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Chef Jimmy Searle at a glance

Birth date: May 6, 1970

Occupation: Executive chef at Boca Bay Pass Club

Family: Married 11 years to wife, Denise, with two sons in Island School

Education: Completed two-year culinary program.

Hometown: White Sulphur Springs, W.V.

Residence: Rotonda

Favorite meal: "It would be a tossup. It would either be an Italian-type pasta dish, probably baked, or a simple grilled New York steak. That's one of my favorites right there."

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"For me, personally, I feel like some of the best meals we have are just the ones we cook at home and sit down with the family and have together at home."

- Chef Jimmy Searle, Boca Bay Pass Club

Executive Chef Jimmy Searle of the Boca Bay Pass Club reveals this week why he feels lucky to play host to the Taste of Boca Grande a sixth time, why chefs don't have to be fat to be good, who his favorite chefs are, why cooking reality shows don't ring true and where he finds the best meals.

Question: As executive chef for the sponsoring Boca Bay Pass Club what do you hope to accomplish for the Taste of Boca Grande?

Answer: Certainly what I hope to accomplish is feeding the hungry given that's the goal. It's so important in these times. It's also to me about a lot of camaraderie amongst local chefs and island chefs and getting to know these folks. We're all so busy working most of the time we don't get a chance to catch up. It's nice to get together for one night on the lawn and say hi.

Q: How much work goes into preparing for the taste of Boca Grande?

A: We have an excellent staff here. They come in early on the day of Taste and set it up. We pretty much just come in from the kitchen standpoint and start getting the food ready. Typically we do two items and in the neighborhood of 600 portions each, which is quite a bit.

Q: Having the event here at Boca Bay Pass Club gives your kitchen an edge doesn't it?

A: It's a nice advantage to definitely be on the home court and have the kitchen right here. I've always been spoiled and had that.

Q: Why is Boca Bay Pass Club a great venue for the Taste of Boca Grande?

A: Just the proximity of the island, the Gulf, the sunset, it's awesome. I can't think of a better place for it.

Q: What first drew you to cooking?

A: I grew up at a five-star resort in Greenbriar, W.V. My old man worked for that company for the better part of 40 years. I've always dined out and known gourmet food and kinda took a shine to it when I was young. I worked at a local restaurant from the age of 16 preparing salads and doing pots and dishes and some cooking. Basically that's what I've done since then. My joke is this is the cross I have to bear now.

Q: What talents go into making a great chef?

A: To me, you have to learn something every day. If you feel like you're done learning, you're probably doing a disservice to the craft.

Q: Who is the perfect chef?

A: I don't think anybody is perfect. There are some that are very, very good at what they do. There are master chefs and different classifications of chefs, and chefs we don't call master chefs but we know they are extremely artistic and meticulous chefs. They've just chosen not to take the path of organizational recognition.

Q: What are your strengths and areas in need of improvement as a chef?

A: Being a club chef, it's pretty demanding because people ask for a little bit of everything. You may be looking all over the world for different types of cuisine, different types of product. It may vary from fine dining to casual dining so it's a little bit of everything.

I've always sort of felt I'm a saucier in terms of making soups and sauces that were appealing. Also, cooking with a big emphasis on fresh seafood. When it comes to the meats, particularly pork, I've really liked integrating barbecue-type cooking and barbecue-pit cooking into a fine dining arena and elevated it to fine dining: elevating homestyle dishes to a white-table cloth environment

Q: Who are your cooking heroes?

A: Definitely Thomas Keller (chef, restaurateur, cookbook writer, French Laundry in Napa Valley) is pretty remarkable with his work ethic and attention to detail. All the cookbooks he's written are interesting reads because he's just on another level. Patrick O'Connell (author, chef at Inn of Little Washington in Virginia) is another one. I don't think either one of these guys is organizationally recognized as far as their accomplishments. But certainly the fact you can't get into any of their restaurants - you have to make a reservation about a year out - says something about their talent.

Q: Have you ever thought of opening your own restaurant?

A: Oh, I think about that all the time. I have tons of ideas floating around out there that could come to light some time.

Q: What kind of schedule do you keep?

A: In the wintertime - my schedule varies a lot throughout the year because of the fact the club is seasonal. But in the wintertime, when we're operational, we're closed on Monday so it ends up being six days a week. We open the doors to seafood and produce about 9 a.m. Lunch service is 11:30 to 2:30 and we serve dinner from 6 to 9 and we also do a lot of catering for our members. It's a 10- to 14-hour a day job.

Q: What is your staff size?

A: Including cooks and stewards, dishwashers and pot washes and everything we have about 16 people on staff now in two shifts. We have people from all over the world. I'm happy to say it's a diverse crew. I have a sous chef from India. I have cooks from Indonesia, Mexico, Bali and Jakarta. We've got local cooks here that have been with me a long time.

Q: How heavy is the turnover here?

A: I typically see 50 percent new staff each year. Training pretty much never ends.

Q: You see the screaming, egomaniacal chefs on these reality shows. Is that a real-life depiction?

A: No, not really. There are certainly days where it can be. It's definitely counterproductive. Not many people respond well to that.

Q: How is business holding up at the Club?

A: There's no doubt we've seen it slow down last year and a little bit this year although we do see it coming back a bit and everybody seems to be optimistic, which is great. I think that's the first move toward recovery.

Q: Where do you find your best meals?

A: For me, personally, at home, I feel like some of the best meals we have are just the ones we cook at home and sit down with the family and have together at home. There's nothing wrong with that, too.

Q: You've lost 70 pounds in the last year. How did you do it?

A: I did it for my health, my kids, my family so I can be around a long time for them. I got to the point of feeling tired of being heavy. I tend to be a little obsessed and focused my effort on diet and exercise. And it worked out for me.

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