Boston’s Innovation and Design Building (IDB) is a 1.4 million square foot mixed-use complex heralded as an epicenter of creativity and collaboration. Its first full-service restaurant? The 88-seat Chickadee, which serves up a locally sourced seasonal menu billed by executive chef John daSilva and beverage director Ted Kilpatrick as “New England born and Mediterranean inspired.” Who did daSilva and Kilpatrick turn to when it came to outfitting the restaurant’s cookline? Vulcan.
A Creative Vision for a Creative Space
Working with foodservice designers Boston Showcase Company, daSilva and Kilpatrick set out to bring to life their vision of the perfect restaurant for the unique space. “Our goal was to create a restaurant aimed at providing a fun and approachable food and beverage offerings in a casual environment that would reflect The Innovation and Design Building’s creative atmosphere,” Boston Showcase Company vice president of engineering Gary Strickland told Foodservice Equipment & Supplies magazine.
Added Boston Showcase Company project design specialist Jessica Odenwaelder, “The owners wanted a restaurant that was fresh and offered a partially open kitchen with a cookline visible to diners that creates a more connected dining experience.” They had challenges, too, including a small footprint and other building constraints.
Where Vulcan Fits In
Vulcan equipment, including a range and salamander broiler, was a perfect fit for Chickadee -- both aesthetically and logistically. Long known for the prioritization of performance, productivity and efficiency, every piece of Vulcan equipment has been carefully designed to help operators do more with less.
Chickadee’s eight-burner Vulcan range optimizes menu diversity, allowing chefs to surprise and delight diners with items such as blood orange and pistachio dukkah; harissa cavatelli with lamb merguez, chickpeas, rapini and parmigiano; and radiatore di grano arso with barbecue rabbit, fermented pepper and ricotta salata. Tucked underneath, conventional ovens are ideal for everything from roasting chickens to heating proteins before serving -- and a perfect example of Strickland’s assertion of the project’s commitment to the “economization of space.”
Meanwhile, daSilva uses the salamander for crisping the duck skins right after its grilled. “I used to sauté the duck meat. This is the first time I’ve used the flat top griddle for preparing crispy duck. It works very well," he explains.
The restaurant is named after the state bird of Massachusetts, which is a fitting name. Proposes daSilva, “They are creative opportunity seekers and are able to rise to any occasion, no matter where their adventures take them," he asserts. We’re proud to say that the same can be said of Vulcan’s innovative and high-performance restaurant equipment.
Sources
FE&S magazine
Photo by Kristen Teig Photography