ten forces of the food world recall the moment they made

T e n f o r c e s o f T h e f o o d w o r l d r e c a l l T h e m o m e n T T h e y m a d e g o o d b y

T h e i r m e n T o r s

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The 10 guys profiled in this digital book have all achieved great success in their respective fields. But each is quick to point out that his success is due in no small part to an influential mentor—or mentors—who guided

and encouraged him during the early days of his career.

In many cases that mentor is the boss who gave a subject his first break and taught him the fundamentals of the craft. Sometimes that mentor is a colleague, or even competitor, who challenged the subject to sharpen his skills rather than rest on his laurels. And in one special case, that mentor is a business partner who just so happens to be the subject’s father.

That all of these men were able to find meaningful mentors shouldn’t be taken for granted. One chef recalls how prevalent it was for restaurants to view staffers as disposable goods: Work them hard, treat them like dirt and rehire for their position as soon as they quit. This grim reality made the chef even more grateful that his own mentor was invested in

and supportive of his team members.

To celebrate the often unsung individuals dedicated to cultivating a new generation of talent, we asked the 10 men here to mark the moment when they proved themselves to their mentors. Many of the subjects discovered that even with years of experience under their belt, they never stop learning.

Once a pupil, forever a student.

Chris SchmickerWeb Editor

Tasting Table

N o m a N i s a N i s l a N d, e v e N i f h e w o r k s b e h i N d o N e .

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b r a d fa r m e r i eExecutive Chef, PUBLIC

New York, New York

T a s T i n g T a b l e Who is your mentor?

b r a d F a r m e r i e Chef and author Peter Gordon, whom I’ve known for 16 years now. When I moved to London in 1995 at the ripe old age of 22, I wrote up a list of chefs for whom I wanted to work. Peter was a poster boy for a new guard of young chefs who were changing the face of British cooking, and it didn’t take long for me to come knocking at the door of his restaurant, The Sugar Club. He was the only chef to come out and meet me in person, which is indicative of his character.

T a s T i n g T a b l e How did Peter contribute to your career development?

F a r m e r i e Peter was very influential in shaping my cooking style during the year I worked for him. He’d traveled around the world, and brought back with him both unusual ingredients and specific knowledge of how they were traditionally used—so he could better understand how to use them in a nontraditional fashion. He taught me how important travel is to understanding cuisine.

T a s T i n g T a b l e What’s the most important lesson he imparted?

F a r m e r i e Peter was a master of going against the grain. He second-guessed almost every “truth” taught about cooking and was not embarrassed to fail. He was in search of an education, and didn’t let history or pride get in his way. It’s an incredible outlook and has informed my mantra: “No matter how much I know, I am not an expert. I can teach what I know, but there is so much still to learn.”

T a s T i n g T a b l e What was the moment you knew you’d proven yourself?

F a r m e r i e Peter came to visit New York City a few years after I’d opened PUBLIC and mentioned that the menu looked really unique, which I took as a great compliment. But it was when PUBLIC was awarded its first Michelin star in 2009 that I think Peter realized that I’d done well with all of the education, information and, most important, influence that he had bestowed on me.

Brad Farmerie grew up in Pittsburgh but spent his formative years abroad, cutting his teeth at Le Cordon Bleu in London and working in the kitchens of acclaimed restaurants like Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons outside of Oxford. He returned to the States in 2003 to open PUBLIC, a Michelin-starred eatery with the only menu in New York City to feature both grilled kangaroo and Szechuan-crusted pork tenderloin. A chef who doesn’t shy away from offal and other odd bits, Farmerie has variously experimented with pork-blood Popsicles and pig’s-liver crème caramel. He’s demonstrated his culinary prowess on episodes of Iron Chef America and The Next Iron Chef.

Chef

Brad FarmerieMentor

Peter Gordon

01


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m a rc u s s a m u e l s s o NChef, Red RoosterNew York, New York


m a r c u s s a m u e l s s o n My first mentor in America was Charlie Trotter. In the mid-nineties, he came to Aquavit and was extremely supportive. He let me send young cooks to train with him and hosted book launches for me in Chicago. When I was apprenticing in Switzerland, Paul Mooney, a young sous chef, was a mentor to me. I also consider Alfred Portale and Daniel Boulud to be mentors, colleagues and chefs I truly admire.

