With the delight of a kid with a new toy, executive chef Peter Smith, owner of Penn Quarter’s PS 7’s, talks with great cheer about how he uses gin mash (the used botanicals from distilling gin) to cure meats. Dried beef as “ginola?” Pancetta as “gin belly?” “[The cured meat] tastes like gin,” said Smith, with a chuckle. “I also use gin oil for poaching fish, say for a ‘gin and tonic halibut.’ It has a nice mellow flavor with a tonic foam.” But don’t assume that Smith is all about culinary frivolity. He is a very serious chef with a penchant for twisting the rules to achieve unparalleled gastronomic results. Playful may be the key word to understanding Smith’s cooking strategies, but simplicity and seasonal ingredients also guide his cooking decisions. As he explains, patrons must understand what he serves them, but each dish must have a “wow” element. Poaching halibut in gin oil certainly fits, as do his house-made hot dogs.

Smith’s love for cooking got ignited when he was only 10 years old he says. The key? Trying to make a chocolate cake pictured on the cover of Gourmet magazine. Though his efforts failed, he loved the whole creative venture. And his grandfather acted as prime motivator in the young boy’s life. An inveterate cook, and an Italian with a passion for presenting elaborate Sunday dinner, Smith’s grandfather recruited the boy to prepare these family meals. Often, recalls Smith, he had to stand on a kitchen stool to reach the stovetop.