...an impassioned "foodie" puts
his talent where his heart is.
By Susan Stewart
He grew up in the kitchens of
hard-working immigrants in the restaurants of downtown
Toronto. And that, says Ryan Comerford, has been
the key to his success as one of San Luis Obispo's
youngest entrepreneurs. "Their work ethic built Toronto
," he says. "And by the time they had earned their
own restaurants, they had a lot to teach." Comerford
is the owner and general manager of Fairways at Dairy
Creek and CateringUnlimited.com. He is in the process
of taking the management reigns at both the Dairy
Creek and Morro Bay Golf Courses from his father's
capable hands. And he has high hopes for "The View
at Morro Bay," the restaurant he is renovating to
serve the burgeoning market for banquet facilities.
At 29, he has come a long way fast. |
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At twelve, he took his first
job peeling potatoes in the basement of a busy fish ‘n
chips joint in Toronto, owned by a middle-aged Chinese
couple. "I just loved the Woos," says Comerford. "They
taught me so much!" He graduated from peeling and prefrying
the potatoes to waiting tables when he moved to Nevada's, an Italian restaurant, where he quickly became floor
manager at just 17. "I'm a big guy," he explains, "so I
looked older than I really was." Two more upscale Italian
restaurants, Peppino's on the Beach and Florentine Court,
followed Nevada's, both with the old-school, European method
of teaching young restaurateurs and chefs: my way or the
highway and no sniveling allowed. "These guys had temper
tantrums on a daily basis," Comerford recalls. "They thought
nothing of chasing me around with a meat cleaver."
At 22,
with his taste buds fully engaged and his passion for food
driving his decisions, Comerford was on his way to Europe
to apprentice under the great chefs when he landed in San
Luis Obispo . He had come West to say good bye to his father
before embarking on his culinary education. But his father
had other ideas. Why not stay on awhile and help him with
the demands of the golf courses? "What I discovered was
that the celebration aspect of the business was lacking," said
Comerford. "It's fundamentally important to support the
restaurant that provides that element." So he bid the contract
to establish Fairways at Dairy Creek and much to his surprise,
he won it. That was four years ago.
Today, Fairways is
a thriving concern, serving out-of-the-ordinary breakfast
and lunch dishes to a satisfied crowd of the county's movers
and shakers, plus the usual mix of working folk and golfers.
Comerford's breakfast menu features ample, four-egg omelets,
house-made salsas, and lots of sides. Lunch menus have
added a nod to his Italian restaurant roots in the hand
tossed, stone-fired pizzettes-each one with the Italian
name it was born with: margarita, prima vera, pollo pesto,
and carne. Fragrant humus with pita bread, and albacore
egg rolls with pomegranate sauce bring Greek and Chinese
flavors to the appetizer list. And an array of entrée-sized
salads, piled high sandwiches, and juicy burgers give
diners all the choice they could ask for. This is no ordinary
golf course diner. And neither is the staff. Chefs and
wait staff overlap into Comerford's off-site business,
CateringUnlimited.com
where he serves the full gamut of catered events, from
weddings and bar mitzvahs to film and commercial shoots.
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For Hollywood types and brides-to-be
alike, high quality offerings and split-second timeliness
are paramount. Comerford says his staff is up to
the task and then some. "I'm good at choosing the
right people and then empowering them," he says.
Deviating from the humiliating and sometimes scary
training techniques of his European and Asian predecessors,
Comerford believes that respect and encouragement
go a much longer way toward fostering excellence. "In
addition to great food and service, my goal in both
the restaurants and the catering business," he says, "is
to provide opportunities for my chefs so that they
can afford to buy houses in the communities they
work in." |
Recently, Comerford's CateringUnlimited.com
served over 5,000 at the Garden Festival, featuring Mediterranean
dishes from every temperature zone. "We love to be challenged," he
added, "either by the logistics of the location, or by
the special or unusual requirements of the menus. I'm in
this business to make people happy." Eventually, Comerford
plans to expand the business to live up to its name-unlimited.
Envisioning a network of catering staffs and locations
throughout the nation, he is looking to fill the increasing
demand for quality catering similar to the concept
used by such companies as flowers.com. Built on quality,
credibility, and consistency, CateringUnlimited.com
would provide a uniform standard of service and exceptional
food quality, available anywhere at the click of a
mouse.
These days,
Comerford is busy learning the ropes at the golf courses.
Wielding a set of clubs as readily as he works a sauté pan,
he is full of enthusiasm, relating the history of the green
hills around him with reverence and respect. Co-owned by
early dairy ranchers, the Guidettis and the Gallardis,
Dairy Creek is both a historically and an environmentally
sensitive place. An early menu featured Joe Guidetti's
homemade sausage recipe. And carefully spaced perches have
been installed to ensure the comfort and safety of the
resident hawks and eagles. An unabashed food lover who
will hop a plane to try a new dish from a favorite Chicago
chef, or drop a king's ransom at Valentino's in Las Vegas, Ryan Comerford continues his culinary education in the
great American cafés and eateries. "I'll admit it," he
grins. "I put food ahead of almost anything." Seven
years ago, he forestalled his European culinary adventure
to stay here and work instead. It was a long trek from
Toronto to San Luis Obispo, and an even longer one
from humble potato peeler to California restaurateur.
Like the immigrants of his native Toronto however,
when it comes to the pursuit of excellence, Ryan Comerford
doesn't let a little thing like distance stop him.
