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NIGHT:
JOSHUA
WHITE
COMES
HOME 26
DAY:
BOATS,
BRIDES,
WHALES &
CATS 4-5
S i x sup er ior c he fs
Wo men lea d k i t c hens at fi ne l o c al resta ura nts
What would you risk to get your life back?
BETHANY
By Laura Marks
Directed by Gaye Taylor Upchurch
THE WEST COAST PREMIERE OF A NEW AMERICAN PLAY PRAISED BY
THE NEW YORK TIMES AS A “COMPASSIONATE AND INCISIVE DRAMA.”
Contains strong language and a brief scene of staged violence that may not be suitable for all audiences.
Starts Saturday! Tickets start at $29
(619) 23-GLOBE (234-5623)
Jennifer Ferrin. Photo by Jim Cox.
www.TheOldGlobe.org
Night + Day | U-T SAN DIEGO | THURSDAY • JANUARY 23, 2014
2 D E PA RT M E N TS
RADAR ........................................4
COVER STORY........................... 6
STYLE + SOCIETY................... 15
SAN DIEGO CENTRIC ............. 19
POP MUSIC............................. 26
THEATER ................................ 29
CLASSICAL MUSIC................. 33
FAMILY ................................... 36
MOVIES .................................. 39
CONTENTS
15
L I ST I N G S
BEST BITES ................................9
MUSIC..................................... 28
THEATER .................................30
CLASSICAL MUSIC/ART........ 35
EVENTS ....................................37
MOVIES....................................40
MOVIE TIMES ..........................42
I N FO R M AT I O N
DIRECTOR,
LIFESTYLE & ENTERTAINMENT
Chris Cantore, (619) 293-1749
chris.cantore@utsandiego.com
6
NIGHT&DAY SECTION EDITOR
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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
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NIGHT & DAY is published each
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DESIGNING FOR NEED
New Style writer Rebekah Sager profiles Isha Webb, who discovered a passion for wedding dresses after her own engagement.
TOP CHEFS
Michelle Dederko talks with six of San Diego’s finest chefs — who happen to be women — to find
out how and why they do what they do, and what advice they might have for others.
26
JOSHUA’S JAZZ
Versatile jazz pianist Joshua White of El Cajon has two shows
scheduled in San Diego. George Varga has a preview.
TA L K TO US
ON THE COVER
Photo by K.C. Alfred
James Chute >
Twitter: @sdutchute
Facebook: UTArtMusic
By
aaron POSNER
Michelle Dederko >
Twitter: @MichelleDederko
Facebook: MichelleDederko
Adapted from short stories by
Nina Garin >
Twitter: @NinaGarin
Facebook: Ninagarin5
kurt VONNEGUT
James Hebert >
Twitter: @JimHebert
Facebook: UTTheater
NOW PLAYING
THROUGH FEB. 2
WHO (&AM
I
THIS
TIME?
other conundrums of love)
TICKETS
(858) 481-1055
•
www.northcoastrep.org
George Varga >
Twitter: @GeorgeVarga
Facebook: sdutpopmusic
“Love is what the characters do...
simply, messily, playfully...and all
worth watching.”
– San Diego Union Tribune, Roxana Popescu
“Crackerjack cast. It’s warm
and fuzzy.” – Examiner, Carol Davis
“Played to a packed house, all
chuckling with delight.”
– SD Theatre Reviews, Eric George Tauber
QUEENS OF THEIR REALM
6
SIX FEMALE CHEFS WHO WERE BORN TO COOK ARE MASTERS OF FINE SAN DIEGO DINING
JANUARY 23 – 29, 2014
U-T SAN DIEGO
MICHELLE DEDERKO • U-T
T
hey rule their kitchens with conviction and clout. They’re also mothers, yogis, avid
travelers and backyard grill-masters while leading some of San Diego’s most successful restaurants. Meet six female chefs running the edible engine of this city — and still
managing to make it home in time to walk their dogs.
BY
MICHELLE D ED ERKO
MICHELLE.DEDERKO
@UTSANDIEGO.COM
(619) 293-2322
Clockwise from top left, Francesca Penoncelli of Bice; Deborah Scott of Indigo Grill, Vintana, Island Prime; Karrie Hills of The Wellington Steak & Martini Lounge; Jojo Rossi of Whisknladle; Amiko Gubbins of Cohn Restaurant Group; and Amanda Baumgarten of Waypoint Public. K.C. ALFRED • U-T PHOTOS
Amiko Gubbins
7
Amanda Baumgarten
31, Little Italy
Chef/Partner at Waypoint Public
Tell us about your upbringing.
