When I met Celebrity Chef Dale Talde in Brooklyn’s Park Slope neighborhood a few years ago, he told me about growing up watching his mother cook. Her best advice to her son as he embarked on his culinary career that includes a 2022 nomination for the James Beard Award for Best Chef: New York State?
“Don’t f-up the rice.”
At his Tigress restaurant on the rooftop of the recently-opened The Perry Hotel Naples, Talde hasn’t “f-upped’’ anything. Not only is his Cantonese chophouse among the newest high-profile eateries along Florida’s Paradise Coast, it might be the best.
Dale Talde
“Beautiful food,’’ said Perry Hotel Assistant General Manager Matt Anzivino. “Everything is made in-house and sourced in-house. And everything is meant to be shared.’’
There’s certainly plenty to share – from the spicy chicken dumpling appetizer to the aged crown of duck to the 12oz prime picanha steak with sesame soy. Talde’s flair for inventive and flavorful dishes is particularly on display with the smashed crispy fingerling potatoes that burst with the flavors of turmeric caramel, pickled thai chilis, and scallions.
That dish alone, as well as the crab fried rice and duck, is with more than one visit to Tigress, which is located on the seventh floor rooftop of the casual luxury Perry Hotel, ideal for sunset watching from either the indoors dining room or outdoors “Easy Tiger’’ bar that features its own private pool. Don’t pass on the Hong Kong Old Fashioned.
Opened this past January under Talde’s direction, the Easy Tiger Roofop Bar and Tigress Restaurant have become two of the Naples area’s more popular destinations for locals, as well as hotel guests.
“Naples has really embraced it,’’ Anzivino said. “There’s really nothing like Tigress around here.’’
This month, Tigress and Easy Tiger launched “Local’s Happy Hour at Tigress,’’, available Monday–Thursday from 4–6 p.m., which includes 50 percent off all dim sum items, plus signature cocktails, beers, and wines.
This past July, Tigress launched a new indoor lunch service every day from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., featuring a selection of dim sum, vegetable-forward dishes, sandwiches and shared plates, each rooted in Cantonese flavor profiles and Talde’s inventive style.
Dim sum lunch highlights include Dry-Aged Beef Pot Stickers, served with Chinese mustard and soy vinegar; Spicy Chicken Dumplings, glazed in General Tso’s sauce and paired with broccoli; and Kung Pao Chicken Wings, accompanied by buttermilk ranch and shaved celery salad.
My favorite? The Kobe Brisket Burger, topped with American cheese, bacon and special sauce.
“The Naples community has been nothing short of amazing,” said Talde, who also owns and operates Goosefeather, a Cantonese eatery in Tarrytown, N.Y. “Opening Tigress for lunch service is just one more way we can show our appreciation, offering guests and locals the chance to enjoy the signature Tigress experience in a relaxed and accessible format.”
Photos Courtesy of The Perry Hotel Naples