Chef Brings Golden Touch
to Flemington at 55 Main
Courier News
Review by Frank Curcio
September 2008
Anyone under the misguided notion that being an artist and being a knowledgeable business person are incompatible can learn a lot from chef Jonas Gold. The chef is a culinary artist who runs his business, 55 Main in Flemington, with the same flare as he runs his kitchen.
“When I decided to open my own place, I knew exactly what I wanted” the young chef said. Gold was fascinated by culinary arts as a young teen and began his journey to cookery stardom washing dishes and cooking eggs. “And that was right here in Flemington,” he added, acknowledging that his journey has returned him to within two blocks of his childhood home.
Educated in Hunterdon County, his next stop was the famed Culinary Institute in Hyde Park, N.Y.
“While there I had an internship in Texas where I helped open a new restaurant, ” Gold said.
The experience would be seminal for the budding chef. After graduating from culinary school, he got a job with Michael Schlow at La Cucina in Somerville. While there he took every opportunity to learn from Schlow who was fast–tracked to celebrity–chef status. “I won’t stop learning,” he said. “From early on I even tried from customers.”
When the new incarnation Cafe Cucina opened in Branchburg, Gold helped open it. After several years, he moved on to the prestigious and upscale Harvest Moon in Ringoes, cooking with top chef Stanley Novak. “Michael and Stanley have been the biggest influences in my culinary life,” Gold said.
Four years later, he was called to help open the Grille at the Pittstown Inn. By now, he was toying with the idea of opening a place for himself. But first he was again asked to help open a place – The Fox and the Hound in Lebanon.
“I was upfront with the owners,” he said, “I told them I was looking to open my own place.” By now his culinary reputation was so respected, the owners offered him a deal to give them a year while he looked, which he did.
Gold has learned his lesson well. He did not compromise, rather he looked for the ideal location for what he had in mind. “I wanted it to be in Flemington,” he explains, “on a busy street, near people.”
Gold blends first–quality ingredients, good portion size, and attractive pricing with top–notch service. The result is a place whose popularity makes it a hard–ticket eatery.
As for Gold’ culinary reputation, suffice to say that when 55 Main opened a year ago, food writers and restaurant critics didn’t report “new restaurant in Flemington” — rather it was reported that “Jonas Gold comes to Flemington!”
The chef’s New American menu is among the most creative in the region, often with unexpected twists, mind–boggling nuances and action–hero courage.
Who else dares to offer an appetizer starring beets? Gold begins with Misty Acres Farm organic beets, then dandies them with candied walnuts, crisp goat cheese and balsamic reduction.
Read More Reviews about 55 Main
Review #1
Review #2
Review #3
Review #4
Review #6
|
