56 PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM “It was a huge transition learning to manage the kitchen, orders, inventory, budgeting and menu development,” he remembers. Five years later, both Bryan and Flea Street are as focused as ever on sourcing the best local ingredients. “At my last job at a high-end restaurant, we had an endless budget and food was being flown in from all over the world. But now I realize how out of touch with the local food community that was,” he says. “Here, we use all organic, sustainable ingredients, supplying our customers with good, clean food while supporting our local farmers. I wouldn’t have understood seasonality, or when produce is at its peak, if it wasn’t for this job.” {food coloring} His girlfriend at the time was hesitant about fine dining as a picky eater. “But it was my birthday and I wanted to come here and have dinner with my family,” Bryan explains. “I’m glad I did, because that choice changed my life.” That night, he was intrigued and impressed with everything about the restaurant. “I was that annoying customer who asked way too many food questions, to the point where the server asked me why I knew so much about food. He brought over the general manager and a week later, I ended up with an interview. Everything aligned— and they took a shot on me.” After just one month at Flea Street, Bryan became the head chef. It was a rapid and overwhelming ascent for someone just two years out of culinary school. He had never worked as a head chef—or even as a lower-ranking sous chef.
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