Talking with Chef Adam Goldgell from Stags Tap House in Huntington...at The Taggart Table
Chef Adam Goldgell was born in Queens and grew up in kitchens. He is no stranger to the competitive New York Metro, Long Island restaurant atmosphere. He has made eight appearances on the Food Network. Seven have been with Robert Irvine.
His younger days, he worked with his dad in his family’s gourmet sandwich shop in Brooklyn, as well as a 200-seat cafe in Tribeca. Adam went on to own and operate The New York Fun Factory, one of the largest special events production companies on the East Coast. Before that, he studied with a Ringling Brothers entertainer, and performed magic and hypnosis.
Adam then attended the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) to hone his craft. The New York Times awarded Goldgell three stars during his tenure as executive chef at Sugo, in Long Beach. He has since worked in some of the country’s most critically acclaimed restaurants, including Long Island’s four-star Panama Hatties in Huntington, NY.
Learn more about Adam at:
Chef Adam Goldgell has had the friendly courtesy to share some creative thoughts with Frank Duffy from the Taggart Table.....
Taggart: When there are creative endeavors and inspiration in the family, I wonder where it comes from. Sometimes I think it's inherited. Any ultra-creative family members?
Adam: My grandfather was a painter and a photographer. I think if he was born in a different time he may have pursued that as a career, but he became a pharmacist. He enjoyed painting and shooting pictures his whole life. My dad was also a creative guy. If you track his career as a businessman, he did some very outrageous stuff. One of the many examples was having a closeout store. Like an Odd-Job – staffed by bodybuilders – called Mister Goliath. His tag line was 'Bargains with Muscle.” This was even cleverer then it appeared on the surface. My dad had guts. I miss him.
Taggart: You had early career training in Brooklyn. Tell us about that.
Adam: My dad opened a gourmet sandwich shop several years earlier in Brooklyn Heights. He sold it and then nine years later got it back when the buyer defaulted on his note. My dad was doing other things and so I inherited the shop when I was 18.
Taggart: What made you switch from the entertainment business to food?
Adam: I spent years performing and then built an entertainment company producing acts for corporate events, birthdays, etc. I built up the business with my ex-wife. We went south and decided to sell the business. I retired for seven years, got divorced, laid low and then decided to go in a new direction. I went to the Culinary Institute of America (CIA). That changed everything. I fell in love again with something. The way I felt when I was eight years old buying my first magic trick. The knowledge available was endless. The skills you could learn were priceless. There are no bounds for my creativity. I was excited to wake up in the morning and learn more. It's still true 16 years later. Food is the history of this planet. What people eat and how they celebrate. It never ends. So much to cook, so little time.
Taggart: Favorite cheeses?
Adam: I would stand at the Fairway cheese counter sampling and talking to the Fromage manager for hours. I feel a bit guilty with all the free sampling over the years. I may have contributed to their recent bankruptcy. I like assertive, fragrant French cheeses like Pont-l'Évêque. I also like Botrytis cheeses. Those are your blues with the mold running through it. The more assertive, the better.
Taggart: Favorite spices?
Adam: Funny, I was at my spice guy’s store the other day. Spice House in Hicksville. A well-placed spice is like a black key on the piano. A note can bring a dish from good to great. I have an average of 50 spices in my kitchen. No favorite spice. Like colors in a color chart. They all have their use.
Taggart: Favorite seafood? Plenty to choose from on Long Island.
Adam: S.T.A.G.S Tap House
(https://www.facebook.com/stagstaphouse/?fref=ts ),
the place we’re about to open in Huntington, is down the block from the Cold Spring Harbor Trout Hatchery. Their brook trout will be on the menu. It's a mild and mellow fish. Very clean tasting. I love local black fish. I am also going to try to get baby trout for specials. They are really tasty.
(https://www.facebook.com/stagstaphouse/?fref=ts ),
the place we’re about to open in Huntington, is down the block from the Cold Spring Harbor Trout Hatchery. Their brook trout will be on the menu. It's a mild and mellow fish. Very clean tasting. I love local black fish. I am also going to try to get baby trout for specials. They are really tasty.
