TV So Good You Can Taste it
Chef Amber Lancaster and The MC Hotel’s Allegory are bringing a little “Hell’s Kitchen” to Montclair
by Leila Brown
Have you ever watched a cooking show and immediately felt your mouth water? Whether it’s competition style or a step by step tutorial with Martha Stewart herself, the finished product can’t quite be tasted through the screen. Chef Amber Lancaster, Executive Chef for The MC Hotel is about to change that with her debut on the 19th Season of FOX’s “Hell’s Kitchen” hosted by Chef Gordon Ramsay.
Taste and See
Chef Amber, who was named The MC Hotel’s new Executive Chef in August - has developed a brand new special menu for Montclair diners and hotel guests to savor exclusively, there’s just one catch: the menu is a secret. “So, the thing about the new menu is that, I actually can't talk about it, and you can only get that menu on Thursday nights.” She will be joined by fellow contestant Nikki Hanna, who made the jump to join Amber at The MC Hotel as Lead Line Cook. These two powerhouses will be bringing “Hell’s Kitchen” inspired dishes straight to the Allegory’s dinner tables every Thursday until both are eliminated, or until one is named the winner.
While Chef Lancaster is no stranger to televised cooking competitions( she has thrice appeared on Food Network’s “Guy’s Grocery Games”, undefeated at that!), she described her time on a long form competition like Hell’s Kitchen as something totally different. “I thought, reality TV, how bad could it be? That's also been something that's interesting is when you do a reality TV show, you don't realize it, but sometimes you get egged in a certain direction. They're like, “oh, you're the strong outspoken female. You're definitely going down this leg.” I just thought, “Well, how much could somebody really not be like themselves?” But even a lot of the other contestants, when you see the show- you're like, hey, they're not really like that in real life.”
Despite the magic of television editing, you’ll still have the opportunity to learn more about Chef Amber and Line Cook Nikki through their Facebook Lives planned to air every Tuesday at 6 P.M, where viewers can interact with them, ask questions, and even possibly learn a cooking tip or two.
Bringing Her Chicago Flair to Montclair
Aside from having the competitive edge, Chef Amber is an acclaimed chef who cut her professional teeth in well renowned culinary scenes including Paris ancand Chicago. A native to Tuscon, she has been recognized as one of the “25 Women to Watch” by Hotel F&B Magazine, “9 Chefs to Know in Chicago” by Zagat.com and “Chef of the Month” by Chef Works. She has even guest-judged, and competed in, the prestigious Cochon555 Chicago chef competition.
A move from Chicago wasn’t something that she had anticipated for herself, but with the pandemic forcing many restaurants to shutter, she saw it as an opportunity to move on and try something, or someplace new. “I ended up renting a car and then driving here, and it's so lovely, I fell in love with the city. There's such a great opportunity for this hotel because it's kind of a small town, even though it's so close to other parts of Jersey and New York City, it's this perfect little niche of where it's at. I saw a great opportunity in a brand new hotel and I was like, I want to be a part of it.”
Chef Amber may be relatively new to town, but she’s already getting acclimated to Montclair and some of the other wonderful eateries that our town has to offer. Outside of The MC Hotel, she has frequented La Rocca Osteria, Montclair Bread Company, and the ever popular “The Pie Store”. While she has some cool projects in the works, she looks forward to collaborating further with local Montclair places. “I would love to do more collaborations and I'm so used to that. The community of chefs in Chicago, all worked together on different projects.”. While she’s been told that COVID has kept her from experiencing the “real” Montclair, she’s looking forward to getting to know the chefs in town for future collaborations.
Dine at The MC and Feel Safe While Doing it
Chef Amber and The MC Hotel want potential diners and visitors to know that they are taking every safety precaution to ensure that you can feel safe for the duration of your visit. Both Allegory and ALTO visits are by reservation only to keep a strict count on occupancy, along with closely followed social distancing and mask wearing policies for staff and visitors.
Aside from the Thursday night secret menu, The Allegory boasts perfectly curated menus for dinner and brunch including options for vegetarian, vegan, keto, and gluten free restaurant goers(meat eaters will be very pleased as well!). If you’re not in the mood for a sit down dinner, make a reservation for ALTO, The MC Hotel’s beautiful rooftop bar. Complete with heaters and blankets for visitors to bundle up in, ALTO provides beautiful views of Montclair on one side, with the backdrop of New York City on the other. Aside from the Instagrammable surroundings, ALTO touts an exclusive drink and bites menu that you can’t get downstairs at Allegory. ALTO’s menu includes perfectly handcrafted cocktails including “Cider...I Knew Her Well” made with Montclair’s own Misunderstood Whiskey. “Outside of that, obviously, I'm biased. So I want people to experience, you know, I'm a Chicago chef. Blow your mind in Montclair.” Chef Lancaster says with a laughing smile.
All of this kicks off tonight at 8pm Eastern with the premiere of “Hell’s Kitchen” Season 19 on FOX. Reservations can be made for Allegory and ALTO on opentable.com. Be sure to make reservations early as space will fill up fast.
