Seattle Culinary World Part 2: Campagne Restaurant, Cafe Campagne, Peter Lewis, Daisley Gordon, Tamara Murphy, Bryan Hill, Garage Billiards, Sue McCown, Jim Drohman, Jonathon Sundstrom, Scott Emerick, Shannon Galusha, McCaw Hall, Kelly Gaddis, Brasa

Seattle's Culinary World

A small connected community

One of the fascinating things about Seattle's restaurant scene is how many people have worked together at some point. We thought it would be fun to take a look at several culinary venues that have employed an amazing number of culinary professionals who have left to make a name for themselves at another restaurant or opened their own place. Last month we looked at Market Place Caterers and The Ruins. This month, Dave McDonald gives us the scoop on Campagne.

In large restaurant-cities, chefs are often able to move around almost without leaving a trail. Chris Bauer of Garage Billiards on Broadway once told me about growing up in the business in Chicago. Because of its immensity, a chef could work the north side of town, get in all sorts of trouble, burn every bridge and then move to the south side and start all over again. No can do in Seattle. It's a big, little city and everyone knows everyone. The amount of connections here are amazing.

Many culinary professionals have come from Campagne and Café Campagne. Unlike large corporations, restaurants don't always maintain exact historical personal records. This means some of our dates are "estimated."

Tamara Murphy chef from 1990-1997. She now co-owns Brasa with Bryan Hill.

Bryan Hill worked at Brasa from 1992-1998 as general manager and wine director.

Michelle Lucier worked as a sous chef with Tamara. She became a chef at The Ruins.

Sue McCown, pantry work and pastry chef from 1990-1992, hired by Tamara. She worked at Earth & Ocean, started Cocolatida, created desserts for many restaurants, worked at Starbucks and has her fingers in many pots (pans?) now.

Jim Drohman cooked from 1992-2000 (chef from 1997-2000). He opened Le Pichet and Café Presse.

Jonathon Sundstrom cooked in the early 90s (estimated). He opened Lark and Licorous.

Scott Emerick cooked under Tamara Murphy and Jim Drohman. He was the owner/chef of Crémant until recently.

Campagne Restaurant (now marché)
86 Pine Street
Seattle, WA 98101
206-728-2800

Cafe Campagne
1600 Post Alley
Seattle, WA 98101
206-728-2233

www.campagnerestaurant.com

Shannon Galusha, cooked from 2000-2001 (estimated). Opened Veil. Now opening Bastille (Veil closed in 2008).

Jamie Guerin, line cook 1994-1999, a sous chef in 2000. Now chef at White House Crawford in Walla Walla.

Kelly Gaddis cooked at Campagne prior to 1995 (estimated). He opened Porcella, closed it and moved on to become the chef at McCaw Hall.

Brian Yeck was a bartender and server from 1995-2000 (estimated). He started Zeitgeist Coffee.

Craig Serbousek worked as a cook. He was co-owner of Stumbling Goat, left to open Crow and then Betty.

Daisley Gordon 1995-current. He became executive chef in 2000.

Chris Peterson, Café sous chef 1997-2000 (estimated). He is the chef at Bis on Main.

Jim German, bartender "for years." He now owns the jimgermanbar in Waitsburg.

Bryant Bader was a cook. He now owns WhoopemUp Hollow Café in Waitsburg.

Kristin Rudy Mills worked at both the Café and Restaurant for six years (estimated). She was the sous chef the last two years she was there. She is now the chef at Barrio on 12^th.

Jim Roberts was the line cook for nearly a year and briefly lead line at Campagne. He moved to Rover's as sous chef, then left to open a hotel restaurant in the San Juan Islands.

And this doesn't begin to look at servers and others who have moved on or stayed, like Jasiu Nagroki who started at Campagne in 1992, or Philip Pichette who was at Campagne for 16-17 years and also worked at Brasa. Or the four former employees working for Amanresorts in Bhutan.

