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[title]Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, Dylan Patel would often cook with his grandfather and uncle—learning how to prepare eggs, grill dinners and more. He says that those early experiences were “where his passion started from,” and it's what eventually led him to enroll in Kendall College where he majored in culinary arts.
While at school, a supportive instructor recommended he take an internship at the Mediterranean-inspired Avec River North, and he soon began a meteoric rise from kitchen supervisor to sous chef and now to chef de cuisine at the award-winning restaurant.
In addition to his work creating bold pairings for the restaurant’s robust wine program, Patel continues to be inspired by his family and cultural traditions— using traditional techniques and methods to create innovative twists on classic dishes. He insists that simple, honest ingredients and processes continue to guide his culinary creativity to this day.
You left school early and jumped right into work at Avec River North—starting as an intern and working your way up. Do you think you gained something from that career trajectory? Would you have done any of it differently?
No, I'm happy with my decision. Originally when I left culinary school, I was going to do an internship at a corporate gig doing R&D at a big company. All my friends worked nine-to-five jobs, and I wanted to stay the same [as] them and have weekends off. I was young! However, one of my instructors was like, “Hell no. Go work in a restaurant. Do your internship in an actual restaurant, and see how you like it. If you don't like it after that point, then go pursue your other route.” I ended up loving it—loved the people I work with and the restaurant. I learned a lot and kind of never left.
What would you say are the strongest guiding principles behind your cooking?
My cooking is super straightforward, nothing too crazy. I'm big on rustic food. None of my dishes have more than two or three components. I like to focus on ingredients and processes and techniques more than anything else.
Can you tell us a little bit about the restaurant’s wine pairing program? Do you ever find yourself working backward—creating a dish to compliment a wine special?
Yeah! There are two wine directors between the two restaurants, and I've kind of learned how to do things backwards with [one of them named] Edward. When people usually do wine dinners and tasting stuff, you make the food first and then your sommelier matches the wine around it. Where it's been unique for me is that Edward and I will taste 20 wines to settle on a wine dinner. We'll figure out the wines that we like and that are delicious. Then, I'll kind of compliment the food around the wine.
It’s clear that working at Avec River North has shaped you into what you're doing today. In what ways do you think your style—and your specific sensibilities and viewpoint and perspective—have shaped Avec’s identity and menu?
Starting about 12 years ago, my dad has been taking us to India every year because my grandparents retired there. When we go out there, we don't really stay in a city. We go out to a farmhouse in a village. Watching them cook and gather ingredients and the techniques they use, I've kind of adapted a lot of that to focus on the food here. Whether it be wood-fired cooking or the spices and techniques they use, I've brought a lot of that stuff over here.
Something else you’ve been able to do with this menu is forge a lot of relationships with local farmers. What would you say is the best way for a regular diner to eat locally? Where should someone begin looking to bring that farm-fresh food into their own life?
I think the obvious answer is the farmers’ market. Living in Chicago, we have quite a few and they're always up and running on weekend mornings. It's a great way to meet the farmers that a lot of the restaurants deal with because they're often there. A lot of times we'll go up to those markets and just grab our produce for the day. You’d also be surprised at a lot of local grocery stores around here. My boss Perry [Hendrix] and I were just at a grocery store picking up charcoal. We looked at their pallet dumpster in the back, and it was all from farms that we use. They don't specify it necessarily at the grocery store, but if you see fruit and vegetables from Michigan or central Wisconsin, chances are those are local farmers.
What’s the first thing you ever cooked or learned how to make?
Probably scrambled eggs like everyone else. My grandpa used to visit and every morning he'd make us scrambled eggs with toast. That was kind of the first thing I learned how to make.
Is there someone who's home cooking you miss the most?
My uncle moved in with us when I was around 10 years old. He loved cooking and he and I started cooking together a lot. That's kind of where my passion started from—making dinners, grilling, stuff like that.
Do you have a family recipe through him or someone else that you've yet to master?
Not really. If there's anything to master, it's kind of going back to the stuff I eat in India. Watching those guys cook and the way they cook—it's very interesting. And people have been doing it for years and years. That’s something that's very hard to master.
What do you think is the worst thing a diner could do to alter a dish?
I think it's just that, altering it. I always tell the servers to recommend something else if people have allergies to anything, because taking components off a dish is probably the worst thing you can do. The dish is meant to be eaten as a whole. I would rather a diner get something else that they can eat completely rather than having to edit a dish multiple times to accommodate either dislikes or allergies.
Do you have something that's always in your freezer?
Home Run Inn Pizza. It's a local Chicago place, and they make frozen pizzas.
What do you think is the greatest food and drink pairing in the world?
Rosé and Lay’s potato chips. Try it!