I had a fast-paced upbringing in Los Angeles. I’m
an only child, my parents got divorced when I was
3, they both worked, and I had a lot of nannies. I call
that “fast paced” because I think the more time a kid
spends on their own, the quicker they are to draw their
own conclusions about things. I knew I wanted to be a
chef the moment I stepped into a professional kitchen
(L’orangerie in Los Angeles). I made that decision
very quickly, and I committed to sticking with it. Once
I started down the path of becoming a chef, I knew I
wasn’t going to take “no” for an answer, and I was going
to work as hard as humanly possible in the hope of one
day owning a restaurant.
Earliest food memory?
Sneaking into the kitchen to make mayonnaise sandwiches. I love mayonnaise. And, to this day, I am still
somewhat fascinated by the emulsification process.
What’s a typical day like for you?
I’m in the kitchen at 6:30 a.m. because I love being the first one there. I set up the linen bags, fold the
towels for the day, fill the dish sink with sanitizer and
soapy water, refill the hand towel dispensers, make a
pot of coffee, and divvy up the prep list. Then I prep, go
home and walk my dog, come back for service, then I go
home.
What’s an ingredient that you can’t cook (or live)
without?
That’s easy, salt.
What one dish best describes your personality?
Why?
Smoked tomato minestrone and grilled cheese. It
seems simple when you look at it, but there’s a lot of
technical precision involved.
Describe how you run your kitchen in three words
or less.
Commitment, precision, sense of urgency
When did you know you wanted to be a chef?
I went to the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising out of high school and realized after my first year
that it was more of my sister’s dream than mine. So, here
I was at 19 years old trying to figure out my life’s path. It
took me a summer to decide that “it would be really cool
to make food for people and get paid for it.”
Earliest food memory?
My earliest food memory was in Japan with my mom
and my sister. I remember my mom going to the fish
market and buying these amazing shiny and smooth
chocolate brown clams. My sister and I delighted in the
clams, watching them opening and closing underwater,
purging the sand out of their bodies. My mom made the
most simple clear broth imaginable, but the flavor was
pure, simple elegance. I was 3 at the time, but I still think
of those shiny chocolate brown clams every now and then.
How do you balance work, life, family, etc.?
I get my balance in life through my yoga practice. It
definitely has taught me to set healthy boundaries on
and off the mat, and you must first give to yourself in
order to give to others.
What’s it like being a woman in the culinary industry today?
Back in the day, being a woman meant you had to
work a lot harder than the guy to get recognized. It has
changed dramatically for the better than when I first
started in this field. Before, you were often the only female in the kitchen, but now it is about 25 to 50 percent
— that’s awesome!
What advice do you have for women considering
the culinary field?
The road is long and hard to becoming a great chef.
You never stop learning — ever — and be prepared
to work long hours. It will be hot, it will be physically
draining and mentally challenging, but you must keep
pushing yourself to be better than the last service you
just did. Lastly, it is about the food, not about you, so
concentrate on making really good food at all times and
you will do well.
Jojo Rossi
35, Mission Hills
Corporate Chef, Whisknladle Hospitality
Did you always know you wanted to be a chef?
My family has owned Napoleone’s Pizza House in
National City for 56 years. I was brought up not to work
in the industry. My mom stayed home with us four kids,
and my dad worked a crazy amount of hours. I knew
after graduation from high school that I wanted to go to
culinary school, but the thought was quickly squashed
by my parents. They valued our education above everything. After earning a BA from USD and a teaching
credential from San Francisco State, I got married and
moved to Italy for a year with my husband. I immersed
myself in Italian regional cooking, learning and practicing what I had learned each day. I knew at that point
that I wouldn’t be happy being a teacher and decided
that upon our return to the Bay Area that I would
enroll at the California Culinary Academy.
Earliest food memory?
Being upset in preschool one day that I forgot my
lunch and was forced to eat a peanut butter sandwich,
because I knew that my mom had packed me eggplant
parmigiana.
Who are your role models?
My maternal grandmother, Giuseppina Vanella (who
is also my namesake), is my role model both in the
culinary sense and in life. She passed away two years
ago at the age of 89, and I miss her and think about her
each day. My Nonna was known throughout the community for making the best traditional Sicilian cookies
and bread. She baked most days, and from her I get my
love of baking.
How has being a woman in the culinary industry
changed from when you started to today?
I’d like to think that a lot has changed in the last 17
years, but the truth is change for women in this industry has been slow. There has been progress, but not as
much as I thought there would be. There are still not a
lot of female executive chefs or corporate chefs. There
are a lot of female pastry chefs probably for the same
reasons that I became a pastry chef. If you are a woman
who has kids, you have to take time off and it is hard to
get back in the game and stay in the game.
