John Wagner, Executive Chef of Sunnybrook Golf Club, has a new piece of kitchen equipment that he’s eager to learn more about.
Chef’s Thoughts is sponsored by barillafs.com.
John Wagner is the Executive Chef of Sunnybrook Golf Club in Plymouth Meeting, Pa.
- You’d be surprised to learn that I am a muscle car enthusiast.
- If I could trade places with one chef it would be Gordon Ramsay.
- One of my most memorable meals was at Commander’s Palace in New Orleans. The food was great, but the time spent with fellow chefs was better.
- My go-to drink is Captain Morgan and Diet Coke.
- My last meal would be Philly Cheesesteak with sauce and onions.
- My worst culinary creation was a raspberry pasta salad. (Cut me a break, I was an apprentice and it was 30 years ago.)
- If I could change one thing about my club it would be labor costs.
- Chips are my favorite junk food.
- If I wasn’t a chef, I’d love to be a PGA Pro.
- I knew I wanted to be a chef when I was washing dishes and helping the chefs do charcuterie, cheese boards and crudites.
- You’ll never see tomato aspic on the menu at my club because some dishes don’t deserve a comeback.
- The most ridiculous member or guest request I’ve ever had was an egg salad sandwich with egg whites only.
- I love being a club chef because I like making people happy.
- When I’m not in the kitchen, I’m chasing my kids who are 7 and 4 years old.
- My biggest mistake when I first started as a chef was making that pasta salad previously mentioned.
- I cook kielbasa 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 my parents.
- The most valuable piece of career advice I’ve ever received was, “If you taste your food and you don’t say, ‘Damn, that’s good,’ then you aren’t finished.
- My favorite celebrity chef is Thomas Keller because he has flawless technique.
- The most important thing in my kitchen is quality ingredients.
- I want to learn more about dry-aging and charcuterie because I have a dry age box now.
22. My favorite ingredient is good salt. Truffle is the most overrated ingredient. Italian parsley is the most undervalued ingredient. I detest iodized salt, and I can’t live without fresh stocks. - My most embarrassing moment in the kitchen is constantly looking for things right in front of my face.
- I’d like to see more club chefs up their game and get rid of the ‘club chef’ stigma.
- My favorite cookbook is The New Professional Chef 6th Edition.
- My favorite kitchen hack is concassé tomatoes in the fryer.
- I am motivated and inspired by my close group of chef friends in the clubs in my area, a great group of guys.
- The hardest service of my career was a coworkers wedding for 200 people with no power at all. We pulled it off without the guests even knowing there was a power outage, it was incredible and incredibly hard. One of my hardest and most proud moments.
- The most popular item on my menu based on sales is iceberg wedge/burger wedge.
- I’d lose my job if I took chicken curry off the menu.
- Dedication is the most important quality in a sous chef.