Executive Chef Gary Chu Osake, Santa Rosa, CA

Simplicity
By Ellen Walsh
Photos by Steve Aja

“I could not do it if I did not keep it simple,"
Gary explains in his comfortable demeanor."
And fortunately for me, the simplest way is always the best."

Simplicity. This is the driving thought that guides Executive Chef and owner Gary Chu's every decision.

Keeping it simple is born part out of philosophy and part out of necessity.

Everybody understands the philosophy part. When you own a restaurant in the California area, where you are known for your height-of-freshness selections that appear on your menu, then you fit right in. You really don't have to cxplain any further. However with Gary, there is another dimension.

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Gary Chu's outgoing personality has been just as much of a factor in his success as his artistic presentations of both Japanese, and Chinese cuisine. Any night of the week, you can go into Osakc in Northern California's Santa Rosa and find Gary behind the sushi bar, laughing and joking with his customers while he prepares with incredible speed mountains of original sushi presentations, exotic fresh seafood dishes, and beautiful desserts.

"I could not do it if I did not keep it simple" Gary explains in his comfortable demeanor. "and fortunately for me, the simplest way is always the best."

Gary has an instinct for presenting the cuisine that is going to be instantly accepted, add to this his gift for working out problems that arise in the restaurant business, and the result is the most successful and innovative Asian cuisine restaurants in the area.

Chu's background is comprised of elements of the American dream. Born in Korea, Gary attended college in Japan, where he apprenticed as a chef in a Japanese restaurant. "There the philosophy was completely different. I worked for 5 years and was never allowed to touch the food. You must build a foundation first. Here, everything is so fast. You must know everything and learn everything right away." But that fit Gary's profile just fine. Gary did not want to be traditional. He developed his own philosophy. It has to be simple, it has to be beautiful, it has to appeal to the eyes, nose, and mouth. Many of Chu's innovative presentations include items other than traditional Asian ingredients. He loves to work with creme fraiche, blue cheese, mozzarella and Jalapenos. Tuna carpaccio with blue, cheese and olive oil, and a Japanese lime sauce with jalapenos, are just a couple of the different approaches you might find on the Japanese Osake menu.

Gary and his family's story is unique but inspiring. Gary came to America with his mother and father, his older brother and two sisters when he was 21. The original restaurant that the family had lined up to go to work for had closed, so the family chose to see this as an opportunity. They had relatives in Petaluma, so this was their first stop. When they first got there, the father sat them around the table to lay out the blue print for the fami-Iy. They had a total of $2000. They spent $1400 on a car, and $600 on a deposit on an apartment. They all helped each other meet each other's schedules, as they were all working in different restaurants throughout the Northern California Area. But because Gary's mother had a dream that the family should all sit around the family dinner table together at night, a plan slowly evolved.

It was decided chac each family mem-ber would specialize in a particular job in the restaurants they worked, so that someday their combined talents could run their own restaurant. There were six people in the tamily. Three family members would go in the kitchen (the back of the house) and three family members would work outside the kitchen (the front of the house). Gary started out in the front of the house, but his talents as a chef soon sought an avenue of expression that incorporated both.

Gary's instincts as chef and as host are what has given Osake as well as their flagstaff restaurant, Gary Chu's Chinese a Restaurant, its face to the public. It is the iefforts of the entire Chu family behind the scenes that glue it all together.

Gary has selected a few of his most popular requests for this presentation.

Chef Recipes:
Ahi Tempura
Sauces to Create Contrasting Flavors
Seared Scallops with Salmon Roe
Shrimp Puffs
Spicy Fish Cakes
Sushi Rice

Other Related Links:
Gary Chu - Bio