Taste
CUISINE
CHEF CONVERSATIONS In the kitchen with Siegfried Hohaus
Siegfried Hohaus serves as the regional executive chef of Mastro’s Ocean Club, overseeing the masterfully crafted surf-and-turf menu that has earned national acclaim a dozen or more times over.
BY ALISON BAILIN BATZ / PHOTO BY DEBBY WOLVOS
Is that an accent we hear? Guilty as charged. I am originally from a small town in Bavaria, Germany, called Zellingen. Did you always know you wanted to be a chef? I really did. It all started in the kitchen with my mother, who I loved to help cook, especially when we made her famous potato dumplings together. By age 14, I started working in my first kitchen. Tell us about your journey to America. After my first few kitchens, I apprenticed at Hotel Excelsior, a luxury resort in Croatia that also happens to be where I met my wife. After completing training, I began a career with Hilton International, which would take me to Switzerland, England, New York and Indonesia. A special highlight from those days – serving as executive sous chef for the restaurant atop the World Trade Center. What about your journey to Arizona and Ocean Club? My wife and I moved to Arizona in 1990 and had our daughter, so she’s a native! I took a position with the then-acclaimed Oscar Taylor restaurant and then Che Bella before joining the Mastro’s family in 2000, when I became the chef for their Marco Polo restaurant in Scottsdale. I actually helped design the original menu for Ocean Club and helped to open it back in 2001. What are some of your favorite ingredients to use? I use olive oil for just about everything and love cooking with saffron. I also love to get creative with pasta, especially gnocchi. What would we be surprised to know about you? I never formally learned English. I picked up everything I know from friends in kitchens around the world. Mastro’s Ocean Club, 15045 N. Kierland Blvd., Scottsdale; 480.443.8555; www.mastrosrestaurants.com.