Chef's Story

Chef Mark Ladner joins Dorothy Cann Hamilton for a special interview on Chefs Story, recorded at the USA Pavilion at Expo Milano 2015! Chef Ladner touches on his childhood, his formative food memories, his career trajectory and his advice for aspiring chefs. He also explains what drove him to open his pop-up gluten-free pasta concept, Pasta Flyer. Mark Ladner is the James Beard award winning chef of Del Posto. Chef Ladners education began in Cambridge, MA at independently owned and operated pizza counters, followed by formal culinary schooling at Johnson and Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island. He moved to NYC in the early 90s and worked with several well-regarded restaurateurs, before meeting Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich and opening Babbo Ristorante as Sous Chef in 1998. Ladner has since opened Lupa Osteria Romana (1999), Otto Enoteca Pizzeria (2002) and Del Posto (2005) as Chef/Partner at each restaurant. Mark co-authored Molto Gusto (Ecco, 2010) with Mario Batali. This program was brought to you by Whole Foods Market. I really truly believe that as long as you can make food taste the way that you like, I dont think you need to spend a tremendous amount of time continuing to polish your culinary skills. You can waste a lot of time spelunking down the rabbit hole for culinary greatness when, in this day and age, from an entrepreneurial and business perspective theres such a broad range of skill sets necessary to be successful in this industry. Spending too much time trying to perfect a bite of food might not be the best use of your time. [11:00] Once you have your own kitchen it doesnt necessarily mean you stop learning. [22:00] There are two things Im adamant about. One is a monkish devotion to pasta - specifically the cooking and saucing of rather than the making or stuffing of. The execution in the last several minutes is something people dont spend enough time obsessing over. Two is knowing its important to remove as much variable for error from the equation before service so you can just focus on service. [30:00] I dont consider myself to be an elitist person. I need a part of me thats able to embrace a more populist culture. [46:00] --Mark Ladner on Chefs Story

Colman Andrews is an American writer and editor and authority on food and wine. In culinary circles, he is best known for his association with Saveur magazine, which he founded with Dorothy Kalins, Michael Grossman, and Christopher Hirsheimer in 1994 and where he served as editor-in-chief from 2001 until 2006. After resigning from the magazine in 2006, he became the restaurant columnist for Gourmet. In 2010, he helped launch a food and drink website, The Daily Meal, and serves as its editorial director. He is considered one of the worlds foremost experts on Spanish cuisine, particularly that of the Catalonia region, and toady he sat down for a conversation with host Dorothy Cann Hamilton for a conversation about the brown derby, his parents influence in his life, and his journey as a food writer. This program was sponsored by Heritage Foods USA. I was an english major, and then in fact a radio major...I didnt spend much time studying. [13:00] Theoretically if you have any interest in food or drink at any angle it should be the first place you look every morning [The Daily Meal]. [20:00] I hate writing. Its terrible. Its an awful way to make a living. Its mentally and psychically hard. I dont like writing - I just feel compelled to do it. [33:00] -- Colman Andrews on Chefs Story

This weeks guest on Chefs Story is chef Jimmy Bradley. The chef-owner of two popular New York City restaurants - The Red Cat, The Harrison - Jimmy Bradley presides over neighborhood joint that have become destinations for guests from around the city, and the country. A purveyor of straightforward, occasionally irreverent, food and contagious conviviality, all of it wrapped up in an attitude-free package, Bradley has helped contemporary diners rediscover the intrinsic value of classic Mediterranean cuisine, reinterpreted for a modern American clientele. He and his recipes are regularly featured in The New York Times, Food and Wine, Bon Appétit, and other food publications, as well as on local and national television programs. This program was brought to you by Whole Foods Market. I took jobs from very early ages - I forged my working papers. [09:00] --Jimmy Bradley on Chefs Story

Brooke Williamsons entire life has always been about food. Ever since she can remember, Williamson wanted to become a chef or a restaurateur. After working with some of the countrys top chefs, her dream has finally been realized in the form of successful ventures such as Amuse Café, Beechwood, and projects with chef-husband Nick Roberts, Hudson House in Redondo Beach, The Tripel and 4-in-1 concept Playa Provisions in Playa Del Rey. This program was brought to you by Whole Foods Market. I was a tomboy as a kid. I played sports and loved to run. Im still a very psychical person. Its how I relieve stress. Im not the type of person to ask for help easily. [11:00] Im just as passionate about raising my son as I am running my own restaurant. [37:00] --Brooke Williamson on Chefs Story

