The Seattle Times: All You Can Eat

Chef at helm is new to Ray's Boathouse, not to Seattle

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:25:42 PST

Photo of the ever-smiling chef by Barry Wong/The Seattle Times

Chef Wayne Johnson has been identified with Andaluca at the Mayflower Park Hotel for the past 12 years, except for the recent buzz when he was cooking cool as a cucumber (his secret ingredient) on Iron Chef America.

Now the Kentucky native with the Spanish culinary flair has moved to Ray's Boathouse on Shilshole Bay, one of Seattle's mainstay icons of Northwest seafood. He's taking over for recently departed chef Peter Birk at a place where he's likelier to serve smoked sablefish and grilled Alaskan king salmon than to put out pintxo platters and paella. He's thrilled.

Chefs are multi-taskers with an urge to always learn more, Johnson said yesterday, taking a break from the "busy and joyful" work of learning the Ray's ropes. The lure of running the cafe and the boathouse and the catering operation all at once seemed "an exciting, thought-provoking change."

"There's a lot to play with."

The future of the cookbook? Lark chef goes for Kickstarter campaign

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 17:16:04 PST

You want that recipe for Lark's chocolate madeleines or chicken liver parfait? Listen up.

For years, people have been asking Lark chef John Sundstrom about writing a cookbook. He's finally going ahead with one, but not in the way you might expect. Rather than going with a big-name publisher, Sundstrom started a Kickstarter campaign this week to do the project himself, aiming to raise $33,000 from supporters for a Lark cooking app and cookbook. Contributions start as low as $10, earning donors anything from access to recipes and videos up to cooking classes ($250) or having Sundstrom cater your dinner party ($5,000). The James Beard award-winning chef hopes donors will participate in the book, taking opportunities like test-driving recipes and voting on which should make it into the final version.

Self-publishing used to be the route of writers who couldn't get a contract with a traditional publisher. A lot has changed since those days. It no longer carries the same stigma -- at least, not always. I still wanted to run the idea past a few publishers I know who are, coincidentally, holding a conference today on the future of the cookbook.

This guy is one of the top chefs in Seattle, I told them. Plenty of publishers would love to sign him on for a traditional cookbook.

"Is he nuts?" I asked.

Hot Cakes chocolatier is opening her own shop

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 07:51:11 PST

Hot Cakes photo by queen-o'-good-taste Nancy Leson, a fellow fan

Autumn Martin, former head chocolatier at Theo Chocolate, won hearts with her Hot Cakes business from the minute she started selling her molten chocolate cakes at farmers markets in 2008. The bake-it-in-a-jar combination of adorable and scrumptious couldn't be beat.

In the years since, Martin has added an ambrosial array of new products, from pocket pies to chocolate toffee cookies to salted caramel sauce (and even a vegan version of that last one). In addition to her farmers market booths, her treats are now distributed several places around town. And before too long you'll be able to find them almost whenever you please, because Martin now has a lease on her own brick-and-mortar shop.