Syncopated

Syncopated

New York, New York

 
 

Tell us a little bit about who you are and what you do:

Alexis: Syncopated

Photo Credit: Jon Taylor

My name is Alexis, and I am the founder and chef of Syncopated where I host fine dining vegetable-forward pop-up dinners as well as empower others to cook to the 'beet' of their own culinary rhythm. For me, cooking is all about being present in the moment, listening to the ingredients themselves as well as what my mind desires; I use basic rules and techniques to guide me but allow my imagination and the rhythm within the food to take my dishes in a truly personal, unexpected direction. With over 10 years of professional experience in some of New York's top restaurants, I am grounded in a strong foundation from which I love to break away whenever possible. For me, recipes are the starting point - while they provide great inspiration and structure, I never follow them strictly, letting the food lead the way to the end result.

Along with graduating at the top of my class from both The Culinary Institute of America and Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration, I spent time in the kitchens of Balaboosta, two Michelin-starred Aquavit, Dirt Candy, Annisa, and L’Artusi. Over the years, I have studied a wide range of ingredients and ideas, enabling me to develop a diversified culinary foundation.

I am also enamored with spices and bring a global perspective to my cooking whenever possible. I enjoy pulling from my career, travels, and Jewish culture as I create my menus, with each dish often corresponding to a special moment from my past and presented with a fascinating, undeniably delicious twist.

As a dancer at heart as well, I am a huge fan of taking classes throughout the city. I also have always excelled at business writing and proper grammar and continue to dedicate free time to resume consulting at Let's Eat, Grandma. And with whatever time I have left, I can be seen sharing my love of F.R.I.E.N.D.S. any chance I can.

Let us know more about your business name - how did you come up with it?

Cooking is my ultimate love, but I also grew up dancing and playing the drums; I wanted to find a way to incorporate these three passions into my business so that I would continually be driven by what fills me with happiness. To me, 'Syncopated' represents these three artistic sides of me very well - it defines the fact that my cooking is always very personal, conceptualized with a journey in mind (similar to a piece of dance or music), and features unexpected yet scrumptious twists, just like how syncopated rhythms and music stand out because of the surprising, displaced beats and accents that make a piece truly distinct, noteworthy, and enjoyable.

What is your signature style / item? How did it become so?

After spending time working in a vegetable restaurant along with traditional ones focused more on animal proteins, I realized that no matter where I was, the vegetables, fruits, grains, and other seasonings were always the true flavor components of the dish. While the protein might be advertised as the star, it really only was so tasty because of all the other ingredients - if you were to replace one fish with another, or pork with beef, you would alter the integrity and basis a little bit, but in the end, without anything else on the plate, you would just have a piece of meat. You need all the other aspects to bring it to life - so why cover them up with a piece of protein that will almost always taste the same, expected way every single time? After realizing this fact, I decided that I wanted to highlight vegetables as much as I could.

My Signature Dish:

Ever since moving to NYC to work in restaurants, Thanksgiving was the one holiday I knew I would always have off. Even though I should have taken advantage of the time to rest before the craziness of December, every year I choose to prepare a special, out-of-the-box meal instead - I loved having the opportunity to create and truly celebrate, and I wanted to make the most of it by challenging myself with a fancy meal.

A few years ago, I came up with the idea to create for this meal a savory beet version of the Italian rainbow cookie, one of my favorite Jewish snacks from growing up and until now. It was a perfect playing field for numerous techniques and a great way to showcase a beet and all its parts (and all the byproducts of its prep) in various forms - an ideal encapsulation of my desire to feature vegetables in sustainable, clever ways that told a special story about me. In a later iteration of the dish, I also decided to incorporate a savory rugelach, my other favorite Jewish snack, which allowed me to be even more innovative with the beet and everything else. With the intention for my food to be truly unique to me, vibrant in presentation and flavor, and never be a dish in a traditional form, I knew this would eventually become a true representation of me as a chef and what I aspire to share with diners.

Here is a description of the complete dish:

The Rainbow Beet: Salt-Baked Red Beets, Pickled Golden Beet and Mascarpone Mousse, Beet Green Cake, Raspberry, Beet, and Basil Jam, Pickled Beet Gel, Beet Ash

Golden Beet Rugelach: Port-Pickled Golden Beets, Raspberry Jam, Caramelized Cream Cheese

Finished with a Thyme Sabayon

What makes your business unique to the industry?