This weeks guest on Chefs Story is Soulayphet Phet Schwader. Born in a small village outside the capital of Laos, Thangone, Soulayphet Schwader immigrated to the U.S. at a very young age. Growing up in Kansas Soulayphet recalls a youth spent clamoring for a ham sandwich instead of the traditional Laotian lunch his mother would pack for him each day. It wasnt until he secured his first job as a fry cook, while studying philosophy in college that the possibilities inherent in his colorful background began to materialize. Schwader began his formal education at the New England Culinary Institute in Vermont. After completing an externship at Dundee Bistro in Oregon where he was exposed to the nuances of wine and its relationship to food, Schwader came to New York to work under Patricia Yeo at AZ. Working with an award-winning team that counted Chef Pino Maffeo among its members. When Chef Maffeo headed to Boston to open Restaurant L, he recruited Schwader as his Chef de cuisine, who was able to explore his Asian roots, playing with flavors and ingredients that lent an eclectic distinction to the acclaimed restaurant. After two years under the tutelage of the famously creative Chef, Schwader returned to New York where he would take on his first post under his trusted mentor, Laurent Tourondel, at BLT Prime in New York. He was later tapped to open one of BLTs first outposts outside of Manhattan in Washington, D.C. As Chef de cuisine for BLT Steak, Washington, D.C., Schwaders influence was felt in the kitchen and on the menu, leading BLT Steak to become a popular destination for many Washingtonians. Schwader returned to New York in 2008 to work with colleague and friend King Phojanakong to open their highly anticipated restaurant Umi Nom. While at Umi Nom, Soulayphet explored his Asian heritage, incorporating flavors associated with great memories of food and flavors his mother would bring to the table growing up in Kansas and using all the techniques and influences in his culinary career to make Umi Nom a wonderful dining destination in Brooklyn.

Whats it like cooking in the White House? Find out on an incredible episode of Chefs Story with Dorothy Cann Hamilton. Shes joined by William Bill Yosses, the coauthor of the book Desserts For Dummies and the former White House Executive Pastry Chef. Yosses was the successor to Thaddeus DuBois who left the same position in 2006. He served as a White House Holiday Pastry Chef for the 2006 holiday season. His most recent project has been to assist in the opening of Paul Newmans Dressing Room in Westport, Connecticut-a restaurant utilizing locally grown, artisanal and organic food sources. Other Executive Pastry Chef experience includes Josephs Citarella in New York City; planning, designing and opening the pastry department of Bouley Restaurant and Bakery and operating the pastry department of the Tavern on the Green Restaurant in New York City. Mr. Yosses was also Pastry Chef at Montrachet Restaurant in New York City. This program was brought to you by Visit Napa Valley. There is a lot of scrutiny through a lot of oversight of budgets and planning and scheduling. There are many layers of that kind of work which is part in parcel of the job. [37:00] --Bill Yosses on Chefs Story

This weeks featured chef on Chefs Story is Jesse Schenker. Jesse has amassed an impressive culinary history as executive chef and owner of recette and The Gander in New York City. His contemporary approach to creating American classics is a reflection of his devotion to highly-refined technique combined with his passion for comforting and satisfying food. Growing up in Florida, Schenker experienced epicurean pleasures that quickly ignited his passion and set him on the path toward becoming a chef. He began requesting menus from his parents dinners and invested in a cookbook collection that has since grown to nearly 350 volumes. His clear intensity for the culinary world found an early start and has not abated since. This program was brought to you by Visit Napa Valley.