T a s T i n g T a b l e How did your relationship with these men evolve over time?

s a m u e l s s o n Mentorship for me offers three things—career guidance, someone to talk to, and access to fantastic contacts. Those needs evolve as your career evolves. Being a young cook, you just want to learn the field, but eventually you may need advice about opening your own place or writing and shooting your own cookbook. I worked with Paul Mooney for three years as a young man, and our relationship has evolved

from him being a very strict boss to where now I’m able to also assist him with his career.


s a m u e l s s o n I continue to respect all of my mentors. As you become more experienced, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the mentor-mentee relationship suddenly changes; it just develops into more of a friendship. It’s like with Daniel Boulud—I’ll never “graduate,” so to speak. He’ll always be the boss.

T a s T i n g T a b l e Have you since guided others on their career paths?

s a m u e l s s o n Of course. For me, it was a natural evolution to mentor others, and it is my biggest responsibility as a chef. That’s what we’re doing here at Red Rooster—helping a lot of young cooks get started in the field. Furthermore, as a black chef, it’s important to be a role model. There are a lot of chefs of color who don’t always see other chefs like them in the field.

Born in Ethiopia, raised in Sweden and now based in New York City, Marcus Samuelsson is a man deeply influenced by a wealth of international cuisines. And it shows. He first impressed diners with his work at New York’s Aquavit, where he merged Scandinavian ingredients with French technique. Since then, he has opened a startling range of restaurants. His most recent is Red Rooster in New York’s Harlem neighborhood. Pulling equally from the food of the United States and the African diaspora, it serves a cuisine as personal as it is broadly representative.

Photo by Paul Brissman

Chef

Marcus SamuelssonMentor

Charlie Trotter

02


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J e r e m y t o o k e rOwner, Four Barrel Coffee

SaN FraNciSco, caliForNia


J e r e m y T o o k e r In the coffee world, I look to Aleco Chigounis, the chief coffee buyer at Stumptown Coffee Roasters in Portland, Oregon, and Thompson Owen of Sweet Maria’s, a company that supplies green beans to home roasters. I love coffee, but these guys love coffee. Their passion is contagious. They’ve both taught me a huge amount about how to buy green coffee.


T o o k e r Well, Thompson has a house down in Pacifica and he and I go surfing together. One day, he asked me to bring some coffee on my way down, so I grabbed a bag of Guatemalan Tecuamburro Danilandia—one of the first lots of green coffee I sourced and roasted myself. He brewed it, took a sip, took another sip, then said, “Hey, this is really good coffee. How’d you find this farm?” Vindication!

T a s T i n g T a b l e Have you taken on any mentees at Four Barrel?

T o o k e r I have a couple apprenticing with me right now, actually, who are planning to open a coffee shop in Hamburg, Germany. It’s a real old-fashioned sort of arrangement—no money has changed hands; they just came to me and were really open about wanting to learn. I know some people are afraid of competition, so they keep secrets, but in my mind competition makes everything better: A rising tide carries all boats.

T a s T i n g T a b l e Do you think you’ll continue to mentor?

T o o k e r I would love it if all of my old employees wanted to open their own shops. I would love to help them create their own businesses, and it would be a tremendous asset to have more allies in the green world—more buying power, more good coffee. I don’t want to leave San Francisco, and I don’t want Four Barrel to get much bigger. I have what I need, so why not share the knowledge?

Jeremy Tooker’s success is no accident. The 32-year-old owner of Four Barrel Coffee, in San Francisco’s Mission District, has deliberately set out to be the best. That means he opened his three-year-old retail coffee shop without the help of investors, that he sources the green coffee himself and carefully controls the in-house roasting, and that he’s committed to creating a sustainable work environment for his employees. All this while serving great coffee—an astonishing 1,200 pounds of it a week.

Coffee roaster

Jeremy TookerMentor

Thompson Owen

03


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b i l l k i mChef- Owner, Urban Belly and Belly Shack

chicago, illiNoiS


k i m Everybody I’ve worked with has certain things about them that I admire. Pierre Pollin, the first chef that I worked for, taught me balance in life. He always said: “Be who you are, but remember that the most important things are the people around you who love you.” Susanna Foo taught me about Asian food; David Bouley is just brilliant; and Charlie Trotter took me to Brazil, London and Switzerland. He made me work with the best products possible, and insisted on striving for perfection.


k i m In the late nineties, I had a restaurant for three and a half years outside of Philadelphia called The Inn on Blueberry Hill. I was on my own, doing my own thing. But the moment when I felt that I’d really made it—and finally

done exactly what I wanted to do—was when we opened Urban Belly in 2008.

T a s T i n g T a b l e What set Urban Belly apart from your previous restaurants?

k i m It was so different from what I’d become accustomed to. I was fed up with fine dining. We decided to take a less-is-more approach, which meant making it all about the food. That was my proudest moment.

