How far do a chef’s tentacles reach? For chef Todd Gray, it’s the coral laden waters of the Dominican Republic. In addition to opening his seafood restaurant Watershed in NoMa this year, efforts at the cafe Muse at the Corcoran Gallery of Art and co-authoring a cookbook with his wife and business partner Ellen Kassoff, Gray is now testing the waters in the Caribbean with Salamander Hospitality mogul Shelia Johnson.”The D.R. presents an opportunity to bring the Salamander brand to a country that’s within to the D.C. season travelers,” Gray told Yeas & Nays.
Gray, who has been culinary leading the Salamander Hospitality brand by overseeing and developing menu offerings at Market Salamander in Middleburg, Virginia and working with Johnson for ten years, says he is thrilled about the latest development in the D.R. He will serve as culinary director of several restaurants at the Grand Resorts at Cap Cana. “It’s an exciting challenge. I’ve helped shape DC’s love of seasonality and now is my chance to understand and apply some of the same acumen to a tropical island 60 miles west of Puerto Rico,” Gray said.
So what items can we expect to see on the menu? Gray tells us — keeping with his style — he’s taking full advantage of the local resources. “Customers can expect the same fresh flavors just in a warmer and sunnier climate. For example, I’ve substituted the Lezlee Westine’s Pulled Chicken Salad to Caribbean Lobster with Mango and Papaya,” the chef smiles.
Gray says D.C. VIPs are already making plans to visit after the resort opens to the public on December 10.
So does that mean we are losing one of DC’s culinary favorites to the Caribbean? Gray tells us don’t count on it.
“Thanks to modern jet age and my all-star staff, I’m able to travel to D.C. and the Dominican in six hours. I can tee off my menus in D.R. by 9 in the morning and be back at Watershed for service at 7.”
