Where: Road 13 Vineyard | 799 Ponderosa Rd., Oliver Cooking has had a place in Chris Van Hooydonk’s life for pretty much as long as he can remember.
It didn’t take long for Van Hooydonk to realize that, what had begun as a necessity to help out his busy working mom, could be turned into a lifelong career. Van Hooydonk earned his red-seal certification in 2001, and became an apprentice before deciding to go to work on cruise ships to learn “high-volume” cooking.
“Coming back from Boston where I was living in the big city and working at the Four Seasons where, to be honest, I would call it the more frivolous side of the industry where there is no real budget. If we didn’t meet our food budget, we bought truffles to make up that amount. So, $10,000 on truffles and butchering four loads of fois gras. It seemed to me kind of out-of-touch with the origins. And my interest sort of swayed at that point,” he says.
Experiencing the miracles and the struggles surrounding farming, which he tackles with the help of his wife Mikkel, led Van Hooydonk to what he refers to as his “most exciting, most personal adventure to date:” Backyard Farm Chef’s Table. While dining experiences at Backyard Farm are typically booked up months in advance, those who are curious to know more about Van Hooydonk’s operation will have a chance to check it out through an upcoming series of dinners run in collaboration with Road 13 Winery, beginning May 4.
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