“Hindsight is twenty-twenty, but you don’t have foresight as a kid.”
—Douglas Richey
Douglas Richey started cooking at a young age. In fact, his first job was in a kitchen. Douglas says, “I just never left. It seemed like the environment most conducive to my success. I have strong ADD, and in a kitchen you are always micromanaging small tasks.” Early on, Douglas wanted to attend culinary school, but a few chefs early in his career reminded him that they were paying him to learn in their kitchen, so he never went. After a career of learning everything he could, he took a job and spent several years cooking at Santi Restaurant in Santa Rosa, CA. The restaurant was known for its executive chefs branching out to open their own restaurants. Unfortunately for Douglas, when it was his turn at the helm, the restaurant soon had to close. He remembers, “It was very disappointing for me to finally have my at bat and then have the place close.” There were some investors who initially wanted to reopen Santi, but they later decided to go with an original concept. They sent Douglas on a trip across the South, where he traveled from Memphis, Tennessee, to Charleston, South Carolina, on a culinary fact-finding mission. Once he had reported his findings and was back in CA, they opened Sweet T’s, a Southern-themed restaurant and bar in the old Santi location.
Pursuing a more Italian culinary experience, Douglas left to help open a pizzeria. He says, “The simplicity of Italian cuisine speaks volumes of how I like to eat personally.” He then met Zazu Restaurant & Farm owner Duskie Estes (see entry in Part 1) in 2012 and says, “We had exchanged a few e-mails, but when I met Duskie, it just became belligerently clear that we have just kick-ass food chemistry.” Douglas had worked at some great restaurants around California—including Bouchon for Thomas Keller, and the Farmhouse Inn for Steve Litke—and spent time in other Michelin-star kitchens, but Zazu became what he calls his most satisfying culinary experience to date. He says, “For some reason, I am most drawn to game and odd cuts of meat, or offal. I love anything that requires finesse.”
Douglas’s most controversial tattoo, the words “Foie Gras” on his knuckles, has also been a culinary experience. He says, “Foie Gras on my knuckles is the closest tattoo that I have that means something to me.” The tattoo has actually brought Douglas a bit of notoriety since California banned the product in 2012 due to animal cruelty. Edible Marin & Wine Country, a quarterly magazine celebrating the harvests of Marin County, put Douglas’s knuckles on the cover of the magazine, and now people often recognize him from his hands. He says, “I don’t get tattooed to talk about it. I’m not one of those guys. But, people talk to me about it constantly.” Of people commenting on his tattoos, Douglas says, “It doesn’t bother me when people give the work attention, but hey, how was the meal?”
Not all of Douglas’s tattoos are so inflammatory though. He got his first tattoo when he was seventeen. His closest friend, Ben Cheese, who is now a successful artist working out of Everlasting Tattoo in San Francisco, was an aspiring tattoo artist, and Douglas let him practice on him. He says, “I was his guinea pig. I never thought along the way that I would get a lot of tattoos, but I wanted to support him, and he has probably put twenty or so really bad tattoos on me.” Now that Ben is a successful artist, he doesn’t charge Douglas for tattoos anymore, for which Douglas is grateful.
Douglas prepares this waffle dish with foie gras in homage to his “Foie Gras” knuckle tattoo.
NOTES FROM THE CHEF
Foie gras can be seared immediately before serving for best flavor and texture. Sear foie gras over high heat in a nonstick pan for 1–2 minutes on each side.