Chef Chit Chat

For most, the holidays are a time for celebration and excess; however, for the one in six food insecure residents of Northeast Ohio, it is still a time of struggle. With such need prevalent in our very own backyard, it didn’t feel right to celebrate our prosperity this year without giving back. We sat down with Rod McGuire, the Director of Food Services at the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, to learn more about how the largest hunger relief organization in Northeast Ohio works to feed our community, and how we can volunteer our time to help.

It’s no easy feat being the Executive Chef of 1.8 million square feet of flexible and customizable event space, but Chef Matt Smith has repeatedly proven that he is up to the task. Taking on the role two years ago with Levy, the Greater Columbus Convention Center’s exclusive hospitality partner, Matt oversees a Premium Catering and Banquet Kitchen, a Pastry Kitchen, Restaurant and Café Services, and stewarding an employee meal program for up to 400 associates daily. The center itself is home to 3 ballrooms, 75 meeting rooms, and 4 expo/convention halls. How does he keep up? “Starting with the sales process and developing menus with clients, developing the plan, overseeing the ordering and production, to finally seeing a room of thousands eating something that started with a simple conversation is truly rewarding,” Matt says. “I enjoy seeing all the moving pieces and parts work in harmony to bring great food to our guests. It takes a tremendous team to bring quality food and beverage service to a high-volume food and beverage operation such as ours.”

Bryan Ondre took over Dayton’s renowned Coco’s Bistro as Executive Chef in January of this year, stepping into the former shoes of chef Darin Mitchell, who left to open a new restaurant in Springfield. Looking back on the transition, Bryan says “there were some obstacles to get through, …but there was a good kitchen crew for me when I got to Coco’s and a lot of support for change.”

School is back in session, and in the world of Marissa Riffle, Bowling Green State University’s Executive Chef, that means lots of hungry students to feed. “Being an Executive Chef at a university draws on many different skill sets. You are not just managing one kitchen, you are overseeing several, and every kitchen is doing something different,” Marissa illustrates. “Collaboration both on and off-campus is unbelievably essential to make everything run smoothly.”

Columbus foodies know that Skillet is a must-stop destination in the city’s German Village. Chef Kevin Caskey, wife Angela, son Patrick, and daughter in law Cece have created a comfort food paradise featuring Ohio’s finest ingredients. With a continuously rotating menu, driven by local, seasonal products, Skillet brings awareness and admiration to Ohio’s farmers and cheese makers.

42 years of farm-to-table expertise has made The Winds Café, located in Yellow Springs, a culinary staple in Southwestern Ohio. Executive Chef Mary Kay Smith will tell you, “Farm to Table has become such a battle cry and also commercial catch phrase to lure diners.” She explains, “Yes, it’s a business and we all have to make a living, but guests respond to authenticity. We try to use as much local food as possible, but realize the constraints of the Ohio growing season. It’s sometimes problematic for some customers not to have an out of season tomato on their burger or sandwich, but we try to impart the positive part of supporting locally sourced products rather than mega agribusiness.”

Peter Rueter fell in love with making fresh pasta in 2014, while working at a Tuscan-style grille in Charlotte, North Carolina. Experience working as a butcher had taught him to appreciate working with his hands, but Peter soon realized it was fresh pasta that brought him joy. “Being the fresh pasta guy just stuck with me everywhere I went, and I truly enjoyed teaching people about it,” Peter recalls. Having realized his passion, the Cleveland Heights native return to his home state and began racking up culinary experience at Marottas and Doug Katz’s acclaimed Fire. A few years later, he was ready to go out on his own.

With a degree in Chemistry and Environmental Studies from Michigan State University, followed by a career as a chef on the west coast, the path that led Michael Koenig to become Executive Chef at Tucci’s in Dublin, OH was anything but traditional. When asked about his early days in the culinary industry, Michael reminisces “I ended up in San Francisco in the late nineties. What a great city to be a chef in.” Referring to his time working under the acclaimed chefs Gary Danko and Michael Mina, Michael explains that California taught him so much, so quickly, especially the importance of quality ingredients - a core value prominent today in his work at Tucci’s. However, that’s not the only place his inspiration comes from. Growing up in a half-Lebanese, half-German household in the Midwest, Michael also draws his cooking style from Mediterranean cuisine. “It’s a style of cooking that allows the ingredients to really shine,” Michael explains. Last but not least, seasonal ingredients also play an important role in his cooking. “I love incorporating seasonal ingredients into my daily specials,” Michael proclaims. “I try to get seasonal produce as soon as it appears on the market.” He especially enjoys foraging.

Chef Anthony Sitek first came to visit Cincinnati in his college years, with his now-wife Haley Nutter-Sitek, a Cincinnati native. Sitek remembers that back then OTR, meaning the Over-The-Rhine neighborhood of downtown Cincinnati, “was still a place you could not venture into.” Over the years, the couple watched the remarkable growth of the area, and decided it was something they wanted to be a part of. Having met at Johnson & Wales University, a culinary school in Providence, Rhode Island, the husband and wife duo bring culinary experience from many different cities in the eastern United States, such as New Jersey, Chicago, and Miami. They now own and run Crown Republic Gastropub together in downtown Cincinnati, with Anthony as the Executive Chef and Haley, the General Manager. “We knew that we could help the food scene thrive, and we were excited to plant our roots and raise our family here,” Sitek reflects. Haley and Anthony have two boys, Aiden (7) and Pierson (3). Crown Republic Gastropub has been open for breakfast, lunch and dinner since June 2018, and has been flourishing ever since.

Anthony Zappola, owner and executive chef of Lox, Stock, and Brisket, wasn’t looking to start a brisket shop when he moved to Cleveland a year ago. Having grown up in Ohio, the accredited chef had just sold his first solo venture, The Rice Shop in Las Vegas, and wanted to be closer to family. Previously, his whirlwind career had led him to work for Top Chef’s Tom Colicchio for over a decade in six roles and four different cities - from New York to Dallas, Los Angeles and Las Vegas, where he was awarded Las Vegas Weekly Best New Chef 2014 while working at the acclaimed Mirage’s Heritage. Seeing the potential for opportunities back in his home state, Zappola recalls “I was looking to open more restaurants and Cleveland checked more boxes than I initially thought.”