{"id":2443127,"date":"2019-04-18T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-04-18T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/?p=304288"},"modified":"2019-04-18T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2019-04-18T06:00:00","slug":"food-matters-qa-chef-nate-king-on-his-16-year-run-at-cache-cache","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/food-matters-qa-chef-nate-king-on-his-16-year-run-at-cache-cache\/","title":{"rendered":"Food Matters Q&amp;A: Chef Nate King on his 16-year run at Cache Cache"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"swift-gallery\" readability=\"6.6176470588235\">\n<ul id=\"imageGallery-304288-442\" class=\"gallery list-unstyled\">\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"|\" class=\"h-100\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3.jpg\" alt>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-1-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-1.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Briana Balducci |\" class=\"h-100\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-1.jpg\" alt><\/p>\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<p>Briana Balducci<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-2-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-2.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"|\" class=\"h-100\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-2.jpg\" alt>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-3-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-3.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"|\" class=\"h-100\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-3.jpg\" alt>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-9-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-9.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"|\" class=\"h-100\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-9.jpg\" alt>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-10-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-10.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Courtesy photo | Chef Nate King's wild Ecuadorian shrimp, sea scallops, and Alaskan king crab, three signature dishes at Cache Cache. The 32-year-old restaurant reopens in June, once again under the leadership of chef Chris Lanter.\" class=\"h-100\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\" readability=\"9\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-10.jpg\" alt=\"Chef Nate King's wild Ecuadorian shrimp, sea scallops, and Alaskan king crab, three signature dishes at Cache Cache. The 32-year-old restaurant reopens in June, once again under the leadership of chef Chris Lanter.\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"13\">\n<p><strong>Chef Nate King&#8217;s wild Ecuadorian shrimp, sea scallops, and Alaskan king crab, three signature dishes at Cache Cache. The 32-year-old restaurant reopens in June, once again under the leadership of chef Chris Lanter.<\/strong><br \/>Courtesy photo<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-11-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-11.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"|\" class=\"h-100\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-11.jpg\" alt>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-12-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-12.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Briana Balducci | Alaskan King Crab, Cantaloupe, Sweet Avocado, Cilantro, and Lemon-Brown Butter Vinaigrette paired with Sauvignon Blanc, Sancerre Les Monts Damnes, Domaine Andre Neveu, Loire, France, 2014\" class=\"h-100\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\" readability=\"11.5\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/04\/food-atw-041819-3-12.jpg\" alt=\"Alaskan King Crab, Cantaloupe, Sweet Avocado, Cilantro, and Lemon-Brown Butter Vinaigrette paired with Sauvignon Blanc, Sancerre Les Monts Damnes, Domaine Andre Neveu, Loire, France, 2014\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"18\">\n<p><strong>Alaskan King Crab, Cantaloupe, Sweet Avocado, Cilantro, and Lemon-Brown Butter Vinaigrette paired with Sauvignon Blanc, Sancerre Les Monts Damnes, Domaine Andre Neveu, Loire, France, 2014<\/strong><br \/>Briana Balducci<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"caption-toggle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/weekly\/food-matters-qa-chef-nate-king-on-his-16-year-run-at-cache-cache\/#\" class=\"show-captions\">Show Captions<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/weekly\/food-matters-qa-chef-nate-king-on-his-16-year-run-at-cache-cache\/#\" class=\"hide-captions\">Hide Captions<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">SURREAL. This is how chef Nate King sums up his last night at Cache Cache on Saturday, April 13. As afternoon fades into evening and staff bustles about in advance of its final winter-season service, King settles into the restaurant office for an exit interview. Here he shares thoughts on 16 years, many at the helm: What it takes to create a \u201cwell-oiled machine\u201d in a hectic environment with sky-high standards, how a French-trained chef becomes an Italian pasta pro and what legacy he hopes to leave with his team.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">This spring, King and his wife, Jenny, will pack up and leave Aspen for good. Destination: the fertile Pacific Northwest, where he plans to open a new venture in Bend, Oregon, with former Cache Cache co-workers and, possibly, a rockstar investor.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>Wow, 16 years at Cache Cache \u2026 and tonight is your last supper.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">I walked in, there was nobody in the kitchen yet, and it was kind of strange: Looking at the hot line (and knowing) it will be your last time cooking there. You take a mental picture of it and hope that\u2019s what you can re-create in the future.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What was the atmosphere when you came aboard in October 2002?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">I was hired as the sous chef, then gradually it turned into a creative role. I started doing specials pretty quickly. Chris (Lanter, chef since 2000) handed over the reins right away. Jodi (Larner, partner and general manager since 1989), too. It was\u2026easier. Then the restaurant got busier\u2014and more serious.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>After such a long time here, you must have it dialed.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">It is dialed. We\u2019re a family. It\u2019s like coming to work with your brothers each day, people you can rely on. I was able to hire some guys I\u2019d worked with before I started here to do morning prep. They are the foundation. The well-oiled machine happened pretty quick.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>So do you feel confident about the restaurant as you leave?