Some chefs come to Southern cuisine through schooling, attracted by the region’s long growing season and incentivized by hospitality.
For Jacob Burkett, the new chef at Roost Free Range Kitchen & Bar and a Westminster native, it has always been part of his life.
“I’ve always been immersed in Southern food. Growing up where I did, my grandmother and my aunt kind of raised me for the most part and our produce,” he said, then paused to think about the rest of his answer. “They didn’t go to the grocery store or a big box store and buy produce. They always knew a guy that had a garden or something like that.”
Picking okra, beans or other produce, and canning and preserving, were part of his life with his grandmother and aunt. In a world of grocery store convenience, they preferred the more communal route. In return for letting them pick, his grandmother and aunt always brought a jar of produce back to the farmer or gardener to express gratitude.
Burkett observed culinary hospitality from childhood. Being exposed to fresh produce also allowed him to hone in on a personal philosophy that starting with quality ingredients will lead to delicious food.
His career prepared him for the practicality. He started with Rick Erwin’s Dining Group where he learned to tackle volume. He then got worked at The Cliffs, moving from sous chef to executive sous chef over the course of seven years. Burkett said he has had the privilege of working with talented people who influenced his culinary identity.
Today, his style is contemporary American using French technique and drawing on Asian inspiration.
Oh, and he loves wine. The Cliffs hosts chef’s tables, which gave him annual exposure and preparation with wild game and wine pairings. Burkett loves to find the Great White perfect pair, recalling his favorite slept-on pair is andouille sausage and riesling, while game meats like venison or elk expanded his creativity.
“A lot of wild game – like venison or more lean cuts, you have to cook more fatty to really balance it out [so] it’s not super dry when you’re eating it,” he explained.
Burkett was considering a relocation to Georgia when he heard Roost needed a new executive chef. He came in for an interview which turned into an hour-long conversation. He then prepared a tasting of lobster tail, venison and grouper with fennel and onion sous vide – a surf-and-turf exemplifying exactly what he’d like to bring to the hotel restaurant’s table.
He officially started in July. In the future, he hopes to bring exclusive preparations to Roost with limited availability for guests to create an intimate experience.
“I like experiences and to make things feel special,” he said.
Roost Free Range Kitchen & Bar is located at 220 N. Main St. in downtown Greenville.
