Flour & Barley, located at The Headquarters at Seaport, is a great eatery for brick oven pizza, craft brews (over 150 on tap, in bottles or cans), signature cocktails and delicious appetizers. With two locations, one in Las Vegas and their second location here in San Diego, this spacious establishment features exposed brick walls clad with metal rivets reminiscent of World War II aircraft carriers, as well as lighting elements salvaged from decommissioned war ships.
The Chef de Cuisine, JC Colón, shares the Farm House pizza recipe on In the Kitchen.
Farm House Pizza
Why did you pick the specific toppings for the Farm House pizza? The toppings were chosen to complement the richness of the egg yolk. You have the great salty-sweetness of the pork belly, cotto ham and fennel sausage, combined with that rich, runny egg, it’s a perfect match. What's the process of making the dough? We start with our sourdough starter (biga- a type of pre-fermentation used in Italian baking. Our biga was brought over from Campania and is more than 100 years old.) The starter is especially unique because we have been growing it for more than two years. We started in Las Vegas and brought it over to San Diego, where we feed it Coronado IPA to give it a unique flavor. We portion a certain amount of that starter that we add to our flour and add oil in the dough-making process. What's the key component to this dish? Besides the dough itself, I would have to say it’s the egg. The egg has to be runny so when you cut into the yolk you’re able to enjoy the richness of the yolk in every bite. What's a good beer and/or cocktail to pair with this dish? I would suggest the Coronado Stingray IPA, a local IPA. It’s actually the same beer that’s used in the dough making process, so the pairing is perfect.
Chef de Cuisine JC Colón shares one of Flour & Barley's finest pies, the Farm House Pizza.
What kind of experience will a diner get at Flour & Barley?
We want every diner to feel like they are at home. We’re very family-friendly and we have high-quality ingredients and a great local beer selection. There’s really something for everyone, whether you’re a San Diego resident or a visitor.
About JC Colón
Are you from San Diego?
I was born and raised in San Diego and have been here my entire life.
Did you always want to be a chef growing up?
It was always something that I was always interested in. I loved watching and trying to
mimic shows like “Great Chefs of the World” and tried to mimic their dishes in my own
kitchen as a kid.
What motivates you as a chef?
We are lucky to be surrounded by amazing farms that provide fresh produce for the
restaurant, so being able to incorporate such incredible ingredients into our dishes is
really important to me. Also, I’m always striving to be the best chef I can be and I'm
always trying to further develop my skills.
What do you feel is the biggest challenge when it comes creating new dishes?
The biggest challenge when creating a new dish is making sure it’s presented exactly
how it was originally envisioned when it hits the table. Once we come up with the
concept for a new dish, it can take anywhere from a week to a few weeks to finalize it,
depending on the idea and level of complexity.
Are you planning on creating any new items for the menu?
Right now, we are working on a few things. One possible new dish involves Guanciale,
an Italian meat that will take a few weeks to cure. We also run daily/weekly specials
based on product that is available from local farmer’s markets.
When you're not coming up with delicious dishes, what do you enjoy doing on your
spare time?
As a chef, I always have food on my mind, but when I can unplug, I like to spend time
with family, especially my newborn son Maximiliano.
What's next for you?
Only time will tell.
Flour & Barley
789 W. Harbor Dr. #110, San Diego. (619) 344-2900 or flourandbarley.com
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