Brookhaven Marketplace is pleased to have
Executive Chef, Brian Ukleja as a member of our management team. Having joined our team in the fall of 2010, Chef Brian has been hard at work reviewing our entire prepared food and catering lineup. In a short period of time he has already introduced dozens of new healthy and tasty offerings with many more in the planning stages. Like our Wine Geek George Fifles, he is a wine expert and together they are developing wine and food pairings each week.
So just how did Chef Brian get interested in career in culinary arts? We asked him just that question.
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Growing up in a family with two grandmothers that were excellent cooks made it easy for me to get excited about cooking. As far back as I can remember, I looked forward to each and every weekend going to their homes and helping them cook. One grandmother was one of seven children, so every holiday or birthday was more like an event, than a party. For Christmas there were easily 80 people in the room at any given time, and everything that was served was homemade. It gave me an early appreciation for what food should be. I think that is the reason that I really love cooking. I take great pride and get very excited when I know someone really enjoys something that I have prepared. I try to make cooking fun and easy. For some reason I seem to have a knack for what foods go good together.”
Perhaps you could say that your love of cooking is part of your DNA. Chef Brian, what can you tell us about your food career prior to joining Brookhaven Marketplace?
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When I first started in the food industry as a caterer, I shopped for all of my food and produce at the Brookhaven store in Darien. Being the executive chef, it was my responsibility to control all of the purchasing and of course food costs, and Brookhaven made it very easy for me. It was close to our kitchen, the prices at Brookhaven were far lower than anywhere within our area, the produce was fresher than any other market and it was easy to purchase hard to find items. However, what really separated Brookhaven from everyone else was how personal they were with me as a customer. They made it very easy for me to get anything I wanted, and went above and beyond in order to do so. So, when the opportunity opened up for me to join their team I jumped at it. I hope that when all is said and done, I will really have made a positive impact for the Brookhaven name.”
Please give us a sneak preview into the future. Just what do you have in store for the prepared food and catering departments at Brookhaven Marketplace?
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My vision for Brookhaven is simple. Try and provide the best possible product using only the finest ingredients available. No additives, fillers, or preservatives will ever be used here. Our kitchen runs 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Our staff is extremely talented and knowledgeable, and they take great pride in only putting out the best possible products for our customers. We are constantly tweaking and changing our recipes to make them better. We are striving to make our products some of the best around and will continue to do so in the future. We will be introducing new, healthy, and delicious items on a weekly basis, and are hoping that customer feedback, good or bad, will make us better as a whole. “
Sounds exciting! Healthy food that tastes great. Sounds too good to be true.
“My goals for Brookhaven’s kitchen are easy. To put out the best possible product, make it healthy, and make Brookhaven Marketplace a destination for our customers. Yes, everybody sells prepared meals, salads, and sandwiches, but I want the customer to come to us because ours is the best. People will always need to eat……I want them to eat our food.”
Have a question for Chef Brian? Email Him Here