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| Nik Mavromatis by Stacy Campbell Nik Mavromatis loves to cook. And since passion improves the outcome of any endeavor, this may explain why he is so damn good at it. The man is a culinary version of MacGyver. After talking to him for 20 minutes, one gets the impression that he could make a gourmet soup to die for out of a celery root, some stock, saltines and anything found growing in his backyard. . While marriage brought Nik to the States, serendipity brought him to Woodfire Grill and later to run the cheese department for Whole Foods. After earning a degree in business Nik realized, “I hated working in an office but remembered that I really loved working my way through university in a kitchen”. Nik, a citizen of New Zealand, is of Greek descent and remembers cooking with his grandmothers at an early age. Prior to his life here, he spent time in Europe eating his way through the Greek coastline, and then worked as a chef in one of London’s best authentic Greek restaurants. Holder of a “London City and Guilds” qualification, Nik states surprisingly, “I don’t think learning to cook is as important as learning to eat”. Not surprisingly, I agree. Produce, strangely enough is one of Nik’s biggest inspirations. “Let the ingredients speak for themselves”, he says. He spends lots of time in farmer’s markets seeing what is out there and what looks good. After ordering all the freshest ingredients, he throws them together to create mouth-watering dishes. Another one of his philosophies is “keep it simple and do what you know”. He tells me, “you will never find Mexican food on my menu, because I couldn’t do it justice.” Mexican, he reveals, is among one of his favorite things to eat, as is Southern food. One of Nik’s biggest frustrations is America’s distaste for some of the nore exotic meats, such as oxtail and sweetbread. “There is life beyond the filet”, he states implying some of the less used cuts of meat are the best. He also believes in using organic, non-hormone treated meat when he can and is opposed to the irradiation of food. Organic food is healthier and lower in fat content. One gets the feeling that Nik prides himself on a well-arranged menu and has definite ideas about what good food is and what it is not. Nik cooks every chance he gets. After asking him where he sees himself in 5 years, he states he is happy to be the chef, because he likes to cook. |
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