Taggart: The words “Farm to Table” and “Organic” are hot right now. Are they accurately used?
Adam: S.T.A.G.S has allowed me a real opportunity to delve into the world of local and organic. It’s hard to believe Long Island once had the most bountiful and diverse farming communities in the world. Among its million dollar homes and Burger Kings if you look in the cracks you can still find working farms, beehives, ducks, eggs, chickens, fish hatcheries, rabbits, all sorts of vegetables, wineries, breweries, etc. We will a have a staff member at S.T.A.G.S doing daily shopping for us. Eating local and buying organic takes work, but if you’re willing to do the legwork the results are unmatched. S.T.A.G.S will be an example of that work. A day old egg from a Raleigh Farm in Kings Park is 100 times a different party than a four-month-old supermarket egg. The beards are demanding it, the nouveau hippie, granola-eating gym-going world is demanding it. I hope it continues to evolve that way. Everything tastes better.
Taggart: Why is everyone taking food pictures?
Adam: I'm really not sure why people do that. Unless something is really spectacular, I never take a shot. Food I cook? I take shots. That's just for keeping records in case I want to make it again.
Taggart: Name a few dishes on your current menu?
Adam: We are going to have an Iberico Baby Back Ribs. I'm excited about it. It’s made with a guava chili glaze. Also, a dish called Grandma Ann’s Casserole, based on my favorite dish as a kid. Made with ground beef and potato chips served in the same style dish my grandmother served it in to me 40 years ago. I got a lot of surprises like that. S.T.A.G.S is going to be special.
Taggart: What ticks you off in the kitchen?
Adam: Cruelty ticks me off the most. Kitchens can be rough, pressure-filled places. Your job as a leader is to make sure your staff is treated with respect. Part of that is making sure your staff is safe. Kitchens are also dangerous places. You want to try to avoid people getting hurt. If one of my people gets hurt, their kids get hurt. My job is to create a safe environment, filled with respect, and allow people to thrive.
Taggart: Whom in the food world do you admire most?
Adam: The best meal I ever had in a restaurant was at Bouley, in the mid 1990's when David Bouley was cooking himself. If your name is on the door, you need to be cooking in that kitchen. If you go see “The King and I,” other people may do a fine job, but there’s only one Yul Brenner. You can't call it in. If you want a restaurant to represent you, you need to be there cooking. Period. There is so much tweaking and adjusting and that can't be completely done remotely. It could be ok, but rarely, rarely ethereal.
Taggart: What do you love most about your job?
Adam: I still get excited when I get vegetables that are still warm from the earth. I still get excited about prepping something, or researching a dish and seeing the final result on the plate. I enjoy creating a kitchen culture that is peaceful and a fun place to work. There is a lot I really enjoy. I generally enjoy most days. But as far as a career choice, it’s a great one if you love it. If you’re cooking for the money you’re an idiot. There are much easier ways to make a living. Like pick anything else. Cooking is passion driven. If you’re not doing it for that reason you are a big dummy.
Taggart: You have had some impressive TV appearances. Any nerves? Which were difficult?
Adam: TV is fun for me. I had a great time doing Restaurant Express for eight episodes. That was a show starring Robert Irvine. So they thought… until they met me. I spent a few months in LA and Vegas. It was great fun. Met a lot of neat people. I also did Chopped and a few other miscellaneous things. The most important thing people need to know is doing Food TV is that it has almost nothing to do with cooking. It's shtick entertainment. I happen to cook, but I have a large personality that plays on TV... that’s it. My skill level as a chef has nothing to do with TV shows. There were people on my show that were excellent chefs and got kicked off early. There were others that had zero talent that stuck around. It's about what producers feel the audience wants to see. Don't ever confuse Reality TV with reality.
308 Main Street Huntington, NY 11743
(631) 923-2060
http://www.stagstaphouse.com
thetaggarttable@gmail.com
516 356 1205
