Jamie Malone named new Chef de Cuisine of Sea Change

 
Photo by Heidi Bohnenkamp

  TIM McKEE NAMES JAMIE MALONE
AS NEW CHEF DE CUISINE AT SEA CHANGE

Local female chef bests national search

(Minneapolis/St. Paul) Executive Chef Tim McKee announced today that he has promoted local protégé Jamie Malone to Chef de Cuisine of Sea Change at the Guthrie Theater. The Saint Paul native stood out among her peers in national search, which included chefs from Manhattan, Chicago and the West Coast, each of whom flew in for interviews and tastings over the past month. Chef Malone has worked with McKee at La Belle Vie, helped him to open Barrio, worked under Stephen Brown at Porter & Frye and with Chef Erik Anderson at Sea Change.

"Jamie has progressed with each move," said Chef McKee. "After working with most of the chefs leading the culinary movement in the Twin Cities, she is clearly the rising star of our new generation. Very few women command kitchens of this caliber, and I have no doubt that Jamie will be at the forefront of changing that dynamic."

Before receiving her culinary degree from Le Cordon Bleu, Chef Malone traveled extensively in Hong Kong, Vietnam and Europe, studying food and immersing herself in the nuances of each region's cuisine.  She developed her passion for cooking in high school as an avid listener of NPR's The Splendid Table, which continues to inspire her to this day. She also admires and aspires to emulate renowned Chef Thomas Keller for his organization and commitment to the craft of cooking.

"Sea Change gives patrons well-researched options for sustainable fish that are not on everybody else's top five list," Chef Malone said. "One of my favorite menu items is barramundi. It is a super sustainable Australian catch. It's in the bass family, so our customers are familiar with its white flesh and firm texture, but this species has a nutty, buttery flavor that both surprises and delights."
 
Chef Malone says she tends to take a more gestalt approach to cooking than many of her male counterparts. She knows several female chefs who don't just think about what's going onto the plate, but they also visualize who will be eating it, who they might be with and how their entire dining experience will make them feel.

"I like working with my hands every day," enthused Chef Malone. "My short-term goals and my long-term ambitions are really the same: every day when I finish my work, I want to leave behind a dining room that still resonates with happy people." 

About Sea Change Restaurant & Bar
2009 James Beard award winner Chef Tim McKee designed the core menu for Sea Change, which focuses on sustainable seafood, highlighting fisheries that use environmentally responsible methods of gathering and farming seafood. The menu also includes a number of items under the heading "Not Fish" as well as late night offerings of small plates and raw bar selections. Minneapolis-based architectural firm Shea, Inc. also contributed to the restaurant's "green" philosophy. They were able to locate timber from windstorm-felled redwoods, and had the reclaimed raw materials fashioned into furniture. Completing the circuit, Dallas-based Culinaire, Chef McKee's partner in this venture, uses filtered water, available in both flat and sparkling versions, served in washable, reusable carafes rather than contribute to the carbon footprint made by plastic or glass disposable bottles.

Sea Change Restaurant & Bar is located at 806 2nd Street North in Minneapolis within the historic Guthrie Theater. Lunch is served Tuesday through Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. with matinee lunch service at 11 a.m. Dinner is served Monday through Thursday from 5 to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 5 to 11 p.m. and Sunday from 5 to 9 p.m. Reservations are recommended and can be made by calling (612) 225.6499. http://www.seachangempls.com/

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