Philip Poston.

Gerard Strong
Central Bistro & Bar
1691 Central Street
303-477-4582
centralbistrobar.com

This is part one of my interview with Gerard Strong, exec chef of Central Bistro & Bar; part two of our chat will run in this space tomorrow.

I'm a Scorpio, and I'm pretty proud of that," volunteers Gerard Strong. "I can be fiery, I'm from New York, I'm up front, and I definitely let people know what I think." Strong, today the chef of Central Bistro & Bar, grew up in the Hudson Valley in a large family dominated by a working mother -- a matriarch, he says, who "could put together a great meal for ten at the drop of a hat."

See also:
- All whiskey, all the time, starting in late June at Central Bistro & Bar
- Denver's ten best new restaurants of 2012
- Hot damn! Central Bistro & Bar redefines what a neighborhood restaurant can be

Lori Midson

David Lindberg
Bonanno Brothers Pizzeria
8439 Park Meadows Center Drive, Lone Tree
303-799-8900
bonannobrotherspizzeria.com

This is part two of my interview with Dave Lindberg, exec chef of Bonanno Brothers Pizzeria; part one of our conversation ran yesterday.

Most memorable meal in Denver that you've ever had: My going-away dinner at Luca d'Italia. I was the pasta chef there at the time and was leaving to go to Seattle for a job opportunity. The former chef, Hunter Pritchett, who's now in L.A., and I always talked about the classic dishes that will never die -- lobster thermidor, Coquille St.-Jacques, crab-stuffed mushroom with sauce béarnaise -- so for my last dinner, he sent out fourteen courses that consisted of these fine classics, but he also sent out dishes that were completely unexpected: Red Bull sorbet with vodka poured over it was a life-changer. I've never been so satisfied and honored all at once. It was an awesome experience that I'll never forget. What a great sendoff.

See also:
- Dave Lindberg, exec chef of Bonanno Brothers Pizzeria, on the magic of mayo
- Photos: Bonanno Brothers Pizzeria opening in Park Meadows Saturday
- Exclusive first look: Frank Bonanno's Vesper Lounge opens tonight

Lori Midson

David Lindberg
Bonanno Brothers Pizzeria
8439 Park Meadows Center Drive, Lone Tree
303-799-8900
bonannobrotherspizzeria.com

This is part one of my interview with Dave Lindberg, exec chef of Bonanno Brothers Pizzeria; part two of our chat will run tomorrow.

Imagine -- no sugar, so salt, no butter. "My mom didn't understand why I always wanted to go and hang out at a friend's house," says David Lindberg. "She raised me so damn healthy -- my splurge was Cheerios, but my friends? Their moms had Fruity Pebbles and Skippy peanut butter, so I'd sneak away and eat all the bad shit and then go home and eat the good stuff."

See also:
- Part two with Dave Lindberg, exec chef of Bonanno Brothers Pizzeria
- Photos: Bonanno Brothers Pizzeria opening in Park Meadows Saturday
- Chef and Tell with Frank Bonanno of Luca, Mizuna, Osteria Marco and Bones

Lori Midson

Duy Pham
Epernay
1080 14th Street
303-573-5000

This is part two of my interview with Duy Pham, exec chef of Epernay; part one of our chat ran yesterday.

What's the best food- or kitchen-related gift you've been given? I have three. The first is when Corky Douglass, the owner of Tante Louise, sponsored my trip to Napa Valley and San Francisco to study under Jean-Louis Palladin; second is when one of my cooks, Seiji Nakatani, gave me a hand-crafted Japanese knife that he designed, which, I have to admit, I'm kind of scared to use; and third is when my pastry chef, Adriene Laurer, gave me a French terrine mold, which I still cherish to this day.

See also:
- Duy Pham, exec chef of Epernay, on being super-obsessed with gadgets
- 100 Favorite Dishes: lamb tartare from Epernay
- First Look: Epernay

Lori Midson

Duy Pham, exec chef of Epernay.

Duy Pham
Epernay
1080 14th Street
303-573-5000

This is part one of my interview with Duy Pham, exec chef of Epernay; part two of our chat will run tomorrow.

epernaylounge.com
We're boat people," chuckles Duy Pham -- but he's dead serious. Born in Saigon, Pham snuck out of Vietnam with his father, uncle and aunt in 1979, burrowing in a boat until they were picked up by a Malaysian ship and relocated to a refugee camp, where they waited more than a year for sponsorship to come to America. "It was tough times," recalls Pham, today the executive chef of Epernay. "My family was upper-class, and my dad had a lot of businesses, but the Communists had taken over, and Vietnam was never going to be the same again, so he sold everything he had and promised us that we'd move to America for better opportunities."

