Chefs' Feast 2012

Coming Soon.

Chefs Cally Johnson and Kathryn Mathis, Big Truck Tacos

It seems that, over the years, Cally Johnson and Kathryn Mathis have been on a journey to find each other. Though neither is from Oklahoma City originally, each has made her own lasting impact on its culinary scene. The product of their combined expertise is Big Truck Tacos, the little taco restaurant that has taken the metro area by storm.

Johnson, a former singer/songwriter from California who came to OKC via Nashville, TN, entered the food industry at the age of 36. In the fall of 2000, Johnson began working at Deep Fork Grill under her good friend, executive chef Leonard Novak, a graduate of Kurt Fleischfresser's renowned Coach House apprenticeship. It was there that Johnson met Chris Lower, who, along with Fleischfresser, owned the restaurant. As time and her relationship with the two gentlemen progressed, she was groomed to take over that kitchen, becoming its executive chef in a few short years. Johnson continued to grow in the food world, spending much of her career as the executive chef of Boulevard Steakhouse, in Edmond.

Mathis got hooked on restaurants a bit earlier in life; what started as a summer job quickly became a passion, and then a career. Her path crossed that of Lower (and Fleischfresser) in the late 80's, when the men opened the Metro Wine Bar and Bistro. Mathis was introduced to Lower by his wife, kept in touch with the restauranteurs and was tapped to work with them at Montrachet, in Tulsa, in the early 90's, starting as a grill cook but leaving 3 years later as the chef de cuisine, to head the kitchen at Portobello (now Deep Fork Grill) in Oklahoma City. She remained there until 1995, at which point she decided to decamp for Austin, TX. She worked around Austin for several years, heading the kitchens of Mezzaluna and the Bitter End, before becoming a personal chef to some of Austin's elite.

In early 2009, the stage was set for greatness. Johnson had resigned her job at Boulevard, seeking personal growth and time to explore what she felt were essentials in a great kitchen. "I realized I hate status quo and the good enough' mentality," she said. Mathis made the decision to return to Oklahoma City, both to be closer to her family and because she believed that Oklahoma City offered her more opportunity to own a restaurant. Fortuitously, the two had met the previous spring, when Mathis was invited by Kurt Fleischfresser to cook a private, multi course dinner at the Coach House, for Women's Night Out. Johnson, along with several other notable, local, female chefs, was part of the crew that executed this dinner to rave reviews. After years of working for and with the same folks but never meeting, the pair could finally answer yes to the question "Do you two know each other?" They became fast friends.

Of this friendship was born a dream. Mathis wanted a small, low key place to get a great taco for breakfast. Johnson wanted a food truck. The rest, as they say, is history. During an "innocent" conversation with Lower, Johnson mentioned their vision. He was on board almost immediately and the three came together for the first time ever as business partners.

In the months leading up to the opening, the trio planned, plotted, renovated and took a road trip, to southern California, to pick up the eponymous Truck. All that, and more, was documented on their Facebook page, creating a buzz around Oklahoma City's newest hot spot, well before it was open to the public. When they finally opened for business, that hot day in late July 2009 it was to a packed house and rave reviews.

Social media is a huge part of Big Truck Tacos' success. They're well on their way to 16,000 Facebook fans and have over 5,000 followers on Twitter. They use the sites to disclose the location of the truck, to get the word out about food and drink specials and, in general, to stay in touch with the public. The new media allows them to have real conversations with their customers and to develop relationships that reach deeper than the traditional client-chef/owner roles. Through Facebook and Twitter, the owners have built and fostered a community of supporters.

The future for Big Truck Tacos looks as bright as its past. Their altruistic approach to business, combined with phenomenal leadership and an outstanding team of supporting players spells long term success for this local upstart. When asked to share her vision, Mathis replied, "We're going to keep growing, which gives us the opportunity to do more: maybe it's another BTT, maybe a new concept who knows. But in the meantime, we'll keep working hard and continue to give back. Oh, and don't forget world peace!"

 

Chef J. Mays, Cafe 7 Delicatessen & Pasteria

J. Mays grew up in the restaurant world. Starting at a young age in the kitchens at his family's restaurant Bill's Fish House in Waurika, Oklahoma. When he was just five years old he would stand on an upside down pickle bucket to help with dishes. It wasn't until a little later that his mother would let him cook. But after that first day he was hooked...

