A well rounded “chef of chefs” in the casual dining arena makes Chef B. Louis, as he is known by his colleagues, or simply “Chef” by those who know him, a passionate contender and challenging spirit for the Culinary Industry at large. Born in Southern California in 1986, he was captivated by the essence of Donner Lake when his family moved to Truckee in 1992 where he would be forced to experience his childhood. The intensity of his love for Truckee and the surrounding area would grow deeper as he ventured and stepped out to experience what the west coast had to offer from the bay area to Alaska, as he gained valuable experience as a Chef and Restaurant Manager along the way while he turned his hobby and passion into his newfound career.
He worked his way through Culinary School gaining experience from such concepts as “Newport Bay Seafood Grill” close to the busy Portland Oregon Convention Center before landing a job at the new and upscale “Ringside Fish House” in the Fox Tower. Upon skipping his graduation from Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Portland in 2011 where he earned high honors, he was intent on getting his career started and was eager to work his way up while rounding his experience out. He took his ethics and experience from his past corporate business management career and applied it to his new field of study where he soon found out that his elevated approach to restaurant management was not “industry standard”. This would be a catalyst for his ability to advance through the various positions he so sought after while gaining the necessary observations in experience to advance him through to the next level of his career and ultimate dream of one day opening a quaint establishment of his own.
He immediately pounced on a job opportunity upon completing his externship from Le Cordon Bleu at “The Grapevine Italian Restaurant” in Portland Oregon where he established himself as a Chef de Tournant, at Alyeska Resort in Girdwood Alaska where he was thrilled to step into his new position as a Lead Line Cook, which was short lived as he took a job as Head Chef for a new concept in the village at Northstar at Tahoe called “Petra”. He counts himself blessed to have had every opportunity he has pursued from being a Sous Chef at “Martis Camp,” a local private resort community, to being the Chef de Cuisine proxy Executive Chef at “The Loring Café” in downtown Oakland, while mixing in some consulting work for a restaurant in Berkeley before transitioning into front of house management for “Rose Pistola” and “Thirsty Bear Brewery” in San Francisco where eventually he would end up being the General Manager for “BurgerMeister” in Berkeley. Chef set out to round out his career and did exactly that, he puts his mind to something and makes it happen, whatever it takes, he’ll make it happen.
Chef B. Louis enjoys an eclectic range of bohemian (as in informal and unconventional, not from Bohemia, although bucket list maybe) style of flavors and dishes which allow for bold flavors to come to the forefront while being able to elevate his guests into the best experience by closely working with the front of house to add to the attitude of the ambiance. His twist on Julia Childs favorite Beef Bourguignon is a family, friend, and colleague favorite while his Artichoke Dip is a simple pleaser of even the most refined pallets. Chef operates within a great and many kitchen and life motto, such as “consistency is king,” “blessed are the flexible for they are never bent out of shape,” and his personal favorite, “keep it simple and smart”. Chef loves to entertain flavors out of a host of sauces he is keenly passionate about as well as enjoys getting to know his guests when the opportunity presents itself.
People always ask every chef what their favorite dish or thing is to cook, for which Chef’s newer reply is “what is your favorite thing to eat?” His passion for cooking is of that because food brings people together and he believes that its people, together, that truly make an impact in this world. Chef enjoys elevating his life to greater heights outside of the restaurant industry where he pursues his personal physical, mental, and spiritual growth and development by reading, authoring a book, writing and journaling, playing the guitar and mentoring while exploring new skills and hobbies. Chef likes to mountain bike and hike area trails, while remaining true to fishing the area lakes and rivers, and attends San Francisco Giants and Stanford football games for those spontaneous mini-ventures out of town, and he recently discovered skydiving is an exciting alternative compared to watching from the ground every September when the United States Navy Seals jump out of a C-130 cargo plane during the opening ceremonies at the Reno Championship Air Races which he has been attending more on, than off, since he was six years old.
Chef’s quote of the season: “The difference between ordinary and extraordinary, is just a little extra”
Contact Chef B. Louis today at chef@pubatdonnerlake.com to just say hello, for any menu inquiries, or for his Beef Bourguignon method, **hint: use GOOD wine** Chef never understood how people would even consider cooking with wine they would not consider drinking.
Thank you for exploring The Pub at Donner Lake!