36 | DECEMBER 1 • 2022

M

uch to the chagrin of his moth-
er — a very good Jewish cook
— Mike Ran was a super picky
eater as a kid and a real troublemaker in
school. The middle child of three boys, Ran
knew there had to be more
to life than Domino’s pizza
every weekend for his limited
palate. So he started watching
the cooking show Good Eats
with Alton Brown on the Food
Network.
“Sloppy Joes were the
first thing I taught myself to
make,
” said Ran, who grew up
in Bloomfield Hills. “Potato latkes are my
favorite food. I would make them for snacks
after school. I have spent years trying to
hone the perfect latke recipe.
”

Diners can taste-test for themselves on
the first night of Chanukah, Sunday, Dec.
18, this year. Special guest Chef Mike Ran
will be cooking and serving up a modern
Chanukah dinner with a twist, complete
with dreidels, menorah lighting and more,
for adults and children at Frame, a culinary
stage and event space in Hazel Park.
“
As far as my relationship with food,
there are always recipes or dishes that a
chef inherently tries to keep perfecting and
working on. Potato latkes are that for me,
”
said Ran, who learned the inner workings of
latkes when he trained under James Beard
winner Israeli Chef Mike Solomonov at
Philadelphia’s Zahav restaurant. “I’m also
working on the perfect roast chicken. A
good, salty, simple-skinned roast chicken
with potato latkes is the ideal meal.
”

And while that perfect roast chicken will
not be on the menu this time around, Ran’s
preparing a sumptuous Chanukah feast on
Dec. 18. His savory menu includes a chicory
salad with citrus vinaigrette, latkes in the
style of Okonomiyaki Japanese pancakes,
teriyaki-braised brisket, beef broth ramen
noodle soup with ginger scallion matzah
balls and, for dessert, sufganiyot (Israeli
donuts) and chocolate gelt.
“It’s going to be traditional Chanukah food
but prepared and presented in an unconven-
tional manor with a unique Japanese flavor,
”
said Ran, who makes latkes every Sunday for
his wife, Arielle, and their daughter, Harper,
who turns 2 on Dec. 13.
Ran’s idea for the menu was sparked by
Shalom Japan, a restaurant in Brooklyn,
New York, that offers Jewish/Japanese fusion
dishes.
“Jewish people have a weird, inherent love
for Chinese and Asian food. I don’t know
why that is, but the combination of infusing
the flavors is a great way to have both,
” says
Ran, who also created one Italian and two
Israeli sold-out dinner experiences at Frame
in the past year. “Frame is a cool place that
lets me showcase a mixture of things and
present these Japanese dishes with a Jewish
twist and different flavor profile.
”
The upcoming Frame Chanukah dinner
on Dec. 18 is temporarily bringing Ran out
of chef retirement. After graduating from
the University of Colorado-Boulder in 2011,
Ran started working at a restaurant as a cook
for fun. He came home to Michigan for a
year where he worked as a prep cook for
Bacco Ristorante in Southfield. He moved to
New York where he was a sous chef at Eataly

Latkes And Vodka
with Chef Mike Ran
Save the date for the upcoming
Frame Chanukah dinner on Dec. 18.

Julie Smith
Yolles
Contributing
Writer

NOSH
EATS | DRINKS | SWEETS

Ramen Matzah Ball Soup
Brisket Broth, Ginger
Scallion Matzah Balls, Bok
Choy, Carrots, Mushrooms

Chef Mike Ran will
serve up a Modern
Family-Style Chanukah
dinner with a twist
on Sunday, Dec. 18 at
Frame in Hazel Park.