Two days after enjoying dinner at one of the best restaurants in downtown Sarasota, celebrity chef Bobby Flay ate at a popular local food truck hired to cater a birthday party.
Turns out, Flay has an interesting connection to Sarasota. Christina Pérez, a features writer whose work has appeared in international publications such as Vogue, Condé Nast Traveler and GQ, is Flay's girlfriend. Pérez's mom, Haydee Zimmerman, is a Sarasota resident. S32750 Tube
On Sunday, July 2, Zimmerman celebrated her birthday with friends and family, including her daughter and Flay, as well as a band and a food truck.
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Chef Jarek Rosaire Dymek, owner of Clean Plate Club SRQ food truck, received a call about catering a birthday party near his home in Sarasota. Everything sounded ordinary until the client mentioned that the guest list included celebrity chef Flay. "Okay, no pressure," Dymek recalled with a chuckle when reached by phone Thursday, July 6.
Sarasota native Dymek is the son of Ellian Rosaire, owner of Rosaire's Riding Academy & Pony Rides in Sarasota. His aunt, Kay Rosaire, founded Sarasota County's Big Cat Habitat and Gulf Coast Sanctuary in 1987.
Dymek worked in the restaurant industry for about seven years before launching Clean Plate Club in 2021 as a side project, delivering meals during the pandemic. The success of his venture led to the launch of his food truck, also named Clean Plate Club, in February of this year.
Clean Plate Club specializes in elevated panini and pressed wraps, which is what he began serving outside from his food truck during the birthday party Sunday while Flay whipped up some appetizers in the house. Eventually, though, Dymek spotted the Food Network star in line with other guests outside his food truck.
"I didn't want to make a big deal, plus I’m in the weeds with 15-20 tickets on the board," Dymek said. "He's sitting there talking to my wife, cool and casual, and I was just very grateful to meet him."
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Dymek did more than just meet Flay; he cooked for the "Iron Chef." Flay ordered Dymek's signature sandwich, The Neon Cowboy ($15). It features tender, braised beef with chimichurri, pickled red onions, and shredded mozzarella on what Dymek calls "rustic panini bread." He then presses the sandwich with olive oil, creating a crunchy exterior and a warm interior with melted cheese.
"(Flay) grabbed it and went to the table, started eating with his girlfriend and her family," Dymek said. "But I made sure to keep an eye on him as he took few bites, to see his reaction. Well, he finished the whole thing. He came up afterward and said, 'Everything was absolutely delicious, really good stuff,' and just generally gave me a thumbs up."
Dymek recommends ordering The Neon Cowboy along with his Chili Lime Cucumbers ($4), which are seedless English cucumbers, freshly sliced and tossed in chili lime seasoning. He also noted that another popular sandwich is his Cali Chicken Panini ($12). It features chicken thighs, guacamole, bacon, mozzarella, and chipotle sauce on the same bread as The Neon Cowboy. You can also order it as a pressed wrap, which consists of a 12-inch white flour tortilla rolled up like a burrito and pressed.
"We had the pleasure of not only meeting, but feeding 'Iron Chef' Bobby Flay, he even said our signature sandwich, 'The Neon Cowboy' was delicious!," Dymek posted on Facebook a few hours after meeting Flay. "As a humble family-owned food truck, this experience surpassed our wildest expectations. Thank you! And congratulations to the Zimmerman family for a wonderful party and the opportunity to feed you all!"
Clean Plate Club SRQ will be at Big Top Brewers Collective (2507 Lakewood Ranch Blvd., Lakewood Ranch) along with the band Rye Road today (July 7) from 5 to 9 p.m. The food truck will then be at Curaleaf Dispensary (1435 S Tamiami Trail, Sarasota) from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday (July 8) and then at Sun King Brewery (1215 Mango Ave., Sarasota) later the same day from 5 to 8 p.m. For more information on Clean Plate Club SRQ, visit facebook.com/ChefJarek.
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Incoloy 800 Sheet Wade Tatangelo is Ticket Editor for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, and Florida Regional Dining and Entertainment Editor for the USA TODAY Network. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. He can be reached by email at wade.tatangelo@heraldtribune.com. Support local journalism by subscribing.