DazeDish: Chef Jason Kallert - Gurney's Montauk
- Laura Anne Pelliccio
- Sep 1, 2015
- 2 min read
Chef Jason Kallert is the mastermind behind all the deliciously-fantastic food concepts executed this season in the new restaurants and venues at Gurney’s Montauk Resort & Seawater Spa. Let’s get to know Chef Jason: What is LDV Hospitality? LDV is the realization of a dream to bring ‘La Dolce Vita’ to life. It is a hospitality group that owns and operates 24 venues across the country. We pride ourselves on people and dedicated human hospitality approach. To me it is challenging and satisfying, taking care of people and employees, and learning. So you’re the Corporate Chef for LDV Hospitality. Explain your role with this company. I help create the concepts for all the new restaurants, as well as the menu development. I draw/build all the kitchens. I hire and train all the back of house staff. Tell us about the chefs that work for you at Gurney’s Montauk? I have an Executive Chef at Gurney’s, as well as three Executive Sous Chefs. Flavia, the Executive Chef oversees all of the venues and operations, while each Executive Sous oversees his/her venue at The Beach Club, Tillies, and Scarpetta. What is your vision overall for Gurney’s Montauk? To provide the best hospitality and food in all the Hamptons.
What is your favorite thing to cook? Tell us your forté:
Not necessarily my forté, but my favorite thing to cook is true Texas BBQ. I have a smoker and a grill on the beach club and we do a BBQ every Saturday with smoked whole short ribs (smoked for 24 hours), St. Louis Ribs, and Jerk Chicken.
What’s your favorite color?
Black
What’s next for Chef Jason Kallert?
Help LDV grow into a very successful restaurant group, but still be able to give amazing hospitality and identity in each of our restaurants and venues.
What is your favorite restaurant? .... And the dish?
Porterhouse, NY. The Rib Steak and Broccoli.What kind of menus have you created for the different restaurants you have opened?I’ve created bar and grill concepts, steakhouse concepts, and large format/dinner theater concepts.
Do you shop around the Hamptons for unique local foods?
I do where possible, in any specials, or our local market greens salad, etc.. the problem is Gurney’s is such a large resort and we provide food for so many guests, any small farm could never handle the volume we need, but we do fit in as many local ingredients as we can.
As a popular chef in the luxury hospitality industry, how do you manage to balance work-time, family-time, play-time. Do you do any wellness or meditation?
Basically, because I work so much, and travel so much, I spend every minute with my family when I’m not working. My meditation is biking, I bike on average 25-30 miles per day.