SEE CHEFS • PAGE 8
THURSDAY • JANUARY 23, 2014 | U-T SAN DIEGO | Night + Day
49, San Diego
Special Ops Food and Flavor, all CRG (Cohn Restaurant
Group) restaurants
Night + Day | U-T SAN DIEGO | THURSDAY • JANUARY 23, 2014
8
CHEFS
FROM PAGE 7
Francesca Penoncelli
35, downtown San Diego
Chef de Cuisine of Bice San Diego
How did you know you wanted to become a chef?
They say that you either become a chef to feed yourself or become a chef so that you can feed others. As a
cook, I think I am motivated by a little bit by of both.
Honestly, though, I’d rather be behind the scenes preparing a meal than actually sitting at the table eating it.
Earliest food memory?
I am lucky because both my mother and grandmother were great cooks, and my passion and interest
in cooking comes from them. I have so many great
memories of us cooking together in a rustic kitchen
full of joy. My earliest food memory would probably be
correlated to Christmas. Natale (Christmas in Italian)
was always at my grandmother’s house, as she was the
relative with the biggest table!
What’s an ingredient that you can’t cook (or live)
without?
I just cannot cook without eggs. I think they are the
best ingredients on the planet, and I cannot live without bread. I am just too Italian!
What do you like to do when you are not cooking?
I love spending time with my dog, traveling, trying
new restaurants, photography and following food blogs.
I am always planning my next trip, even when they are
only a dream.
Do you have a motto?
Nothing goes on the menu if I don’t crave it!
What’s it like being a woman in the culinary
industry?
For me, it means working hard with great and tough
chefs. As a woman in Italy, in order to earn a man’s appreciation, you sometimes have to be better than them. Nobody shares their recipes in Italy. The great chefs will tell
you the basics, but it’s up to you teach yourself. Travel,
tenacity and curiosity make me what I am. I can’t tell you
how many times I would be told to go grab another egg
or some fresh herbs from the garden, and when I would
come back the recipe would be complete. The extra egg?
Just an excuse to distract me from the recipe!
Karrie Hills
37, North Park
Executive Chef at The Wellington Steak & Martini Lounge
and The Red Door Restaurant & Wine Bar
When did you know you wanted to be a chef?
I knew I wanted to be a chef at the very early age of
7. I cooked regularly with my family, and I come from
a large family, so feeding the masses was all in a day’s
work.
Earliest food memory?
Large family dinners. Our family always gathered at
the dinner table, and still does. Visualize 16 children
and chaos. You had to eat fast or you weren’t eating; it
was survival of the quickest.
What’s a typical day like for you?
I am so blessed to do what I love. Every day is different in the kitchen; it’s not like an office job. My days include meeting with farmers, my fishmonger and other
vendors, production and dancing on the line.
Number one tool in the kitchen?
My palate.
Describe how you run your kitchen in three words
or less.
Love, passion, education.
Do you have a motto?
Problem? No, we don’t have problems; we have challenges!
How has the culinary industry changed over time?
We’re experiencing a war on food. Before, we didn’t
have to research and look up where our food came up;
we knew the ingredients were really food — honest
to goodness edible food. Food wasn’t processed. Now,
dietary restrictions are commonplace. ... So, we need
to get to know the people that produce our real food.
As culinary professionals, it’s our responsibility to seek
out that local farmer and train my staff to use it the way
I learned from my family and at school. Our growers,
ranchers and fishermen educate us along the way.
How differently do you cook for yourself at home?
I’ll let you in on a secret. If I can’t put it in my
Vitamix, then I don’t eat it at home. I’m all about fast,
healthy living.
What advice do you have for women considering
the culinary field?
Keep a sharp knife and don’t take anything personally!
Deborah Scott
60, Bay Park
Partner/Executive Chef at Island Prime/C Level/Indigo
Grill/Vintana Wine + Dine
Tell us about your upbringing.
I grew up in Virginia Beach and spent most of my
summers on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. My
family loved to camp, and my dad and I would cook
on an open fire or Coleman stove. These were great
memories, and, coupled with my Southern upbringing,
formed my desire to have a restaurant. I was a bartender during college and enjoyed my restaurant time
so much that I switched gears after graduation and
became a chef and later restaurateur.
Earliest food memory?
Making “hermits” in the kitchen with my mom for
Christmas.
Who are your role models (culinary and in life)?
My mom and dad are definitely my role models,
but also David and Lesley Cohn have become lifelong
friends, business partners and incredible mentors!
What’s an ingredient that you can’t cook (or live)
without?
Old Bay spice
What one dish best describes your personality?
Why?
Skirts on fire … a little crazy and love the heat!
Describe how you run your kitchen in three words
or less.
Respect and training
How differently do you cook for yourself at home?
Very differently! I’m always outside on the grill or
pizza oven … I like it clean and simple.
What advice do you have for women considering
the culinary field?
Make sure you give yourself options … take a course
or two in college as part of a liberal curriculum or work
prep in a kitchen first to see if this profession really is
what you envisioned. It’s not the easiest!