After high school J. left for Stillwater to attend Oklahoma State University and receive a degree in Hotel and Restaurant Administration. In his tenure there he held many leadership roles within the school. As catering manager for Club Manager's Association of America, he helped students raise over $50,000 for scholarships. Also, while in Stillwater, he had many opportunities to learn more about the world of cooking by spending time in the kitchens at Karsten Creek, The Rancher's Club, and Taylor's Dining Room. This is where he met all of his current business partners. He also had the opportunity of studying abroad for several summers learning more and more about regional European cuisine and wine. Through the Banfi Scholastic program he fell in love with the simplicity and freshness of Italian cuisine. Little did he know that Italian cuisine would play such a major role in his life.

After graduating from OSU, J. pursued a career in food sales with Ben E. Keith foods. After several months at Ben E. Keith, he was approached by a former professor, Paul Sorrentino, about the possibility of going into business and opening a restaurant, after toying with the notion he said yes.

Travel and research inspired the concept for Café 7 Delicatessen and Pastaria. Now, after a year in business, they have expanded, brought in new partners, and are busier than ever. Leslie Wiley and Chris Kana have helped build Café 7 into a great local restaurant serving seriously great Italian influenced cuisine. With its relaxed casual atmosphere, and from scratch recipes, it has been a great success.

 

Chef Geni Thomas, Casady School

Chef Geni Thomas is currently Executive Chef Food Service Director of Casady School, a position she has held for 20 years. Starting her professional career in the late 1960's, she has numerous achievements and awards, not to mention the professional certification she has earned. In February of 1984, Geni became the first woman chef in the Central Region to be certified by the American Culinary Federation as an Executive Chef. This was only the beginning of a very prominent and rewarding career.

Chef Thomas has earned her certification as an Executive Chef, an Executive Pastry Chef and Culinary Educator. She was inducted into the American Academy of Chefs in 1993, a pioneering event for both her and the AAC, as she was the first woman from the Central Region to be inducted into the academy. Geni was also Chef of the Year in 1994.

 

Coming Soon.

Chef Rob Ferris, Gages Steakhouse

Born and raised in Fort Worth, Texas, Chef Ray Wilson went on to graduate from Johnson and Wales University in Providence Rhode Island in 1989. After college, he worked at Hyatt Hotels in Dallas and Adams Mark Cork in Indianapolis. In 1999, Chef Wilson moved to Oklahoma City to work at the newly established Renaissance, where he was Hotel Executive Chef for 18 years. He now is Executive Chef at the Sheridan Hotel in Oklahoma City.

Chef Rob Ferris is the Executive Chef at the Sheraton Hotel in Oklahoma City. He has over 15 years of experience in the hotel industry as Executive Chef. Chef Ferris previously worked as the Executive Chef at Chefs di Domani. Before that, he was the Director of Culinary Arts at Platt College of Culinary Arts in Oklahoma City. He also served as an Executive Chef at the Westin Hotel and Hilton Hotel in Oklahoma City, and Doubletree and Omni Hotels in Kansas City.

Chef Ferris currently serves as treasurer of the Oklahoma City Chapter of the Culinary Arts of Oklahoma. He is also a member the American Culinary Federation, Oklahoma Job Core Advisory Program and the Oklahoma Restaurant Association.

 

Ken Burkemper - Ideas in Ice

The ICE BAR designed to complement the "Hang 10 for Hunger" theme of Chefs' Feast was designed and carved by Chef Ken Burkemper, as are all the Ice Sculptures at participating chefs' tables.

Originally from St. Louis, MO, Burkemper has been a proud Oklahoman for 27 years.  Burkemper has been a Certified Chef for over 30 years and has participated in the prestigious Chefs' Feast since its roots as Taste of the Nation, first held at the old Skirvin Hotel 24 years ago.  Community-minded, Burkemper still lends his culinary skills to local and national charitable organizations, his church and the Boy Scouts.  He especially enjoys participating in this annual event, sharing his talents as the only National Ice Carving Association (NICA) Certified Ice Sculptor in Oklahoma!

Since 1989, Burkemper has served the state and surrounding areas with his full-service ice sculpting company, Ideas In Ice, Inc.  Burkemper is active on the Board of Directors of the National Ice Carvers Association and a long-time member of the American Culinary Federation.  He competes annually in the national and international Ice Sculpture contests, including Japan in 2004 where he earned the Japanese Culinary Society's award for Best Ice Sculpture and the "Legends" award for Best Story Told with an Ice Design.  Most recently, Burkemper placed second among a select group of Ice Sculptors at the Fifth annual Titanic Museum Ice Sculpture Competition and always looks forward to an annual trip to St. Charles, MO to compete in front of the hometown crowd at "Fete de Glace."

 

Chefs Trina Burks & Lilliam Miranda - INTEGRIS Southwest

Chef Trina Burks

Coming Soon.

