GREENFIELD — Time and time again, Mayor William Martin poured bright yellow batter onto a sizzling hot pan. Standing before the stove in his blue apron that read “Chef Mayor” in elegant white lettering, he carefully watched the batter grow crisp before flipping the mixture into the air and letting it fall back into the skillet.
Much to the delight of local residents, Martin served up one of his personal specialties from 8 a.m. to noon at The Arts Block as this week’s guest chef. Martin made Bánh xèo, a Vietnamese pancake or crepe made with rice flower, coconut butter and scallions, topped with chicken sausage, sundried tomatoes, onions, arugula and turmeric.
“It’s causing my mouth to sort of dance and explode with flavor,” said Steve Goldsher, owner of The Arts Block, who enjoyed an order of Vietnamese pancakes at an outdoor table overlooking the farmer’s market. “The mayor has a lot of hidden talent. I wonder if he was secretly taking cooking lessons.”
Bob Maguire of Greenfield read in The Recorder that Martin would be cooking breakfast and brought his two friends, Coní Moore and Eva Kearney, both of Winthrop.
“I knew we would get a good breakfast,” Maguire said.
Steve Goldsher described the dish as beautifully presented, providing a wonderful, savory but unusual eating experience.
“(Bánh xèo) has a different texture than the pancake (most local residents) are used to,” Martin explained.
Martin said he learned how to cook Bánh xèo while visiting Vietnam in 2000, more than 30 years after he served there as a medic with the U.S. Army.
“They offer pancakes all day long like we cook hot dogs,” Martin remarked.
Through working at his uncle’s restaurant, Richard’s Drive-In in Turners Falls, during the early 1960s and by cooking interesting breakfasts for his three children, Martin said he’s become sort of an amateur chef over the years. He describes himself as a quick learner in many industries.
“Cooking is creative with two major goals: you satisfy (yourself), the chef, while you simultaneously satisfy the diner,” Martin said.
Martin served up 20 orders of Bánh xèo, not counting additional orders of eggs, waffles and fruits. Martin said breakfast is his favorite meal to cook, and he even got to make Vietnamese pancakes for his wife, Isabel.
“She was the first here today for breakfast,” he said.
Martin was this week’s guest chef as part of The Arts Block’s “Fresh Chef” brunch series. The series, which debuted this summer, features a new cook each weekend who comes up with an original menu using local ingredients that often come from the farmers market outside The Arts Block’s doors on Court Square.
“This is a great ongoing thing every Saturday,” Martin said. “We have great people here. Some are gifted chefs, some aren’t.”
“(The guest chefs) kind of get to create their own space,” said Ben Goldsher, who works at The Arts Block and is the son of Steve Goldsher. Chefs can ask to bring in artists or musicians to set the tone of their customers’ meals.
Khalif Neville, 19, of Huntington added to The Arts Block’s ambiance by playing piano during the breakfast and brunch-time hours.
Martin said he highly enjoyed his first time cooking at The Arts Block. In addition to providing them with a tasty, unique meal, Martin said the event gave local residents a chance to meet and get to know him.