INGOOD TASTE
Wyatt Lash , Executive Culinary Director , Richard DeShantz Restaurant Group
With nine operating restaurants and four more coming soon , the Richard DeShantz Restaurant Group has creatively cornered the market on innovative dining . The list of acclaimed restaurants includes Meat & Potatoes , täkō , Coop de Ville , Gi-Jin , täkō tôrtä , Sally Ann ’ s ( a passion project of Richard DeShantz in honor of his mother , Sally Ann ), Rib Room , Fish nor Fowl and The Lost Cantina . On the culinary horizon are Butcher and the Rye , Poulet Bleu , Golden Gai and Coop de Ville Savannah . For more information about each restaurant go to richarddeshantz . com /# our-restaurants .
On the Menu : The freshest ingredients with quality products carefully curated for each culinary concept .
INEVENTS
What led you to the Richard DeShantz Restaurant Group ? When I was a little kid , I was actually interested in becoming a pastry chef . I earned a program credit at vocational school for baking and pastry my senior year in high school . I grew up 20 miles outside of Philadelphia and when I started working during the restaurant boom , there was a lot of competition with elite chefs , and my experience was during a pristine time of formal chefs . As a young cook , and choosing not to go to culinary school , I read a lot and found chefs in Philadelphia I admired . I wound up getting a line order cook position to stay close
Candid conversations with the dining scene ’ s most engaging chefs
to my mom after my dad passed away . Today , my day involves leaving the house to visit the restaurants , solving any issues from employees to food delivery , and a lot of tackling some of the bigger demands while streamlining management . Honestly , some of my best shifts are when I ’ m able to cook with one of our teams — it ’ s so far and few between . Our company is all about face value . We hang our hat on maintaining a personal relationship within the Group , from our top executive to our kitchen staff . The crews we have are really good and it starts with our chefs as good leaders and mentors .
How do you decide on the menu ? Richard DeShantz is our proprietor of the Group . He develops the concepts and design of each restaurant from start to finish . He develops the concept menu , and we create everything to fit within the concept . We train the team and make sure the menu is on the right path .
How do you support farm-to-table ? Anytime we ’ re able to do it , and the farmers can keep up production , we are very proactive in supporting local . For example , we use Footprint Farms in Fayette County to make our Sally Ann ’ s Breakfast , which comes with two Footprint Farm eggs , red fife sourdough , bacon , breakfast potatoes , and house-made jam .
What is your favorite menu item ? The buckwheat focaccia bread at Fish nor Fowl is so good … as soon as I walk into the kitchen , the chef knows he has to make more for our customers .
Wyatt Lash , executive culinary director for the Richard DeShantz Restaurant Group . ( Photo by Alyssa Allworth )
What ’ s your favorite quick meal to prepare at home ? I like to make a short rib . It ’ s one of those dishes that has stuck with me over the years and it ’ s a crowd pleaser .
What is a must-have ingredient ? Irish butter or salted Amish butter — it ’ s really good .
What kitchen tool can ’ t you live without ? Since I have two sides to my position , I would say as a culinary director it would be a screwdriver ( because you never know what might need to be fixed ). As a chef it would be a utility knife with a 7- to 8-inch thin blade .
Other than a Richard DeShantz restaurant , where ’ s your favorite place to eat in Pittsburgh ? Bigham Tavern in Mount Washington . I order some wings , have a beer or two , watch some sports and turn it all off .
What advice can you share with a novice ? About 15 years ago renowned chef Marc Vetri wrote a letter to the Philadelphia Inquirer addressing young chefs . In that time and age this was very inspirational to me . I print the letter and pass it along to cooks I see a future with . I want them to understand what ’ s happening around them and some of those things aren ’ t always going to be good or easy , but it ’ s a learning process .
What ’ s the next big food or dining trend ? From what I ’ m seeing , restaurants are leaning into fast casual — it ’ s at the forefront of what people are craving . n
— Reese Randall
Spiced Meatballs , made of veal , pork , red sauce , parmesan and Calabrian chili with a hearty slice of garlic bread , from the Italian-influenced menu at Fish nor Fowl . fishnorfowlpgh . com ( Photo by Devon Colebank )
8 724.942.0940 TO ADVERTISE ❘ icmags . com