Essential Ingredients for an Excellent Meal

by Madeline C. Lanshe

Some of us would crack under the pressure of a busy restaurant kitchen. This is not the case for Chef José Coronado, who not only thrives in the middle of the stress, but enjoys it. In fact, it’s one of the things that excites him the most about his occupation.

Maybe some of this can be attributed to his over fifteen years of experience in the restaurant business. José moved to the US from Guatemala at the age of fifteen. His first job was washing dishes in a restaurant. That’s when he discovered how much he enjoyed being in the kitchen. From dishwasher, he moved to the sauté station. “This is me,” he realized. “I feel great here. This is my thing.”

He worked at other restaurants through the years, most notably, Felice Urban Cafe, in Cleveland, Ohio, where he was the executive chef for almost six years, gaining an impressive reputation for the quality of his meals and menus.

He has a broad culinary range, but many of his dishes are inspired by his culture. Growing up, his mother was his first mentor and guide.

“She cooked all the time,” José said. “She cooked like, 24/7.”

Felice closed in 2022, but exciting opportunities seem to find those with passionate hearts. José’s new project will be executive chef and partner at Julia’s at the Willoughby House, a restaurant in Willoughby, Ohio, which is under construction now. Julia’s will be on the ground floor of a historic, thirty-three room, three story mansion built in 1902, formerly known as the Van Gorder Manor.

Paul Neundorfer, a former owner of Felice, and his brother, Mike Neundorfer, who bought the manor and lead the construction, trust José fully, knowing not only the excellence of his food, but the strength of his character.

While taking some photos in the manor, José stopped in a space created by removing walls from three rooms, with plaster stripped, and framework exposed, and explained that this was going to be the kitchen. You’d have to have a lot of imagination to see the vision in the dusty, bare-bones room. Luckily, Chef José does. He has been working around the clock to find and obtain equipment for the kitchen. In fact, one of the things he is most excited about is designing his own kitchen and having the freedom to create his own menu.

“I want my menu to be for everyone,” José said. “If you’re vegan, pescatarian, if you’re a meat lover, this restaurant is for you. We got a little bit of everything for you here.”

He’d even made a small menu for dogs at Felice, with options such as bacon and scrambled eggs.

Something of the utmost importance to him is the quality of the food. As much as possible, he wants to bring in organic produce and work with local farmers in order to make healthy dishes. Out with the processed foods, in with the “homemade.”

While one of the aims of the restaurant is to be fine dining, José wants to make sure it is also welcoming and accessible for families. With a wife and four children himself, family, like cooking, is at the center of his life. Leila, his youngest, who is six years old, likes to be in the kitchen with him. She likes to scramble her eggs, and José taught her how to make homemade flour tortillas as well.

José wants to create an atmosphere where he would take his own family to spend a nice evening.

“If you’re fancy, this is for you. If you’re not, this is for you.” José explained that being a chef is more than putting a plate together. He thinks about the experience he wants to have when he goes to a restaurant and how he chooses to spend his money.

When pressed a bit further, he said his wife loves pasta, so he enjoys cooking pasta for the family. For him, cooking isn’t about just the action, but the ability to share food and an experience with people. It is one of the things that brings him joy.

While he is also a wonderful baker, he prefers the freedom that comes with cooking. The former takes more precision and measuring, and once you’ve mixed the ingredients and put it in the oven, you have no control. If you got the wrong portions, the cake will not rise, or it will be too dry. With cooking, there is more room to adjust.

What is Chef José Coronado doing when he’s not cooking or spending time with his family? Thinking about food and coming up with new, innovative recipes and flavors. You know something is your purpose, and has taken over your soul, when every experience in your life gives you ideas and inspiration for it.

José’s advice, if he could tell the whole world one thing about cooking, is this: “Cook with passion. Whatever you do, do it with passion.”

When asked what his favorite dish is to cook, José said: “I just cook anything. To be a chef, you have to be creative. So I open my fridge and say okay, this is here, and combine different stuff.”

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