Hollins House Executive Chef John Paul Lechtenberg in his kitchen. (Photo by Chip Scheuer)
When I arrive at Hollins House to meet John Paul Lechtenberg, the 25-year-old executive chef emerges from the kitchen wearing a spotless white chef jacket and a pencil tucked behind his ear. He has a no-nonsense buzz haircut and a round face. I’m there to talk about his kitchen, but the first thing he wants to do is get away from it for a bit.
We hop on a golf cart and head to the top of the hill on curvy roads outlined by big houses with impeccably landscaped yards. From the top of the Pasatiempo golf course, the view of the boardwalk in the distance reminds him that there’s life outside the kitchen.
His ability to keep things in perspective is perhaps why he doesn’t operate like the chefs you see on TV. There’s no yelling or throwing things, and no drinking or smoking.
“Have you seen the movie ‘Waiting?’” he asks me. “It’s not like that.”
Born and raised on Santa Cruz’s West Side in a modest household, Lechtenberg says his upbringing was very working class. He’s half Phillipino, and says he admires the work ethic he got from his heritage. His grandfather was the first foreman for Martinelli’s cider.
As a young executive chef, who was still a teenager when he graduated culinary school in 2006, it is not uncommon for Lechtenberg to find himself managing cooks with more years in the industry than he’s had on this planet. He says he avoids drama and power games by subtracting his ego from his job as much as he can. He does yoga, reads books about mindfulness, and says he’s good at reading people’s energies and putting himself in their shoes.
“As long as you respect people, you generally get it back,” he says.
At Hollins House he is experimenting with molecular gastronomy, grass-fed beef, and deconstructing food: “The ingredient should taste like what it is,” he says.
He composts and recycles, practices he says aren’t common in more than 1 in 20 kitchens. He also makes a point to get all his fish, meat and produce from within a 100-mile radius, and keep the ingredients seasonal. When it comes to sustainable fish, he calls having the Bay so close “the most ridiculous advantage ever.”
Lechtenberg is currently in the process of constructing an on-site garden, from which he expects to be sourcing produce as early as this spring. He was inspired by Alice Waters’ urban gardening, and proposed the idea at Hollins House, where it was met with eagerness.
In addition to herbs such as Thai basil and chives, Lechtenberg is especially excited about growing a variety of heirloom beets, heirloom tomatoes, sweet potatoes, greens, and a variety of chiles—including jalapenos that can be made into a house chipotle.
Above all, Lechtenberg understands that Hollins House is a special place, and guests are usually there celebrating something. He anticipates the fresh produce from the garden will only add to the specialness of the restaurant.
“Money is not easy to come by. I always ask my staff, ‘Is that something you’d serve to your kid on their birthday?’ If the answer’s no, then it should not go out.”