My business is ever-changing these days as I continue to figure out my place in the culinary industry, so I am open to experimenting with various ideas and not stuck on executing my vision in one specific way. It is more of a brand then a set operation, enabling me to take on a diverse range of projects I launch myself as well as collaborate with others however I see fit. All of my activities also involve a different group of people each time, so while some friends will help out with all of the happenings, it is never the same exact team. This allows me to not only stimulate different connections every time but also to learn how to make the current and next one better from the fresh perspectives of new participants.

What's been your biggest roadblock when it comes to business and how have you been able to overcome?

Running a side business while having a full-time job and needing to work in real time for each event is my biggest roadblock - I cannot always plan things completely before setting an end goal and beginning to accomplish it. For instance, with the pop-ups, I need to confirm a date that works for me first and then find people to assist who can fit it into their schedule, often dealing with last minute changes and not knowing with who I will end up. I also cannot wait to find out exactly how many guests are going to attend before I start prepping because I have to begin weeks in advance and strategize regarding what can be frozen, stored longer, or made at the last moment. Furthermore, I cannot always use the same space depending on what my needs are, so I need to be ready to switch it up and sometimes go into unfamiliar kitchens with not much time to scope it out beforehand.

Fortunately, I have been able to handle these continuous problems with ease by remembering that I have done it before, so I use that success to motivate me whenever things get hard again. Also, I have learned to stay calm no matter what I have to accomplish or what happens during the process - by not getting stressed and understanding how to trust my gut and go with the flow, I am able to make decisions without overthinking the consequences and resolve problems by seeing them as opportunities, thus not getting caught up in the wrong details. Lastly, I try to surround myself with friends and colleagues who are super capable and supportive so that I have people to rely on who not only carry out their responsibilities with excellence but also have awesome suggestions to make my vision even better and who can sense what I need to succeed when the pressure is so high in the moments of execution.

How has your business had to adapt amidst the Covid-19 Pandemic? What are you doing to navigate the situation?

A Taste of the Nutcracker Cookbook by Alexis Sicklick

Available on Local Undercover Virtual Marketplace

Originally, my business was solely focused on in-person pop-up dinners, but that clearly was not an option during the pandemic. I also moved back to my childhood home with my parents and had to adapt to a new environment with many wonderful added resources but also some frustrating limitations. Overall, it forced me to rethink how I could not only remain in touch with my love for cooking, but how I could still connect with the audience I was beginning to grow.

I started with posting recipes on a blog, but as there was no real human connection through that, I wanted to think bigger. Therefore, I started to bring in my passion for Israeli dancing and Jewish food, teaching dances through Instagram that then inspired a new dish, hoping that the dance element would make us feel more connected. Still, that was not enough, and as the holiday season was approaching, I decided that the Nutcracker cookbook was an even better option for me and for my audience - giving them a more tangible and special way to experience my food even without me being the one to directly cook it for them.

Along with the book, I dove into online cooking classes, on demand videos for a friend's app, and virtual cooking parties - breaking down the physical barrier a little more to give greater guidance on producing my dishes with the utmost success. I also offered a few to-go dinners for some occasions, providing the Syncopated experience at home for the closest version to my initial business strategy.

Fortunately, things have bounced back in the city, and I was able to host a pop-up again in early October, and I am planning another one in December. While I am requiring guests to be vaccinated and test before attending and for all of us working the event to be masked up, everything is feeling much more safe and normal again, and I do not feel like I have to always be thinking on my feet for the next project to keep me going. I do however like how the pandemic forced me to think differently, take on new projects that I would not have done otherwise, and have something else up my sleeve at all times as a backup plan; I want to keep that go-getter, risk-taking, open-mind momentum going as I continue to build my business in as many worthwhile ways as I can, giving me numerous activities to sustain me more effectively whenever a new obstacle such as Covid-19 arises again.

What is your favorite part of what you do?

I love creating something new with every event and project as well as being my own boss - because my brand is mainly focused on sharing vegetables with the world in as many exciting applications as possible, and because I get to choose what projects I want to take on, I am not bound to one type of opportunity. I like to push my limits and never repeat dishes too, so hosting events for as many different scenarios as possible and in numerous capacities makes it so that I get to explore so many different options for presenting my cuisine in the best possible way. Additionally, I love getting to partner up with former colleagues and friends to execute these projects - my food is only one part of the experience, and incorporating their talents and contributions makes the journey and the outcome so much more meaningful, entertaining, comprehensive, and delightful.

What is your *must do* local activity?

Shopping at Kalustyan's for spices and specialty products, visiting the Union Square Farmer's Market, taking a walk through Central Park, spending time at Dumbo near the water and Brooklyn Bridge, enjoying a meal at 2nd Avenue Deli with their challah, rainbow cookies, and egg cream at the end.

Where to find Syncopated:

Jackalope Arts

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