her signature dishes that we can!

    Hi NIcole – then may I recommend the short ribs with truffle mousse?

    Hi Merisi – I believe it. GruVe ROCKS! I am making a note and promise to try the red.

    Hi Peter – It’s just a hop, skip, and a jump from Toronto!

    Hi Darius – and hand cut bacon at that!

    Hi Maryann – I thought of that when I saw your post on orecchiette!

  6. Hi Anon – thank you 🙂 I really appreciate your input!

    Hi Taste Memory – isn’t that omelette streudel a good idea?

    Hi Marie – Foodie Family here.

  7. You are killing me with ALL this wonderful David Burke food… I’m sure the food tasted just as divine as the FAB photos depict!

  8. What a fun tradition.. “for the table”. I would love to dine with you and your family! And girl you know your wines!! I have much more touring to do in our vineyards… I would love your company! We can hop on board the Temecula Vineyard limousine service.. no driving necessary! 🙂
    Ciao and hugs Lori Lynn!!

  9. Lori, It was so great to be part of the fabulous food, wines and company. I look forward to your December trip back east so we can do it again! Great blog ,too.
    Susan

  10. Lori,
    Are you a NJ native?
    Fromagerie used to be owned by The Peters family, and it was always fine French food.
    I love how Burke has transformed the restaurant and it is truly is the top dog in NJ.
    Don’t you love his cheesecake lollipop tree?
    Stacey

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.