Greenwich · Fairfield County · Fine Dining at Home
A Private Chef Who Brings the Restaurant to You
If you're searching for a personal chef in Greenwich, CT, you want more than a cook — you want a culinary experience curated entirely around you. Chef Robert L. Gorman has spent four decades perfecting the art of fine dining in private homes, yacht charters, and intimate estate gatherings across Fairfield County. From Cos Cob to backcountry Greenwich, his table is wherever yours is.
Greenwich's seasons inspire every menu. Winters call for braises and warming bisques. Spring awakens the palate with bright herb-forward preparations. Summer on the Sound is all about pristine seafood — and autumn in Fairfield County, with its harvest richness, is made for tasting menus beside a fire. Whether you're hosting a Thanksgiving gathering in Greenwich, a New Year's Eve dinner party in Cos Cob, an intimate Valentine's Day dinner, or a summer Fourth of July seafood feast overlooking Long Island Sound, Chef Gorman designs menus that feel inevitable — as if the dish could only have been made for you, on this night, in this place.
Locally Sourced. Thoughtfully Crafted. Chef Gorman partners with Greenwich Farmer's Market vendors, the Whole Foods Market in Greenwich, Saugatuck Provisions Butchery in Westport, and trusted CT purveyors including Jones Family Farms and Sankow's Beaver Brook Farm in Lyme. For seafood, he works with day-boat suppliers and trusted fishmongers committed to sustainable, traceable sourcing — because great food begins long before the pan is hot.
The dish below is a signature that travels beautifully: elegant enough for a private holiday dinner in Greenwich, approachable enough for a weeknight luxury supper. Lemon-Tarragon Shrimp Scampi with Orzo is a testament to restraint — how a handful of exceptional ingredients, handled with precision, can feel extraordinary.
Culinary Heritage
The History of Lemon-Tarragon Shrimp Scampi with Orzo
The word scampi — from the Venetian dialect — originally referred to Norway lobster, or Nephrops norvegicus, the slender, rose-hued crustacean abundant in the Adriatic and along Italian coastlines. Venetian cooks prepared scampi simply: a flash in butter, a hit of white wine, garlic, and a squeeze of lemon. The dish was a revelation in its simplicity — Italian coastal cooking at its most honest.
When waves of Italian immigrants arrived in America throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries, they brought their culinary vocabulary with them but had to improvise with new ingredients. Gulf white shrimp, abundant and affordable, became the stand-in for the aristocratic langoustine. American "Shrimp Scampi" was born — and by the 1950s and '60s it was firmly planted on the menus of Italian-American restaurants from New York's Little Italy to supper clubs across New England, including Connecticut's own Gold Coast dining rooms.
The addition of French tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus) to the classic formula is a refinement born of the Nouvelle Cuisine movement of the 1970s, when chefs began bridging the great traditions of French and Italian cooking. Tarragon's distinctive anise-licorice note provides a counterpoint to the brightness of lemon, softening acidity while adding botanical depth. It became a natural companion to shellfish — particularly shrimp — in high-end American kitchens throughout the 1980s and '90s.
Orzo, the rice-shaped pasta of Southern Italian origin (orzo meaning "barley" in Italian, for its resemblance to the grain), replaces the traditional crusty bread used to catch the golden butter pan sauce. It absorbs the lemon-garlic-tarragon reduction beautifully, creating a cohesive, restaurant-platable dish well-suited to private dinner service in Greenwich and Fairfield County homes. Together, the three components form a dish that honors tradition while speaking a decidedly modern, upscale culinary language.
Market Day
Grocery Shopping List — Categorized
Chef Gorman recommends sourcing shrimp from a trusted Greenwich fishmonger or the Whole Foods Market on West Putnam Ave. Fresh tarragon is often available at Gilbertie's Herb Farm in Westport — or grow your own in a sunny Greenwich kitchen garden. The Greenwich Farmer's Market (seasonal, Arch Street) is an excellent source for artisan butter, local eggs, and seasonal alliums.
🦐 Seafood
- 1½ lbs large (16/20 ct) raw shrimp, peeled & deveined, tails on
🌿 Produce & Fresh Herbs
- 1 large bunch fresh tarragon
- 1 head garlic (6–8 cloves)
- 3 lemons (zest + juice)
- 1 bunch flat-leaf Italian parsley
- 1 large shallot
- Baby arugula (optional garnish)
🧈 Dairy
- 6 tbsp unsalted European-style butter (Kerrygold or local creamery)
- 2 oz Parmigiano-Reggiano, finely grated (optional finish)
🍝 Dry Goods & Pantry
- 1 lb dry orzo pasta
- Extra-virgin olive oil (high quality)
- Kosher salt & white pepper
- Crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
🍷 Wine & Stock
- ½ cup dry white wine (Pinot Grigio or Vermentino)
- 1 cup quality seafood or chicken stock
🛒 Pantry Check
- Flaky sea salt (Maldon) for finishing
- Freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 bay leaf
Lemon-Tarragon Shrimp Scampi with Orzo
By Chef Robert L. Gorman · Personal Chef, Greenwich & Fairfield County, CT
Mise en Place — Station Setup
Before heating a single pan, Chef Gorman's first rule is always: everything in its place. A properly executed mise en place is the difference between a graceful meal and a chaotic kitchen.
Method
- Heat a large stainless or cast-iron sauté pan over high heat until just beginning to smoke. Add 2 tbsp olive oil. Sear shrimp in a single layer, undisturbed, for 90 seconds per side until golden-pink. Do not crowd the pan — work in two batches if needed. Remove to a warm plate; the shrimp will finish in the sauce.
- Reduce heat to medium. Add 1 tbsp butter and the garlic-shallot mixture. Sauté 90 seconds until fragrant and just golden — not brown. Season lightly with crushed red pepper flakes.
- Deglaze with white wine, scraping up any fond from the pan bottom. Add tarragon stems and bay leaf. Reduce by half, about 3 minutes.
- Add seafood stock and lemon juice. Simmer 4 minutes until the sauce has body and aroma. Remove tarragon stems and bay leaf.
- Over low heat, whisk in cold butter, two cubes at a time, until the sauce is glossy, slightly thickened, and emulsified. Stir in Dijon mustard and lemon zest. Taste and adjust salt.
- Meanwhile, cook orzo in well-salted boiling water until just al dente (7–8 minutes). Drain, reserving ½ cup pasta water. Toss orzo with 1 tbsp olive oil and a pinch of salt.
- Return shrimp to the pan; add chopped tarragon. Toss gently in the sauce for 60–90 seconds until shrimp are just cooked through and sauce clings to each piece. Add a splash of pasta water if needed to loosen.
- To plate: spoon a generous nest of orzo into each warmed bowl. Arrange 5–6 shrimp over the top. Ladle remaining pan sauce over all. Garnish with whole tarragon leaves, fresh parsley, lemon zest curls, and a finishing pinch of Maldon sea salt.
Chef's Notes
For holiday entertaining — a Christmas Eve feast in Greenwich, a New Year's dinner in Westport, or a spring Easter gathering — this dish scales beautifully to 8 or 12 guests. The pan sauce can be made ahead and reheated gently; the shrimp always go in last, always to order. Pair with a chilled Vermentino di Sardegna, a Sancerre, or a structured unoaked Chardonnay from the Loire. A simple arugula salad dressed with lemon and shaved Parmigiano completes the table.