See also:
- Duy Pham, exec chef of Epernay, on why he'll never cook in another chef's kitchen
- 100 Favorite Dishes: lamb tartare from Epernay
- First Look: Epernay

Lori Midson

This is part two of my interview with Jimmy Bernat, exec chef of Jimmy's Urban Bar & Grill; part one of our chat ran yesterday.

Which chef has most inspired you? My dad pretty much got me into cooking at a young age and taught me flavor matching, different tastes and how to simply not burn down the house. After that, I'd have to say watching the Boy Meets Grill show with Bobby Flay. That got me really into grilling and experimenting with grilling and slow-cooking meats.

See also:
- Jimmy Bernat, exec chef of Jimmy's Urban Bar & Grill, on chewing, spitting and Go Fast
- First look: Jimmy's Urban Bar & Grill opens in LoDo
- Denver's five best hot dogs

Lori Midson

Jimmy Bernat
Jimmy's Urban Bar & Grill
1530 Blake Street
303-298-5000
lodojimmys.com

This is part one of my interview with Jimmy Bernat, exec chef of Jimmy's Urban Bar & Grill; part two of our chat will run tomorrow.

Jimmy Bernat began working -- and cooking -- in a professional kitchen long before the rest of us could make a proper peanut butter and jelly sandwich. He was all of six when he first started wielding knives, using them to devein shrimp at the long-gone Chowder House in Lakewood, a seafood restaurant that his family owned. "I grew up in a family of restaurateurs and have pretty much spent most of my life in the kitchen," says Bernat, now the executive chef of Jimmy's Urban Bar & Grill, which recently opened in LoDo.

See also:
- Part two with Jimmy Bernat, exec chef of Jimmy's Urban Bar & Grill
- First look: Jimmy's Urban Bar & Grill opens in LoDo
- Denver's five best hot dogs

Nate Bychinski
Mateo
1837 Pearl Street, Boulder
303-443-7766
mateorestaurant.com

This is part two of my interview with Nate Bychinski, exec chef of Mateo; part one of my interview with Bychinski ran yesterday.

Most memorable meal you've ever had in Denver: Although it wasn't a traditional meal, last year's Denver Burger Battle at Sports Authority Field was a really memorable time for me and our staff. It was a very unique experience that we were thankful to be involved in, plus it was all for a great cause.

See also:
- Nate Bychinski, exec chef of Mateo, on cow tongue, TV drama and the McDouble
- Tyler Nemkov is now the exec chef at Mateo
- Tyler Nemkov has left Mateo

Nate Bychinski
Mateo
1837 Pearl Street, Boulder
303-443-7766
mateorestaurant.com

This is part one of my interview with Nate Bychinski, exec chef of Mateo; part two of my interview with Bychinski will run tomorrow.

"I didn't play with knives, but I definitely did my fair share of cooking," says Nate Bychinski, remembering his younger years in Wausau, Wisconsin, where he grew up bow-hunting white-tailed deer on his cousin's farm and working in the kitchen with his mother and grandmother. "My grandmother came from a family that ate a lot of peasant food, and that's what we ate, too: lots of chipped beef on toast, macaroni and cheese and pfeffernüsse -- little nuggets of bread dough that my grandmother perfected," says Bychinski, who's now immersed in French cuisine at Mateo, in Boulder.

See also:
- Tyler Nemkov is now the exec chef at Mateo
- Tyler Nemkov has left Mateo
- Round two with Nate Bychinski, exec chef of Mateo

Lori Midson

Cory Treadway
Wynkoop Brewing Company
1634 18th Street
303-297-2700
wynkoop.com

This is part two of my interview with Cory Treadway, exec chef of the Wynkoop; part one of our conversation ran yesterday.

Your five favorite local restaurants other than your own: Oak at Fourteenth in Boulder is doing a great job with the farm-to-table concept; they execute it extremely well. I also love Solera, and while I used to work there, I think Goose Sorensen does a great job with local ingredients and his "Spanish farmhouse" theme. Il Posto has a great atmosphere, good food and a reasonably priced wine list, and the Bagel Deli is an awesome spot for lunch, plus they have a killer pastrami Reuben. And last but definitely not least, twelve. I went there recently with friends, and we had a great time; Jeff Osaka and his staff had solid food and fantastic wines.

See also:
- Wynkoop Brewery's Cory Treadway on smartphones, fried squirrel and heaven
- Head brewer Andy Brown reads the Yelp complaints against Wynkoop
- Wynkoop Brewing and the Cheeky Monk get together to brew a dark saison