From TV screens to tiny kitchens, this year chef Carl Dooley explores his culinary borders. The Cambridge native packed up his knives to join the Top Chef cast on the West Coast for a challenging season of city-hopping in California. Then, he returned to his home town to renovate and open The Table at Season to Taste with chef-owner Robert Harris. Here, he reflects on reality TV—the late-night kimchi conversations, the beauty (and stress) of weddings—and restaurant opening—from demolition to dishes.
What made you want to try out for Top Chef?
I was a fan to start, and it always looked like it was really cool with really interesting challenges, really unique locations, and an opportunity to cook for some amazing judges with a group of really talented chefs. I said, “Hey, I’ll throw my hat in the ring,” and it worked out. It really was just an amazing opportunity.
Now having just missed the Boston season, how did you feel about it being on the other side of the country?
Oh, I was excited. I’d much rather spend the time on a kind of California road trip than stick around here in Boston. I think I lucked out. Professionally too, I think I’m a much better cook than I was a year ago or two years ago. It worked out well that this ended up being my season.
This is the first time they’ve traveled around during the competition itself. What was that like?
It was really cool! The whole experience is kind of like camp; you go, you don’t really have any contact with the outside world, you’re away from all your responsibilities and you’re surrounded by a bunch of other cooking nerds and chefs. It’s fun, like a big road trip. We spent a lot of time in minivans and a lot of time hanging out at the hotel. This season is a really talented cast, but also just a really professional cast all around. It was fun to spend that much time around people that are as passionate about food as you are. We spent a lot of nights awake until 2 am, just arguing about kimchi and stuff like that. So it was a really fun experience that as a chef you don’t really get because we’re so tied to our restaurants.
When did you find out that somebody else from Boston was going to be on this season?
One thing that I thought was really cool about Top Chef is it’s all true. The time is real, the situations are real, and we walked in that first day to the Top Chef kitchen and nobody knew who anybody else was. We all went there separately and then all of a sudden, I recognized Karen Akunowicz. That was one of the things this season that was really fun for me: to be able to represent Boston with such a great chef like Karen.
What’s the biggest surprise, either about Top Chef itself, or about reality TV in general?
Well it was harder than I thought, that’s for sure. I think watching it on TV on a Wednesday night with a beer in your hand, you’re like “I would have done this or done that” or “Why are they all running around like idiots?” Then you get there, and it’s like “Holy smokes! I’m in this kitchen I’ve never been in before, I have two hours to cook for 300 people, I don’t know where anything is.” It’s a super high-stress environment, and you realize why everyone is running around freaking out! The judges don’t really care what scenario you’re in or how hard it was—it’s all about making delicious food. As a chef I think sometimes you get wrapped up in the story of things, or what we think of our dishes, and to get feedback everyday was a really cool part of the show.
Of the challenges we’ve seen so far, has there been one that stands out as a favorite?
I think the wedding episode was the best experience of the season. We all knew we were catering somebody’s wedding. It was a magical day, the setting was beautiful, and the entire team really worked together because we all knew the stakes. So that stands out, like “Wow, this is why I came on the show, for these types of challenges, something really unique, beautiful and also incredibly, incredibly challenging.” To have three hours to cater a 200-person wedding is something I hope I don’t have to do again.
If you were designing your own Top Chef challenge, what would it be?
I think it would be cool if you went shopping for someone else. That would be really interesting. You get all the ingredients, and then you have to give them to somebody else. I think that would be challenging and really fun because you could sort of sabotage, too, or sort out who did what.
In terms of timing, opening The Table couldn’t have possibly dovetailed better with your Top Chef experience. Was that intentional, or just a happy coincidence?
I had left Craigie on Main before Top Chef started filming, had this great time filming in California and I came back and didn’t really have any plans. I was looking for the right opportunity to sink my teeth into something and then a mutual friend hooked me up with Robert. We started talking and once I saw the space I was hooked. It’s a really small space; it reminded me of a lot of old-school restaurants in Paris, or a lot of what’s going on in Brooklyn right now with really small, chef-driven restaurants. It had a lot of personality. We were on the same page. We wanted to create a unique experience in the really cool space that he had and it just went from there.
Have you been on an opening team before?
Nothing like this. It’s been a really fun past few months. Around Halloween, we gutted the place. It was myself, Robert, my sous chef, my wife. We were in here with crowbars and hammers and we demolished everything that was here. That was the start of the rebuild and it happened pretty quickly. A friend of the owner, Blair Toland, is a carpenter; Tall Guy Woodworking is his business, so he did the whole thing pretty much by himself. He built a new bar with this beautiful black walnut. He put in the banquette. We have a really good, tight-knit team, so we were all able to pitch in and do what we can, and it felt like a family thing.
How would you describe the menu?
We have 20 seats, then we have a small standing area which holds about 10 people. We offer a 4-course prix-fixe menu in the dining room, and then we have a little snacks menu where people can come and stand up, have a glass of wine, have a few small plates to share. I think we’re saying sort of Euro-centric cuisine with a global pantry. There’s a lot of old-school techniques, but you get a lot of flavors and influence from around the world. Just making delicious food.
