The Landing Club’s Clubhouse Chef uses this to keep croutons and dehydrated fruits dry and crispy.
Chef’s Thoughts is sponsored by barillafs.com.
Kevin Silk is a Clubhouse Chef at The Landings Club in Savannah, Ga. Silk grew up in Atlanta and started his culinary career in Statesboro, Ga, before moving to Charlotte to attend Johnson & Wales University. While at JWU, he interned at Grandfather Golf and Country Club (Linville, N.C.) and then started working at Myers Park Country Club (Charlotte, N.C.). Silk later moved to Savannah to take a Sous Chef position at The Landings Club, and after some time was promoted to Restaurant Chef, and then Clubhouse Chef.
- You’d be surprised to learn that I was born in South Africa.
- If I could trade places with one chef it would be Alex Atala. I love how he’s able to go out in the Amazonian Rainforest to hunt, gather, and cook and then turn around and produce beautiful, refined food in his restaurant.
- One of my most memorable meals was eating my grandparents’ Chinese dumplings.
- My go-to drink is any hazy IPA.
- My last meal would be a Grilled Ribeye with Chimichurri.
- My worst culinary creation was the first time I made sweet potato gnocchi as a young cook.
- If I could change one thing about my club it would be the location. We are on an island 20 minutes from downtown Savannah and it is difficult to find utility and stewarding staff due to transportation issues.
- My favorite junk food is Zapps Voodoo Chips.
- If I wasn’t a chef, I’d love to be a pilot.
- I knew I wanted to be a chef when I started working at a small-town burger restaurant and fell in love with cooking professionally and the kitchen environment.
- You’ll never see store-bought/canned soup on the menu at my club because I believe in scratch cooking and I love making soups with layers of flavor.
- The most ridiculous member or guest request I’ve ever had was a filet with a “red, hot” center.
- I love being a club chef because you get to know your members and their specific preferences which can help you create memorable experiences for them.
- When I’m not in the kitchen, I’m finding new restaurants to try out with my wife or doing something near the water.
- My biggest mistake when I first started as a chef was trying to do everything myself.
- I cook frozen pizza at home, but I’d never cook it at the club.
- If I could have dinner with one person, dead or alive, it would be Anthony Bourdain.
- The most valuable piece of career advice I’ve ever received was, “Money is a byproduct. Cook good food and create great experiences for people so they keep coming back. The money will come.”
- My favorite celebrity chef was Anthony Bourdain because Kitchen Confidential was the first book I read about cooking when I first started in the industry. He was also an inspiration on his show by inviting us to join him as he traveled the world, sharing the food and culture of so many people.
- The most important piece of equipment in my kitchen is the dishwasher.
- I want to learn more about vegan cooking because it is a fun challenge to make flavorful food without animal products. Many members are choosing a vegan lifestyle today more than ever.
- My favorite ingredient is coriander seed. Foie gras is the most overrated ingredient. Worcestershire Sauce is the most undervalued ingredient. I detest chicken liver, and I can’t live without salt.
- I don’t like to brag, but my wife is also a chef so we always get to enjoy cooking great meals with each other at home.
- My most embarrassing moment in the kitchen was dropping a baine full of sour she-crab soup. It hit the ground and covered half of the kitchen and myself.
- If I could have one superpower, it would be to pause time, because there never seems to be enough time in a day.
- My favorite cookbook is The Flavor Bible.
- My favorite kitchen hack is using lime rock to keep croutons or dehydrated fruits dry and crispy.
- I am motivated and inspired by seeing my employees learn new techniques and grow as culinarians.
- The hardest service of my career was being down two cooks on a very busy night and having to run back and forth from expo and pizza/pantry station all night.
- The most popular item on my menu based on sales is flounder piccata.
- Accountability is the most important quality in a sous chef.
- My go-to breakfast is eggs benedict.
- When hiring, there isn’t one specific thing that kills a resume fastest for me. I prefer to meet and talk to a person before making assessments from a piece of paper.
- My biggest professional pet peeve is not removing plastic wrap properly from a container.
- I will always purchase hot dogs instead of making them from scratch.
- The most important question I ask during the interview process is, “What are your goals?”
- The best excuse I’ve ever been given for calling off work is “I crashed my car into the river.”
- If I had to hire a family member, I would choose my wife because we work well with each other and she is a very talented chef.
- The best culinary gift I’ve ever received was a Miyabi rocking santoku from my best friend, which then became my favorite style knife from then on.