Along with longtime partner Andrew Fritz, chef Bernie Kantak created a pair of durable Valley classics in Citizen Public House and The Gladly. Their latest offering is Beginner’s Luck (beginnersluckaz.com), an all-day diner in Old Town Scottsdale set in the former Piccolo Virtù space, an intimate venue where Kentak offers brunch, midday meals and dinner alongside specialty coffee, wine and craft beverages. And, yes, the original chopped salad with smoked salmon and that dreamy buttermilk dressing has a permanent spot on the menu. We sat down with him to chat about his nostalgic, compassionate approach to comfort cuisine.
Is Beginner’s Luck centered around comfort food?
Comfort food is different for every person. My wife is Japanese and Korean. Comfort food to her is not chicken paprikash and stuffed cabbage like it is for me. Do you have that one friend that every time they hug you, you think that is the best hug? It means a lot more than that hug from your other friend who doesn’t really put heart behind it. That’s what I mean when I say comfort food. It’s food that really hugs you.
What’s one item you’d put on the menu if cost were no object?
I would want to do gypsy bacon, which is a Hungarian bacon roast. It’s the best thing in the world. I would love to set up campfires at every table and do bacon roasts.
You have a degree in art. Do you think cooking is an art form?
I don’t really look at food as art. I think chefs can be artistic with what they’re doing, but food has a purpose. At the end of the day, you eat and it provides you with the energy that you need to survive. I can certainly appreciate that a lot of my food can draw out emotion. Just the smell of fresh chives or spearmint – it does crazy things to my head. It sends me back to my grandmother’s backyard that I haven’t been in since I was 7 or 8. As soon as that hits my nose, I’m 100 percent there. It’s crazy.
What’s a fun fact about Bernie?
I don’t ever eat breakfast food for breakfast. I eat breakfast food for dinner and dinner food for breakfast, and it’s kind of worked into the menu here. You can come in at 9 a.m. and get a burger and chopped a salad if you want.
