62 PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM that will be the gelato base that we use at the restaurant,” David notes. Same goes for the focaccia. “The one that we serve at the restaurant is the same one we serve here at the counter.” You can also stock up on handmade pasta and in-house sauces. Restaurant-grade Bolognese and spicy vodka sauces are ready to be ladled generously onto the curly fusilli or ruffle-edged radiatore. “The brand of Che Fico is about slow food,” David explains. “It’s about making things from start to finish.” You can see David’s hustle reflected in his description of his parents, hardworking refugees who fled Belarus for the Bay Area before he was born. His mom cleaned houses to pay for chiropractic school, David says. “And my dad literally did everything under the sun when he got to the United States—whether it was welding, fixing phone booths, being a bus driver,” until he could build his own business selling medical equipment. David got his first job at age 13. “Ironically, I started in a market, stacking produce in Alameda,” he reveals. As his culinary career took off, David spent four years as the senior sous chef at New York City’s Eleven Madison Park, playing a pivotal role in the team that elevated the restaurant from one Michelin star to three. After that, he spent a year working under renowned chefs at top restaurants across Europe. Then David joined forces with Matt Brewer (formerly of Hogsalt Hospitality) to create Che Fico’s parent company, Back Home Hospitality. That was nearly a decade ago. “We’re pretty much married,” David laughs. “We don’t agree on everything, but you’re not meant {food coloring}
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTcxMjMwNg==