Jacó
Restaurant Serves Up A Slice of Lemon
By Leland Baxter-Neal
For many, cooking is art. For Richard Lemon, it’s architecture.
His plates aren’t just prepared, they are constructed. A small tower
of wonton chips and raw tuna rises like a miniature model of the
condos being sold from the office next door.
Amid dancing kitchen flames and popping skillets of oil and butter,
he lays a foundation of pineapple risotto, upon which he builds his
macadamia nut-encrusted dorado, painted with a passion fruit beurre
blanc sauce.
The flavors of his dishes, Mr. Lemon says, are assembled just as
painstakingly as their presentation. Take, for example, one of his
favorite appetizers: grilled sugar cane-skewered shrimp with
naranjillo mojo sauce.
“You’ve
got sweet sugarcane and once you grill it, it caramelizes. Then
sweet, tender shrimp, then you’re going with garlic and oregano and
spices. There’s the pungent heat from the garlic, then hit it with
the sour from the naranjillo sauce, and then of course the butter
for the smoothness,” Mr. Lemon says. ..................