"Peter hired me after Susan Vanderbeek," Tamara Murphy recalls. "I had been at Dominique's Place, where Peter, Maria and Mario came to dinner often. Campagne was the greatest gig for me. It was my first chef job and I feel very good about that experience. It was there I was nominated for Rising Star and where I received my James Beard award. Peter Lewis was a great boss. He could bring the best out of a person. Really remarkable. He was a mentor. I hired Jim Drohman, Jonathon Sundstrom, Daisley Gordon, Scott Emerick, Sue McCown and many other cooks who work in the city. Campagne was a magnet for talent. At that time, I had the most coveted chef job in Seattle. Very few small restaurants existed that were not chef owned."

Tamara Murphy

Tamara has had a number of her chefs from Brasa move on to other projects of note. I met Holly Smith when she worked at Brasa. She bought Café Juanita in 2000 and took a great restaurant and made it greater. She does consulting now besides running her own business.

Another ex-Brasa chef who has been a part of other projects including Campagne, is a Tacoma guy by the name of Sean Maxey. Sean went to culinary school in the area, worked for Tamara, then helped get Bis On Main going. Sean built the menu and ran the kitchen at Fira on Queen Anne (now closed). Chris Petersen never worked for Sean at Bis, but he is another who helped make a great restaurant greater.

Jim Drohman is the perfect example of a chef who exemplified the classical French techniques that helped create Campagne's success. Once I presented a wonderful veal t-bone steak for him to try that I knew would be a big hit. It had everything: a local contact for the product, we could supply it fresh, and it had a low price point for veal. But as I finished my sales speech, Jim smiled at me and said "This veal is lovely, but I cannot use it. In French cooking, the use of a t-bone steak is prohibited because it contains two primal parts, the tenderloin and the strip loin." Jim was so into observing the French method that he passed up this deal to maintain the restaurant's integrity.

Jim Drohman

When Jim was hired by Tamara in 1992, there was no Café yet and they served lunch during summer only. He was hired for that seasonal position with no guarantee of a continued job. As summer ended, Sue McCowan was leaving her pastry position to move forward. Jim said "sure, I know pastry" in order to stay on. And stay he did, working in almost every position including sous and ultimately chef. "It was a great place for me to land," Jim says. "I have such respect for Peter Lewis' taste and knowledge about food. He's not a cook, but he has wonderful instincts. As my first chef job, it was wonderful to be able to take my ideas to him and get his opinion. If he said "Are you sure?" I'd know I should rethink it. It was a safety net that gave me the ability to flesh out my style of cooking. Campagne was so well known that as chef, I gained the visibility that allowed me to open my own place."

Campagne Executive Chef Daisley Gordon (shown at left) and General Manager Gordon Kushnick find a number of reasons Campagne attracted great talent. "These were quality people when they arrived and they made their contribution. They created a culture of excellence and that attracted others," says Daisley. "Also, culinary school graduates find French restaurants appealing. The language and technique is what they learn in school and they can hone their skills at Campagne."

"If someone is committed to the history and quality of the restaurant, they can learn and become excellent at what they do," says Gordon. "We don't have hard and fast rules about service; professionals can create their own style."

Considering the number of chefs who have moved on, why has Daisley stayed so long? "I like the place. I had the opportunity to become the chef much earlier than I expected. One year out of culinary school, I was the lead here for two years and a sous chef for three. I assumed I'd move on for more experience, but when the job was offered, I knew it wouldn't come around again. The first year as chef was very intense; there's a lot to sink your teeth into. I feel lucky to have stayed in the same place to hone my skills."

Dave McDonald/April 2009

Click here to read part 1 of the series.
Click here to read part 3 of the series.

Dave McDonald sells food to restaurants all over Puget Sound for The MacDonald Meat Company in Seattle. He worked as a cook for numerous restaurants in the area including Anthony's Home Ports and Restaurants Unlimited, Inc. He has been in food sales since 1988 and is proud that Seattle has become one of the great restaurant towns in the U.S.

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