T a s T i n g T a b l e Have you since been a mentor to anyone?

k i m A few years back, Brian Huston [currently chef of The Publican in Chicago] came to stage at Charlie Trotter’s, but quickly realized it wasn’t for him. I told him: “You have to put everything you have into it, and only then will you know what is and isn’t for you.” He’s told me that he’s always remembered that speech, and he’s done fantastic things since then.

During his 20-plus years in the culinary world, chef Bill Kim has worked with the best of the best: as sous chef at Bouley Bakery, sous chef for Susanna Foo, and chef de cuisine of the world-renowned Charlie Trotter’s. He ran two restaurants, The Inn on Blueberry Hill in Pennsylvania and Le Lan in Chicago, but it wasn’t until opening Urban Belly in 2008 that Kim felt he was doing, in his words, “exactly what I wanted to do.” There and at Belly Shack, the Korean-born chef channels his fine-dining background into the city’s most exciting casual Asian cuisine.

Chef

Bill KimMentor

Pierre Pollin

04


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J o s h ua a p p l e s t o N eCo-owner, Fleisher ’s Meats

kiNgStoN, New York


J o s h u a a p p l e s T o n e I have so many mentors, from my grandfather to my former butchering instructor, Thomas Schneller. But John van der Leick, the owner of Oyama Sausages on Granville Island near Vancouver, helped me out a lot when Fleisher’s was first starting out.

T a s T i n g T a b l e How did John shape your career?

a p p l e s T o n e John is one of the best charcuterie artists in the world. I met him during a visit to Vancouver with Jessica just after we opened Fleisher’s. We talked a lot about owning a small business, and I flew back three more times to see him. John’s taken risks and has a lot of experience, and he gave me the confidence and self-value to make my own decisions no matter how much they differed from the norm.


a p p l e s T o n e I was worried there was no precedent for a small, sustainable butcher shop, and John told me, “You’re not like anyone else. You’ve got to be your own model.”

T a s T i n g T a b l e When did you realize you were no longer his student, but his peer?

a p p l e s T o n e Well, I don’t think you ever outgrow your mentors. Same with parents—you’re always looking up to them, not across at them. They made you what you are, so they’re always one step ahead of you.

T a s T i n g T a b l e How has John reacted to the success of Fleisher’s?

a p p l e s T o n e John and I have kept in touch as best possible, but he and I are both busy. He taught me to focus on what you love, and we both love our businesses and our families. I still think about that charcuterie of his, though.

As a former vegan, Joshua Applestone was an unlikely candidate to run a nationally acclaimed butcher shop. But his appreciation for local and sustainable food turned out to be as applicable to beef as it once was to beets. Applestone founded Fleisher’s Meats eight years ago in Kingston, New York, with his wife, Jessica. They expanded to a second storefront in Brooklyn this fall, but have maintained their commitment to processing only whole animals reared within a 100-mile radius of their upstate shop—a policy that necessitates a bit of creative nose-to-tail butchering. To further educate home cooks, Applestone recently coauthored a book with his wife, The Butcher’s Guide to Well-Raised Meat.

BUtCher

Joshua Applestone

05

Mentor

John van der Leick


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c h r i s t o p h e r ko s t owExecutive Chef, The Restaurant at Meadowood

St. heleNa, caliForNia


c h r i s T o p h e r k o s T o w Trey Foshee, whom I began working under at George’s at the Cove in San Diego in 1999, when I was 22 years old.

T a s T i n g T a b l e How did Trey shape your career?

k o s T o w I chose to gain my culinary education by experience rather than through a culinary school, and Trey, with whom I worked for three years, was definitely one of my most influential teachers. He gave me the freedom and opportunity to hone my craft while keeping me grounded and focused. Under him, I learned how to take ownership of and accountability for my actions, and to develop my own cuisine. And he taught me to wash my hands, a lot!


k o s T o w Meadowood hosts an annual Twelve Days of Christmas event, where we invite chefs from all over the country to cook in our kitchen. In 2010 I invited Chef Foshee to participate. Working with him again after all that time really opened my eyes to how far I’ve come, and to all the facets of his teaching I took away with me. It really felt like I’d come full circle.

T a s T i n g T a b l e Have you taken on any students yourself?

k o s T o w A leader is only as strong as his team. I’m incredibly honored to have some really talented sous chefs, and we meet daily to share and collaborate on ideas. We never rest—we’re constantly questioning and discussing how we can make something better, and the process brings about cuisine that is original and progressive. They’re able to create and hone their own dishes, and it feels wonderful to be able to foster their talent.

