Name: Scott Jones
Executive chef, Concord Food Co-op
How long have you been a chef? How did you get started in the field? I graduated from Johnson & Wales in 2000, so I’ve been at it about 15 years now. I grew up on a farm in Boscawen, the son of a farmer and a stone mason, so it was either pick up rocks all day long or learn to do something else. I went into it without knowing a whole lot, but I learned it and loved it and stayed with it.
You were executive chef at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Who are some celebrities you cooked for? I used to do 18 to 20 national events a year, and it wasn’t just there – it was from Vegas to Texas to Charlotte. And it wasn’t just NASCAR; I used to do the Kentucky Derby, too. I’ve cooked for Jeff Gordon, catered a competition with Michael Waltrip, David Reutimann and Jimmy Spencer. And I did Kim Kardashian’s suite at the Kentucky Derby one time.
The Co-op is often in the running for various top chef-type competitions? How will you uphold the reputation and keep them competitive? Right now I’m still feeling out the business as it is, learning a lot about the Co-op and the all-natural program, what ingredients we try to stay away from. For me it’s like learning about food all over again in a sense.
What is your favorite food to make? Favorite food to eat? I’m a barbecue guy, through and through. I love working with meats, in particular. I like to smoke foods, or work with different marinades or rubs. I also have a strong background in French cuisine, so I try to infuse that in the food I do. To eat, though, it would have to be a barbecue spiced rib eye with bleu cheese butter.
What is the most exotic thing you’ve ever made? Ever eaten? In Atlanta was my first time working with caul fat, which is the lining around a pig’s stomach. It’s like a very thin lining that holds all the organs in. It was almost like a reverse Beef Wellington, it was wrapped around a tenderloin with mushroom duxelle. And the most exotic thing I’ve eaten might be mopani, which is fried caterpillar. Or I used to have some Cambodian friends who would make balut, which is a duck egg with a developing duck growing inside.
Are you 100 percent in control of the Co-op menu? If so, what changes might you make? Yes, I am. Right now we’re in the process of rolling out a new catering menu, trying to make it a little more user-friendly than it currently is. And we’re playing with some new prepared foods for the grab-and-go section.
What is your favorite restaurant you’ve ever eaten at? I’d have to say Capriccio in Providence, R.I. That’s one of the best fine Italian restaurants I’ve ever been in. And I would say a local place, probably one of the better places in town is Angelina’s. And in the Lakes Region, a good all-around place to go is Shooters. They have good burgers, good pizza, a good bar atmosphere.
Who is your favorite celebrity chef besides Guy Fieri? Would you ever be on a cooking show? I don’t know if I really have one. I really like watching Gordon Ramsey, but I don’t watch to see what he’s going to make, I watch to see him yell at people. And yeah, I’d be on a cooking show.
Since this is our Market Days preview, what can people expect from the Co-op at Market Days? We’re using local, all-natural ground beef to make some gourmet burgers. All the ground beef is from here in New Hampshire. We’ll have two tents at Market Days – one with the gourmet burgers, and in the other we’ll stick to the healthy side with chicken fajitas and vegetarian taco wraps. And we’ll have fruit cups at each station.
If you weren’t a chef, what would you be doing? I’d be a professional fisherman. I’m a big outdoorsman kind of guy. If I don’t have to be working, that’s where I want to be.
Hidden talent? I’m a professional stone mason. I’ve built miles of stone walls, worked on some multi-million dollar houses in the Lakes Region. And I also do a little ice carving.
Guilty pleasure? If it’s just me time, I’m grabbing a fishing pole and hitting the river. This time of year, that’s what I want to be doing.
