FSR May 2023

CHEFS & INGREDIENTS CHEF PROFILE

Kaysen had received word that in a few days, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz would give the orders to temporarily close dine-in bars and restaurants due to rising COVID cases—for the sec ond time. ough many others in the foodservice industry experienced simi lar situations during the past few years, Kaysen chose to think of it as an oppor tunity to innovate, and continues to choose to find pockets of light in the darkest of times. “As crazy as it sounds, I’m grateful we went through it. I think it made us a bet ter company, and I think it continues to make our profession a better profession,” he adds. Yet, he admits it will take time to heal after losing a generation of food service workers. “A lot of people left the business. at’s a lot of knowledge lost, with no system set in place to pass on that knowledge.” One way Kaysen chose to pass on

some of his culinary expertise was pub lishing a cookbook, which seems to be on every chef’s bucket list. Ful lling the dream appears to mark a milestone— a tangible way to say, “I’ve made it as a chef, and my recipes will live on forever.” But for Kaysen, the concept of his debut cookbook “At Home” began as a way to connect with his guests during a time when they couldn’t dine inside his Minneapolis-based restaurants, includ ing Demi, Bellecour Bakery, Mara, and Socca Cafe. And, of course, Spoon and Stable—named after Kaysen’s bad habit of “borrowing” spoons from restau rants and “forgetting” to return them. (He once told Food and Wine Magazine he has a collection of nearly 500 spoons pinched from restaurants around the world, many of which are displayed at his restaurant.) The two-time James Beard award winning chef got his start cooking in the

kitchen with his grandmother Dorothy, who he pays tribute to in his Midwest ern-inspired cookbook. Kaysen self-pub lished “At Home” under his label Spoon ief Publishing (a tting name) in Octo ber 2022. From Swedish pancakes to e Perfect Pot Roast with kale and squash salad, Kaysen walks readers through rec ipes he cooks at home for his family in addition to dishes passed down through generations. “Writing a cookbook can be a really hard experience for chefs,” he admits. “I’m a good chef, and a good restaurant owner, but I hate to write. I love to jour nal, but I hate to write.” e idea for compiling his recipes in a written format stemmed from a live, interactive mealtime series called “GK at Home,” which he launched in 2020 to virtually welcome guests into his home kitchen. e rst class garnered about 100 attendees, and by the third,

CHEF GAVIN KAYSEN

LIBBY ANDERSON

FAVORITE SPICE AT THE MOMENT: Sumac POST-SHIFT DRINK OF CHOICE: Sparkling water (really exciting!) FAVORITE GRANDMA DOROTHY DISH: Pot Roast BEST MUSICAL ARTIST TO COOK TO: Bruce Springsteen FAVORITE DISH AT SPOON & STABLE: Bison Tartar GO-TO COOKING UTENSIL: Spoon (Duh)

GAVIN KAYSEN’S COLLECTION OF MINNEAPOLIS RESTAURANTS INCLUDES SPOON AND STABLE, DEMI, BELLECOUR BAKERY (BOTTOM RIGHT), MARA (ABOVE), AND SOCCA CAFE.

DON RIDDLE / ELIESA JOHNSON / BELLECOUR BAKERY

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FSRMAGAZINE.COM

MAY 2023