Chef John puts his flavorful spin on the ever-popular, beloved summer salad: the Caprese. His take features the same main ingredients—layers of fresh mozzarella cheese, thick slices of ripe beefsteak tomatoes, and tender basil leaves—with the addition of zesty pesto. Full of bright, fresh flavors, this is the ideal side dish for any dinner, from simply grilled steak, chicken or fish to rich pastas.
For much of the past two decades, Chef John DeLucie has been one of New York City's most popular chefs leading a number of restaurants like Bedford & Co, Ainslie, Empire Diner, The Lion, and The Waverly Inn. Upon graduating from NYU, he eventually gave in to his natural culinary curiosity and began a tour of Europe's great cuisine centers (France and Italy) where he sculpted his own cooking style, fusing modern cooking techniques with European craft. Upon returning to the States, DeLucie landed several jobs including Chef de Cuisine at the venerable seafood restaurant Oceana. Today, DeLucie's style remains as distinctively simple as it is universally praised. His newest restaurant, Merchants Social, opened in Hudson, New York, in 2022.