The stunning golf course, pic by Mr. Clive Clark
prepare your meal?”. He said, “That would solve all of my
problems. Thank you.” Later that week I received a phone
call from one of the guests. The guest, not a member of
Monterey Peninsula Country Club, said, “Our chef is retiring,
and we would like you to cook for us on a full-time basis.” I
wasn’t aware of what it would be like cooking for a private
family, but they were a big golf family with a summer home
in East Hampton, New York. I was happy as can be, going to
both Pebble Beach and East Hampton! I ended up working
for the family full time, and I had the opportunity to play at
some of the best golf clubs in the country such as Shinnecock
Hills Golf Club, Maidstone Golf Club, Pine Valley and many
others.
When I was in East Hampton, I became friends with
the owners of a farmers market where I sourced all my
ingredients for the household. When the chef at Monterey
Peninsula announced he was retiring, I went back to Monterey
Peninsula Country Club full-time. A little while later, the
family from the market contacted me and asked if I was
interested in buying the market from them. So I then left
Monterey Peninsula Country Club for the second time to run
this market in the Hamptons. But this time, the economy was
going downhill, and the deal fell through. I did not go to the
Hamptons, and I started looking for work.
So now what?
I ran into one of the members, Lynn Rose, from Monterey
Peninsula Country Club, and he said, “What are you doing
here, I thought you were in New York?” I told him what
happened, and he told me that he was also a member of
Tradition Golf Club in the desert in La Quinta, California. He
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Destination Golf .TRAVEL
said, “We need an Executive Chef, and our General Manager is
also leaving. We need to fill those two positions. Please come
down and talk to the Board of Directors.” I went to Tradition
Golf Club, and I prepared a dinner for them. The very next
day they offered me the position! They took me out to play
golf in the morning, and when I came back they had the
whole deal ready for me to sign. It was a nice transition!
Do you have the freedom to create the menu at Tradition?
I have no restrictions here at Tradition. That is what I like. In a
lot of clubs, committees dictate the menus. I make it a point
to continue to have that freedom. I can go to the farmers
market, find whatever is fresh that day, and change my menu
based on the ingredients that I have. Having that freedom is
very important to me. If I lost that freedom, I don’t think I
would do this.
One of the things that happens in the public sector is that
menus don’t change much since the clientele changes
often. In the private sector, we have to change because our
members don’t change, and they come back every season. We
have to change our menus to keep it fresh; otherwise they
will get bored. Often the members will ask me why I changed
something. Yet, when I invite them to try a new entree, all
of a sudden it becomes their new favorite dish. It might be
the same protein but in a completely different presentation,
which keeps things fresh for everybody.
The members can get whatever they want here. We respect
any personal dietary restrictions, and we try to accommodate
any reasonable request. For that, I need to have the
ingredients. If I don’t have the ingredients but can substitute