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">Of all the stuff going on in Aspen\u2014the growth, new restaurants popping up, places closing\u2014the kitchen staff at Cache Cache has stayed one of the most solid, reliable teams in town. The average tenure for the cooks is at least six years, and that\u2019s on the low end. Chuy (Jesus Gomez) has been back there for almost all of the years of Cache Cache, like 30 of \u2019em! And Carmelo (Ramirez) at 15 years. It\u2019s an amazing team.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>Who will assume your role as Cache Cache executive chef?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">Chris is jumping back into the chef\/leadership role. He\u2019s excited. He basically said I gave him a four-year notice\u2014because we bought our house in Bend four years ago. He says he\u2019s been mentally preparing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>You trained at the Culinary Institute of America at Hyde Park. How does a chef with a classical French background become a master of handmade Italian pasta?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">The simplicity of Italian food draws me in, and it\u2019s a great creative outlet. When you have a large menu, like we have here, there are a lot of core ingredients already around; you try to figure out how to use these ingredients somewhere else. They were doing one pasta when I got here. I said we need to get a machine. So I started training the guys in the morning. There was no pushback.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>Why did you choose Bend, Oregon?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">(Jenny and I) were on a road trip, headed to the coast and Bend just happened to be in the way. I\u2019d heard of Bend because of Deschutes Brewery. It\u2019s a cool little town with a great community. We bought a house, and rented it out. We will have never stayed in it when we get out there in May, but we\u2019ve worked on it every offseason. And there\u2019s skiing\u2014Mount Bachelor, which has more acreage than Snowmass, it\u2019s just wrapped around a cone.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>And you plan to open a restaurant there?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">There\u2019s a window for the food that I do here at Cache Cache, but toned down. Right now Bend is built on pub food and brews. There\u2019s a huge influx of people from nearby cities\u2014Seattle, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, L.A., Portland\u2014all moved for a better quality of life. They\u2019ve been around good food and dining.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">And there\u2019s only one other Italian operator in Bend. Coming from a place that\u2019s saturated! I\u2019ll roll in\u2026and roll pasta.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>Do you have a team yet?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">Bill Dockter, a previous Cache Cache co-worker, is signed on as a partner. And we may have a rock star investor.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>Any ingredients you\u2019re psyched to use there?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">Fresh seafood and shellfish\u2026crab, mussels, clams. I\u2019m excited because fresh ingredients are more abundant. There\u2019s a longer growing season. Just over the Cascades is crazy farmland, the Willamette Valley, surrounded by wine areas to the west and north in the Columbia River valley, Walla Walla.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>What will you miss?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">(Laughing) I\u2019m gonna miss my mushroom spots! I\u2019m leaving two caches behind: Cache Cache and my mushroom cache. I\u2019ll definitely miss the mountains. Moab I\u2019ll miss big time\u2014I love the \u2019scape of the desert. I\u2019ll miss the people, the industry community. But I won\u2019t miss the guest-cheffing that goes on in this town.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Huh?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">Guest-cheffing by the clientele that comes in and likes to change everything. They look at our menu as a list of ingredients. But\u2026we\u2019re a provider of that service here.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>Since this is your farewell, what do you hope is your mark on Cache Cache?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">Moving the restaurant to using the highest quality ingredients, and really getting in touch with our local farmers: Two Roots Farm, and those who grow specifically for us. We get comments that people seek us out for the pasta. That\u2019s an ode to the work.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>Any pre-service rituals you\u2019ll DO tonight for the last time?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">Morale building! My last pre-service. I\u2019ve been letting Cesar (Vazquez), the new sous chef, take over. One thing I always tell them before we go into service, the last thing, every time: QUIET IN THE KITCHEN. Everyone gets a good laugh because it\u2019s such a loud, bustling place, and you have to communicate all the time. But as soon as the doors open, it\u2019s music off, all business back there. You want to hear the cooking.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Sans\"><strong>How do you envision your first return to Aspen?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">I\u2019m excited to come back \u2014 on a trip! I\u2019ll see what they have on the menu, but I\u2019ll definitely have my king crab. And whatever pastas they come up with \u2026.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\"><em><a href=\"mailto:amandaraewashere@gmail.com\">amandaraewashere@gmail.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/weekly\/food-matters-qa-chef-nate-king-on-his-16-year-run-at-cache-cache\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: The Aspen Times<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Briana Balducci Chef Nate King&#8217;s wild Ecuadorian shrimp, sea scallops, and Alaskan king crab, three signature dishes at Cache Cache. The 32-year-old restaurant reopens in June, once again under the leadership of chef Chris Lanter.Courtesy photo Alaskan King Crab, Cantaloupe, Sweet Avocado, Cilantro, and Lemon-Brown Butter Vinaigrette paired with Sauvignon Blanc, Sancerre Les Monts Damnes, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2443127","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-16 21:10:56","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSPN The Valley&#039;s Quality Rock","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2443127","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2443127"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2443127\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2443127"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2443127"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2443127"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}