Christopher Kostow, executive chef at The Restaurant at Meadowood, in St. Helena, California, has amassed an impressive array of accolades that belie his 35 years. Under his tutelage, Meadowood was awarded three Michelin stars, making Kostow only the second American chef (and the third-youngest in the world) to receive this honor. He was selected as a Best New Chef by Food & Wine magazine in 2010; that same year, the restaurant received a four-star review from San Francisco Chronicle critic Michael Bauer.

Chef

Christopher KostowMentor

Trey Foshee

06


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J i m m y b r a d l e yChef - Owner, The Red Cat and The Harrison

New York, New York

Chef

Jimmy BradleyMentor

Jonathan Waxman

07


J i m m y b r a d l e y Jonathan Waxman [chef-owner of Barbuto in New York City]. We met in 1994 when he had just moved back to New York from Napa Valley. He interviewed me to be the chef of Peretti’s on the Upper West Side, which is now, I believe, a Magnolia Bakery.

T a s T i n g T a b l e How did your relationship with Jonathan evolve?

b r a d l e y He offered me the job at Peretti’s but then rescinded the offer because he decided to move to Italy and learn about Italian food and wine history. I didn’t see him for a year, until he called up to interview me for the chef position at Bryant Park Grill, which I took. Jonathan was the consulting chef of the restaurant’s parent company, and I worked with him for 10 months. Bryant Park Grill was hard on me. We’d do $100,000 in sales a day, and I was managing a staff of 70 people. It made me acutely aware that

I would not be fulfilled working exclusively for big restaurants like that.


b r a d l e y That less is more. He was the first person to warn me against “young chef syndrome,” which is when overeager young chefs pile on too many ingredients and techniques just because they can. Sometimes when you try too hard, it can have disastrous results.


b r a d l e y We’ve always had a peer-to-peer relationship rather than a teacher-student one, but I think that moment came when I opened The Red Cat. I often say the best compliment a chef can receive is repeated patronage. But it also feels great when your employees go on to start restaurants of their own. I’ve experienced that myself, so I imagine Jonathan felt the same way.

Jimmy Bradley was way ahead of the curve when he opened The Red Cat in 1999 on a desolate block in West Chelsea. The hospitable hangout quickly became a fixture of the neighborhood, which itself was transforming into Manhattan’s newest art-world epicenter. Then, in October 2001, Bradley opened The Harrison in Tribeca, breathing new life into a neighborhood that was still reeling in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. Twelve years later, West Chelsea and Tribeca have both experienced tremendous changes, but Bradley’s two restaurants still hum along smoothly. Their continued success is a testament to the welcoming environment and approachable cuisine that Bradley continues to cultivate.


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Q u i N t i N m i d d l e t o NBladesmith, Middleton Made Knives

St. StepheN, South caroliNa


Q u i n T i n m i d d l e T o n Master bladesmith Jason Knight. I used to work at a knife and cigar store in our local mall, and Jason walked in one day with a friend of his. I’d read about him and seen his work, so I went up and told him I wanted to be his apprentice. I ended up studying with him for seven years.

T a s T i n g T a b l e How did Jason influence your career?

m i d d l e T o n I wouldn’t have a career without him. When he took me on, I knew next to nothing about knife making, but Jason felt that I had a natural talent for it. I remember our first lesson: He sat me down, gave me a huge piece of raw steel and said, “Make something with it.” No instructions. That’s the way he taught—it was all trial and error. He wanted me to come to realizations myself, rather than be lectured by him.

T a s T i n g T a b l e How did this relationship evolve over time?

m i d d l e T o n I learned a lot in those seven years. I could have left sooner, but I wasn’t comfortable striking out on my own until I’d gotten everything right. Jason used to say that he loves competition, meaning the more I learned, the more I challenged him to be better. I kept him on his toes.


m i d d l e T o n It came about a year ago, when I launched my company. I’d known I wanted to make chef’s knives, and once I’d perfected my product, I started marketing myself to the food world. I made a list of all the chefs in Charleston and called each and every one. Were they looking for new knives? They all told me no. Then finally I heard back from [James Beard Award-nominated chef] Craig Deihl of Cypress restaurant, and he agreed to give my knives a chance. When things started to take off, Jason was really proud of me. He even started asking me for advice on his business. That was when I knew I’d done well.

