We are almost 3 weeks into the New Year and we are excited to start introducing some new faces! The business has been growing and so has the footprints! With the growth in production that our Kitchen and Bakery Department are seeing, it became time to give our Executive Chef Ian a helping hand!
Meet Kevin Wolcott, our new Sous Chef! Kevin is a CT native, growing up in East Haven. At a young age he knew that the culinary field was for him! Despite his first dish ever being an epic failure (New England Clam Chowder), he did not loose hope and continued to explore his passion through high school electives and after school jobs. Kevin went on to study at Johnson and Wales in Rhode Island, graduating in 2005 with a degree in Baking and Pastry Arts. When asked why baking and pastry arts, he said “I didn’t want to stand in front of an oven all day and cook. I wanted something more challenging.” He compared baking and pastry art to science, but on the other hand, very calming and satisfying. “Main dishes and entrees are always evolving with changes able to be made up to the finished product,” says Kevin. “With baking, especially with pastries, it is a hurry up and wait. You can’t rush it, but are eager to see what the finished product is. Once something is in the oven, you can’t change it… all you can do is wait!”
Since his graduation, he has enjoyed working all over Connecticut with jobs at Mohegan Sun Casino, Take the Cake in Guilford, and Petonito’s Pastry and Cupcake Shoppe in East Haven. Now living in New Haven, he is excited to be back on the shoreline and a part of a business that he has known since a young age. He hopes to become an integral part of the Kitchen under Ian, as well as bringing his homemade baked goods and creations to our customers. “I have a toolbox in my mind where I can pull out the capability to do both sides of the culinary field,” says Kevin. “You need me to be a line cook?! You got it! You need a new dessert or to write new recipes, I’m there!”
Loving all cuisines, Kevin’s favorite is French with his all time favorite dish being Cassoulet, a slow-cooked casserole containing white beans and duck leg or sausage. “Comfort dishes are what people are wanting and needing right now. If we can kick it up with a gourmet recipe that is both delicious and easy, we are giving them something that no other farm market is.” He LOVES cooking BBQ especially when it coincides with his outdoor hobbies. A gear-head at heart, loving all things motors, there is nothing better to him than a weekend outside, cruising on quads or hot rod pick ups, and finishing the day with some delicious BBQ!
Bishop’s is excited to see what Kevin has in store for the dessert case, as well as how our Executive Chef and Sous Chef fuse their two background and passions together! “I love feedback and suggestions so I hope we can really explore what our customers wants and needs are. With the team that I am now a part of, I know we are going to give Bishop’s customers different kitchen and bakery items that they will enjoy!”