This week on Chefs Story, hear from the world famous Alan Richman, the most decorated food writer in history. He has won 15 James Beard Journalism Awards, a National Magazine Award (and was a finalist five more times), and a Bronze Star for service in Vietnam. You wont find food writers like him at the food magazines. When he received his National Magazine Award, the presenter described him as the Indiana Jones of food writers. He has reviewed restaurants in nearly every Communist country (China, Vietnam, Cuba, East Germany), proof that he will go anywhere for a meal. He once reviewed the Chicago restaurant owned and operated by Louis Farrakhan, not known to be a fan of Jewish journalists. In Cuba, he defied government regulations by interviewing starving political dissidents, then rewarded himself with a lobster lunch at the most expensive restaurant in Havana. In 1998, Richman was inducted into The James Beard Foundation Whos Who of Food and Beverage in America, which recognizes culinary industry professionals for their achievements. He is the Dean of Food Journalism at The French Culinary Institute in New York, where he teaches a class in food writing. Richmans 14 Beard awards have been presented in restaurant reviewing, feature writing, and wine writing. He has also taken the top prize, the M.F.K. Fisher Distinguished Writing Award, twice. He continues to indulge his passion for eight-course dinners (plus cheese). This program was brought to you by Visit Napa Valley. One of my real virtues as a writer is I can continually see things from a fresh perspective, even though im not the youngest guy in the world. [04:00] The screen is the future of food journalism. [15:00] --Alan Richman on Chefs Story

This weeks featured chef on Chefs Story is Traci Des Jardins, Chef/Owner of Jardinière, Mijita Cocina Mexicana 
and Chef/Partner of Public House. Before opening Jardinière in San Francisco in 1997, Des Jardins worked in some of the highly acclaimed kitchens in Los Angeles, France, and New York City. Classically trained in French cuisine by some of the best chefs and restaurateurs in the world, Des Jardins style is also influenced by her Mexican and French-Acadian grandparents who taught her how to cook. Throughout her more than two decades in San Francisco, Des Jardins has continued to focus and evolve her style of cooking as well as her restaurants. Over the course of her successful career she has trained and groomed many chefs and front-of-the-house personnel, many of whom now help operate her growing group of restaurants. In 2004 Des Jardins opened Mijita Cocina Mexicana in the San Francisco Ferry Building and in 2010 the second location at ATandT Park, combining the best of Bay Area seasonal and local ingredients with the traditional Mexican flavors of her youth. Adjacent to Mijita and located at ATandT Park, home of the 2010 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants, Tracis Public House is a sports bar serving California influenced pub food. Known as one of the top female chefs in the country, Des Jardins is a two-time James Beard award-winner and has earned a number of industry accolades throughout her career. Des Jardins sits on the board of La Cocina, a San Francisco based non-profit business incubator and on the advisory board of Bocuse dOr USA, joining fellow chefs in the quest to elevate culinary excellence in the United States. She is a deeply committed activist and philanthropist working with hunger-relief organizations such as Share Our Strength, Citymeals On-Wheels and other non-profits such as amfAR. This program was brought to you by Whole Foods Market. If youre going to own your own business you better understand what a PandL is. You can lose a lot of money very quickly if youre not paying attention. [33:00] I see lots of young women who come through my kitchen and when they decide to have a child never come back to the kitchen. Motherhood is enthralling and having a child is tough competition for wanting to come back and work. Its a tough dilemma for women in general. [44:00] --Traci Des Jardins on Chefs Story

Get an inside look at the life of the legendary Peter Kaminsky on todays episode of Chefs Story. Peter Kaminsky is the author and coauthor of many books, including Pig Perfect, Culinary Intelligence, Seven Fires and Mallmann on Fire (with Francis Mallmann), and Charred and Scruffed (with Adam Perry Lang). He is a longtime contributor to Food and Wine and a former columnist for The New York Times and New York magazine. Hes a mentor to many chefs and is a real renaissance man. He knows as much about fly fishing as anyone, is the Creator and Executive Producer of the Mark Twain prize for American humor and was a contributor at National Lampoon in the 70s. Tune in for some real knowledge and insight on this show! This program was brought to you by Visit Napa Valley. Many of the cookbooks I write in the subjects voice. You have to channel them. Its parody without the jokes. It has to sound like them. [27:00] [My advice to chefs is to] travel. You wont be able to do that your whole life when you get tied down to a restaurant or family. So much of what goes on in the food world these days comes from travel and experiencing other peoples cuisines. [43:00] Food is among the most important things in your life. On the other hand its important not to make it overly important. People who talk about food a lot are talking about it too much, I think. [46:00] ---Peter Kaminsky on Chefs Story