page
28PALATE
CHEF ADAM HEGSTED
By Chandler Baird f you know him , you love him ! Chef Adam Hegsted is a culinary genius and business visionary . He has left , and continues to leave , his mark on Spokane and beyond through his dedication to changing the restaurant world . Currently , he is running six different restaurants while also managing other business ventures , like La Catering — a catering company , Doughlicious — a bakery , a one-of-a-kind food festival , and a TV show “ Crave TV .” In our interview with him , he explains some of his story , his restaurants , and offers advice to future business entrepreneurs like himself .
BACKGROUND Now , this is the story all about how , My life got flippedturned upside down , And I ’ d like to take a minute if I can , I ’ ll tell you how I became a chef in a town called Spokane ...
I ’ m proud to be an Inland Pacific Northwest native , having grown up and lived most of my life here . I started as a dishwasher at Marie Calendar ’ s restaurant in Spokane Valley and moved up to do just about every job there . I graduated from Northwest Culinary Academy and Art Institute of Seattle with two culinary arts degrees and apprenticed in Los Angeles . I worked at the Space Needle in Seattle and then came back to
the Inland Northwest to work for the BlackRock Corporation as the chef and then as a chef at Cedars Floating Restaurant . Continuing my career , I moved on to be executive chef of Brix restaurant , where I got to start creating my own cuisine and style . I briefly tried opening my small restaurant called Le Piastre which , as it turned out , I didn ’ t know how to operate efficiently . After selling that business in 2008 , I moved on to the Coeur d ’ Alene Casino and Resort , where I learned how to run the business side of restaurants . First , I was hired on as a restaurant chef , and then moved my way up to executive chef , overseeing all the restaurants . I then decided to take another leap and I left my super cozy , good-paying
28 ART CHOWDER MAGAZINE