Quintin Middleton is a young artisan pursuing an age-old craft: knife making. Working from his home in a small town outside of Charleston, the 26-year-old produces one-of-a-kind, bespoke blades for chefs and home cooks across the country. A fan of Conan the Barbarian and Star Wars as a boy, Middleton would fashion makeshift swords from cardboard tubes and shower rods. He eventually decided to pursue his passion as an adult, honing his skills with one of the country’s foremost bladesmiths before opening his own company, Middleton Made Knives. Once known only by Charleston-area insiders, Middleton is now poised to share his work on a national stage.

BLaDesMIth

Quintin MiddletonMentor

Jason Knight

08


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l u k e h o l d e NPresident, Luke’s Lobster

New York, New York


l u k e h o l d e n My father, Jeff Holden, has always been my role model, and became a mentor to me as well when he and I decided to partner together.

T a s T i n g T a b l e How has your relationship with your father evolved over time?

h o l d e n I started working for my father at age 10, on the processing line of one of his seafood plants. Then, in my late teens, I started a small lobstering business of my own. It was important to me at that age to prove that I didn’t need my father’s help to be successful, although in reality my business required much help from him. Starting Luke’s Lobster together was a turning point. He recognized that I’d learned a lot both in business school and as an investment banker, and trusted that I could succeed without his daily governance. It was the first step toward becoming his teammate.


h o l d e n My father makes the right decision from an ethical and moral standpoint 100 percent of the time. He treats people with respect and never does a task with less than his best effort. These principles have been guiding forces in my life and career.


h o l d e n My father has always asked for my opinion, but it wasn’t until this past December that I realized how much my opinions meant to him. His business was going through a difficult restructuring, and I ended up moving home for two months to help. It was at that moment that I realized we’d become teammates rather than a teacher and a student. It was no longer about the old man having all the answers, but instead about the two of us working together to derive the best solution. It was both a fulfilling and a scary moment for me.

In 2009, Luke Holden left a career in finance to open a seafood shack in the East Village with an unlikely business partner: his father. Sourcing top-quality Maine lobster from his father’s sustainable seafood operation, Portland Shellfish Company, Holden opened Luke’s Lobster with a mission to bring his home state’s lobster rolls to the big city. Luke’s Lobster quickly became a favorite of seafood lovers and the press alike, and has since expanded to four locations across Manhattan, plus a roving lunch truck. Earlier this year, Holden cut the ribbon on his first restaurant outside of New York, located in Penn Quarter in Washington, D.C.

restaUrateUr

Luke HoldenMentor

Jeff Holden

09


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aMBassaDor

Richard Crawford

Mentor

Ian Logan

The Glenlivet U.S. ambassador since 2006, Crawford travels across the country spreading his knowledge of and passion for Scotch whisky. He was born and raised in Paisley, Scotland—his father and uncle both worked in the Scotch whisky warehousing business—and moved to the United States to attend the University of Alabama. Crawford has hosted tasting events at the British Embassy in Washington, D.C., and welcomed HRH The Prince of Wales at the grand opening of the new Still House at The Glenlivet Distillery.


r i c h a r d c r a w F o r d My first mentor in the Scotch industry was Ian Logan, global brand ambassador for The Glenlivet. We spent six days together in February 2006 immersed in every aspect of the industry, from grain to bottle, and are still in regular touch to this day.

T a s T i n g T a b l e How did Ian shape your career at The Glenlivet?

c r a w F o r d His in-depth knowledge of the industry helped me understand both the art and the science that go into the production of a premium Scotch whisky like The Glenlivet. One of the most memorable moments of my career was when he and I set up a small still in the backyard of The Glenlivet Distillery and made our own batch of whisky! It was an unforgettable, hands-on lesson made all the more authentically Scottish by the fact that the weather was miserable.

T a s T i n g T a b l e At what moment did you know you’d proven yourself?

c r a w F o r d A couple of years ago we had to create an important video presentation detailing the production of The Glenlivet Scotch whisky, and I was honored when Ian allowed me to take the lead on the project. I believe it was his way of acknowledging that we had become peers. Ultimately, however, you realize that you will always be a student of Scotch. It’s an industry that’s at once steeped in tradition and also full of innovation and experimentation.

T a s T i n g T a b l e Have you since taken on students of your own?

c r a w F o r d My position at The Glenlivet is, in essence, to be a teacher and mentor. One way that drinkers can learn more about The Glenlivet is to join the Guardians—a select group of drinkers who receive invites to exclusive tastings in their city, plus special offers and more. As a Glenlivet ambassador, I encourage Guardian members to share in the history of Scotch, and learn what it takes to make The Glenlivet.

r i c h a r d c r aw f o r dThe Glenlivet National Ambassador, USA

New York, New York

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ten forces of the food world recall the moment they made

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