Executive Chef Tim Kolanko in the kitchen at Leroy’s
Tim Kolanko is a busy man. As corporate chef for Blue Bridge Hospitality, BBH), he is putting the finishing touches on a menu for a new restaurant, Stake, which opens next month, as well as keeping up standards at another island favorite – Leroy’s Kitchen + Lounge. He’s also tasked with keeping tabs on BBH’s other eateries — Village Pizzeria, MooTime Creamy, and Lil’ Piggy’s Bar-B-Que.
“I have my fingers in everything,” the Grand Rapids native said. This includes making sure the quality at Lil’ Piggy’s, Village Pizzeria, and MooTime remain high and consistent. If there’s a problem with the dough at Village, or if the ribs are turning out a little dry at Lil’ Piggy’s, it’s Kolanko’s job to figure out what’s wrong — and to fix it.
A slight man with a broad smile and an easy manner, Kolanko is one of San Diego’s top chefs, having built a reputation at A.R. Valentien, the Lodge at Torrey Pines’s fine dining restaurant, by serving simple, scrumptious dishes. When he took over the kitchen at Leroy’s last summer, he brought a commitment to fresh, seasonal food. He keeps this commitment despite his many duties at BBH. He goes to local farmer’s markets regularly and has developed relationships with local farmers.
“He is unique among San Diego chefs in his dedication to sourcing locally,” said Shannon Waldron, Suzy’s Farm’s sales cultivator. “He was one of the first and remains one of the most committed to getting the best and freshest produce available.”
Kolanko is taking an equal amount of care and attention to detail in creating Stake’s menu, though he plans for it to evoke an more traditional, less trendy culinary ethos. “People have expectations for a steak house. We have to cherish that,” he said.
Beef selections will range from 21-day aged prime cuts to grass fed beef. Sides will be classic steak house fare – piped duchess potatoes, wedge and Caesar salads. Tomatoes, in season or not, will be on the menu, though Kolanko is currently searching for one that is available and flavorful all year long.
Andrew Kedziora, Isaias Sanchez, Tim Kolanko, and Francis Laureano
He’s also assembled a team of chefs and sous chefs for both restaurants who share his culinary philosophy, beginning with Ronnie Schwanadt, chef de cuisine for Leroy’s. He also hired his executive pastry chef, Francis Laureano, from LA’s Bottega Louie. Rounding out his team are Tommy Morstad and Andrew Kedziora, both sous chefs at Stake, and Isaias Sanchez, sous chef at Leroy’s.
“There’s no ego,” he said “Everyone is free to make suggestions and try out new ideas.” Still, Kolanko keeps his hand in the mix and exercises creative control over what comes out of the kitchen. “I still have veto power,” he said.
David Spatafore, principal at BBH, initially hired Kolanko as a consultant for Leroy’s. The two hit it off, though, and Spatafore offered Kolanko a job that, up until that point, didn’t exist – head chef for Spatafore’s ever expanding eateries.
“It was his calm, cool personality mixed with knowledge that sold me on him,” Spatafore said. “It is a rare combination to find a chef who is talented, passionate and humble.”
Just before Spatafore made the offer, Kolanko was thinking about opening his own restaurant. He and his wife, Heidi, had gone so far as staking out possible locations. Being the corporate chef for BBH offered him the same opportunities opening his own restaurant would have, though — and more. He could create a culinary culture, nurture young chefs, plus he would have the resources of an established business.
Kolanko had been working in restaurants since he was 16. He turns 40 this fall. Interestingly, it was not a love of food, but a love for the slopes that initially brought Kolanko to the kitchen. “I could cook at night and snowboard during the day,” he said. So, after earning a degree in culinary arts, he and a friend backpacked around Europe.
“We ate our way through seven countries,” he said. “It was a life a life changing experience.” He came to appreciate they way Europeans treated food, and the culinary value of local markets. He got serious about cooking.
Back home he took a job with Chef Stuart Brioza at Tapawingo in Ellsworth, Michigan. He went on to work under a number of starred chefs, including Charles Dale in Aspen, Colorado, and Jeff Jackson in Del Mar. “That’s 20 years of cooking,” he said.
Now he’s ready to pass on his knowledge and passion to other chefs, a role Spatafore says Kolanko is well suited for.
“Tim has a very unique quality to teach others and instill a sense of passion for food in them, Spatafore said. “This passion and learning in the kitchen will result in amazing food for our guest.”
And although being a mentor to aspiring chefs and overseeing a diverse group of eateries brings its own challenges and frustrations, Kolanko wouldn’t have it any it any other way. “My job is totally insane and totally fun,” he said.
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Gloria Tierney
Staff Writer
eCoronado.com
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