Not long ago, I ate at Risk
Restaurant's weekly international night. The five course
German-inspired meal consisted of:
- a creamy and crunchy amuse-bouche,
- a potato pancake with applesauce and horseradish cream,
- a cup of chicken vegetable soup with spaetzel,
- a cold plate of pickled beets, carrot and parsnip, and fresh cherry tomato salad,
- pork schnitzel, mashed root vegetables, sauteed red cabbage, and
- spice cake garnished with pastry cream, whipped cream, and fruit preserves.
As I left the restaurant, I knew I had
to talk with Chef Bill Walz. He's been around town for years, and has
an admirable reputation.
 |
| The entrance at Risk Restaurant on Mission Street in Mount Pleasant, Michigan |
I've never interviewed a chef before.
Heck, the last time I spoke with a working chef was in my 20's, fresh
out of college, attempting to work the garde manger station for a
restaurant at the Cedar Point amusement park. I was clueless about
culinary life and more concerned about the atrocious green polyester
dress I was required to wear than the quality of the food. I didn't
understand the testosterone-driven kitchen culture, and hated being
called “salad girl.” You can bet I didn't last long.
So it was with the tiniest bit of
trepidation that I knocked on the kitchen door at Risk.
The first thing I noticed was the drone
of ever-present exhaust fans. Then I looked around and realized
how much equipment was squeezed into the miniscule kitchen: there was
a six-burner stove, griddle top, plate warming oven, deep fryer,
bread racks, three stainless sinks, flat surfaces for chopping,
storage shelves, and more.
Lunch service had just ended, and Chef
Bill was working on chocolate pate. He had heavy cream heating in a
pan on a gas-fired burner, then added chocolate chips and a dash of
brandy. The mixture was stirred and set aside to cool; eventually it
became chocolate truffles. We talked as he worked.
 |
| Chef Bill works on chocolate pate. |
Chef Bill has an easy-going manner that
belies his passion for good food. He grew up in Illinois in a large
family that ate plenty of casseroles typical of the 1950s and early
60s.
But when an aunt married a man from
France, young Bill's eyes were opened to the sophistication of French
cuisine. “A meal at my aunt's house meant a white tablecloth and a
three or four course meal. I'd never seen anything like it,” said
Chef Bill.
At about the same time, Julia Child's
“The French Chef” was on TV, and Bill got a copy of Mastering theArt of French Cooking Vol I and II. He learned many of the techniques
by working with his siblings at home through trial and error.
“I learned that the important thing
in cooking is technique,” said Bill. “When you know the
techniques, you can cook almost anything. If you can poach salmon,
you just need to come up with something to accompany it. Or if you
know how to broil salmon, you have time to prepare a quick sauce of
lemon, dill, and butter.”
 |
| Mushroom Gravy |
And though “Mastering” is still a
treasured cookbook, he doesn't recommend it for a beginning cook.
“It's intimidating because the recipes are really long. Now I
prefer the Mediterranean-style of cooking – combining fresh, local
items with minimal cooking time.”
As a young man, however, Chef Bill
wanted to learn cook in the French style and eventually landed a
position in a sophisticated Florida restaurant. A few years later,
and a lot more experienced in French cooking, he met wife Cindy, and
they relocated to Cindy's hometown. Since then Bill and Cindy have
raised a family and owned and operated several restaurants.
“In the 80s, people who came to the restaurant had never seen mesclun mix before and didn't know how to
eat it or even what it was.” At the time, iceberg lettuce was
preferred to the now ubiquitous and every-changing mix of radicchio,
escarole, arugula, baby beet greens, dress, mache, and mizuna.
“Over the years, said Bill, “the
tastes have expanded and people have become more adventurous,
partially because of the expansion of the Food Network, and other
celebrity chefs.”
*End Part One*
Coming in Part Two: creating
international recipes, cookbook talk, more!
437 South Mission Street, Mount
Pleasant, Michigan
PHONE: 989-317-0844
Wednesday-Saturday 11am-2pm for lunch,
5pm-9pm for dinner
Price Range from $10-30
Casual dining, cash only; reservations recommended
Catering available
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