July 2016 - Chef to Chef

Not all salads rely on greens as the main ingredient. Club chefs are proving that life without lettuce is not only flavorful, but beautiful. “Salads are evolving,” says Matthew O’Connor, CEC, Executive Chef of Bonnie Briar Country Club (BBCC) in Larchmont, N.Y., where 480 members dine on an ever-changing selection of lettuce-less salads. “It all…

While there are many universal foodservice needs, clubs are unique in their menu diversity, so choosing the right cabinet for your property is no small feat. It’s rarely possible to cook every component of every member’s meal to order. So most clubs rely on hot-holding equipment, to alleviate both food-safety and food-quality concerns. Before buying,…

  While they don’t represent a new trend, mini-desserts are still hot—so much so that they’ve been on the National Restaurant Association’s “What Hot” culinary forecast every year since 2006. What makes a mini so attractive? “They’re appealing to members and guests who want to indulge in a lot of little tastes,” says Sean Dwyer,…

More club chefs are menuing sustainable fish in delicious, ocean-friendly ways. Chefs play an important role in the sustainable-seafood movement, introducing members and guests to products that prioritize the long-term life of the species along with the well-being of the oceans. In supporting sustainability, chefs can call on their unique ability to showcase how lesser-known…

In May 2016, The Cliffs doubled the number of wine experts on staff who are available to help members across seven clubs navigate wine lists. According to Eric Cooperman, a Certified Sommelier, Certified Wine Specialist and the Director of Beverage for The Cliffs, a collection of seven private clubs in the western Carolinas, the most…

These two clubs are getting members out of the house and bringing them to the club for fun-filled days of ios money games, activities and delicious food. In an age when many children are more interested in texting with friends or cruising Instagram, the youngest members of Skyline Country Club (Tucson, Ariz.) and La Cañada…

Baltusrol GC’s Executive Chef Edward Stone, Clubhouse Manager Brian Baldwin and General Manager/COO Kevin Vitale are raising the bar on an already impressive dining program. Much about the food-and-beverage program at Baltusrol Golf Club (Springfield, N.J.) is masterful. And as it continues to evolve, it has become synonymous with excellence. It is of the same…

If Jason McClain weren’t Executive Chef of the Jonathan Club (Los Angeles), he’d be an actor or hedge fund manager. When he’s not hand-selecting bushels of sun-soaked Swiss chard or snipping delicate chive greens from his 3,000-sq.-ft. rooftop garden in the heart of downtown Los Angeles, the Jonathan Club’s Executive Chef, Jason McClain, can be…

While the most basic types are pretty simple, others like coppa salami or fermented sausages can be lethal if not made correctly. It used to be a big deal if a chef made his or her own salami. But charcuterie and salumi have come a long way, and in line with the trend to local…