Chef Lilliam Miranda

Lilliam has been promoted from Lead position at Baptist to Southwest INTEGRIS Health as Kitchen Supervisor because of proven commitment, hard work ethic, excellent organizational skills and problem solving.  Lilliam has extensive background in the restaurant business, catering, cooking/kitchen skills and versatile communication abilities.

Lilliam is from Sao-Paulo Brazil which is known for culinary diversity and culture.  There she had the opportunity to work with other chefs from around the world, own her own restaurants and help run her family's restaurants.  Cooking has been a part of Lilliam's life since childhood because of her Italian/Brazilian upbringing in the business.

Chef Jose Barrios - Iron Starr Urban BBQ

Coming Soon.

 

Chef Larry McNeal - McNeal's Catering and Coco Flow

CocoFlow began in 2003 as a small catering business featuring chocolate fountain rentals. It was not long before the vision for the business expanded, and they found themselves longing to create a cozy wonderland of chocolate in their home town of Oklahoma City. The dream was to have a place where young and old alike could find that one special treat to make their heart sing and where they could explore the artisan nature of chocolate.

They worked hard to create a place that as foodies, they could enjoy themselves with good chocolates, good pastries, rich espresso and a warm atmosphere. Like traditional European chocolateries, at CocoFlow they make all of their chocolates by hand in small batches. They use fine Belgian chocolate as well as rare single origin chocolates from around the world. They apply the same philosophy to their pastries and desserts, which are all made from scratch in their kitchen.

It is their sincere hope that when a customer walks through their door, their senses are indulged and their interest aroused. Good chocolate is an experience and they know that you will find an unforgettable experience at CocoFlow.

 

Chef Kyle Mills - RED Prime Steak

Kyle Mills intense passion for cooking began in the modest kitchens of his mother and grandmother in Norman, Oklahoma. As a graduate of Scottsdale Culinary Institute Le Cordon Bleu, he is classically trained in French Cooking.

His many travels throughout Europe always sustained one common goal: to sample as many local cuisines and wines as possible. This lends its hand to Kyle's spontaneous inventiveness in the kitchen. Kyle began his culinary career at Michael's at the Citadel in Scottsdale, Arizona, where he was greatly able to hone his cooking skills. After returning to Oklahoma City he spent time as the Sous Chef at Nonna's Euro-American Ristorante as well as the Renaissance Hotel. He has also worked at several French and Italian restaurants in San Francisco. Kyle brought his love of feeding people to RED Prime Steak in January of 2009.

 

Coming Soon.

Chefs Bruce Rinehart & Don Duncan - Rococo

Chef Bruce Rinehart

A professional for over 30 years, Bruce spent the beginning of his career learning from the best in kitchens around America. Since 1996, he has moved to the role of restaurant Director of Operations, and orchestrated the opening of over 15 new restaurants for 2 top-flight restaurant groups based in Boston. He moved to Oklahoma in the fall of 2003, specifically with the intention of opening a great "East Coast style" restaurant – Rococo. Bruce is directly responsible for the relaxed, fun-yet-thorough style of service you can expect at Rococo.

An expert in the realm of wine and food pairing, he is sharing this wealth of knowledge with the Rococo staff. Bruce has an intense passion for our industry, and welcomes interaction and feedback from everyone. "One guest at a time" is a phrase he uses often, and he really means it. Everyone's opinion counts, and will be incorporated into the daily operation of Rococo Restaurant and Fine Wine. Bruce is a native of New London, Connecticut, and has worked in many major markets, including San Diego, Washington, D.C., Ft. Lauderdale and Boston.

Chef Don Duncan

Coming Soon.

 

Chef Gerald Harden - The Mantel Wine Bar & Bistro

Gerald Harden, Executive Chef at The Mantel Wine Bar and Bistro, was born in Oklahoma. He graduated from Moore High School and joined the United States Air Force after graduation. During his 15 years in the military, Gerald travelled all over the world, visiting new cultures and experiencing the best cuisines abroad. He worked with several Chefs from France, Germany, Spain, and Luxemburg.

From early on, Gerald knew he enjoyed creating food to entertain his friends and family. Taking advice from his grand-mother, Gerald decided to leave the military life behind and pursue a career in Culinary Arts. To ensure he would like working in a professional kitchen, he enrolled in culinary school at Platt College in Oklahoma City. While attending school full-time, Gerald began working at the Mantel Wine Bar and Bistro as a Pantry Chef. He didn't just like it, he absolutely loved it, and his professional career was born. After graduating with Honors, Gerald became the Executive Chef of the Mantel Wine Bar and Bistro.

In addition to spending countless hours in the kitchen creating culinary masterpieces, 35-year-old Gerald enjoys riding his Harley Davidson motorcycle, and spending time with Gerald Jr., his 4-year old son.