Kaspars Special Events and Catering

A stunning example of how time flies, Kaspar and Nancy Donier have been an integral part of Seattle’s dining scene for 19 years, opening Kaspar’s Restaurant in May 1989. They’ve run a restaurant, catering and cooking class business, event venue, become a go-to place for special holiday meals, donated many hours and much food to charitable causes and had two children. And they’re still standing (well, running).

Photo above: Kaspar and Nancy Donier

Nancy’s career began in Canada while studying accounting and business in college. After classes, she worked at the Hilton in Vancouver, B.C., which later became the Hotel Vancouver. After getting her CPA, she worked for Big Eight firms like Coopers & Lybrand, and Peat, Marwick; her specialty was hospitality.

Kaspar started his career as a dishwasher. "I had to decide what to do when I was 14. I took what was available and I enjoyed it," explains Kaspar. "When you’re young, you want to travel and work abroad." A chef apprentice at Zurich’s Hilton Hotel, he continued his education at Suvretta House in St. Moritz and Beau Rivage in Lausanne. In 1976, he became garde manger (cold foods, pâtés, salads), then saucier at the Hotel Vancouver. He was 20 years old.

A romantic place for guests, the Hotel Vancouver also worked its magic on Kaspar and Nancy. Besides finding romance, Kaspar earned three gold medals in Vancouver food shows, leading to his appointment as saucier and then executive sous chef at the Four Seasons Hotel, Vancouver. Nancy and Kaspar married while in Vancouver.

1985 brought a transfer to the Four Seasons Inn on the Park in Houston, Texas. In 1986, he was promoted to executive chef. After four years of both of them working 80 hour weeks, they decided it was time to open their own restaurant. "We were working too much and decided we should do it for ourselves," recalls Nancy. They returned to the Pacific Northwest because they loved the Seattle area.

Kaspar’s Restaurant opened in what was then the First & Cedar Building. "We remodeled the space in 1990," says Nancy. "We weren’t a bar kind of place and the bar was large. We created a circular bar, moved the dining room and had four private dining rooms." Private parties led to catering jobs and a new business. When their five-year lease ended, they moved. "It was a tough location. It was hard to get people to the fifth floor," says Nancy.

They purchased their current location in 1994. "We have the Center grounds nearby and get traffic from events," says Nancy. For 11 years, the restaurant business grew, especially after a four star review from then Seattle Times reviewer John Hinterberger. The catering business also grew and they did many private parties and charitable events. "We had so many things going on," explains Nancy. "Kaspar couldn’t do all the off-premise events because he needed to be at the restaurant. And we couldn’t do all the private party requests onsite that people asked for."

Photo above: an airy/aerie dining room

In 2005, they decided to transform into a special events and catering business, using the restaurant location as a private events venue. "Seventy percent of our business, including private parties at the restaurant, was in catering," explains Kaspar. "The food is the same as the restaurant, we just organize differently. There are no pre-cooked or purchased items; everything is made in-house. You can be as creative with catering as you are in your dining room."

They offer a restaurant experience with winemaker dinners, Oktoberfest, Valentine’s Day, Christmas Eve and New Years Eve dinners. They also do three popular buffet meals each year: Easter, Mother’s Day and Thanksgiving. Occasionally they will do a theme dinner to match an event like their Neil Diamond concert dinner. The staff wore jean shirts and Neil’s music played. If they thought closing the restaurant would give them more time, they were wrong. "It has gotten busier than we imagined," says Nancy. At least, as Kaspar says, "We can control our time better. We know when we’re going to be busy and when we’re not."

They cater five nights a week onsite using their five separate rooms. Rooms can be opened for large parties. "We do a lot of weddings. It’s reasonable and worry-free. People don’t have to rent tables, chairs and linens; we have everything they need," explains Nancy. They work with any budget and offer continental breakfasts and box lunches. People can use Kaspars staff, have meals delivered and set up, or pick meals up themselves.

Photo: a more formal look in the fireplace room

Outside catering ranges from dinners in homes to the 3,000-person event held in an airplane hangar. They like giving back to the community and do at least three-four events per month. These include the Auction of Washington Wines, Liver Foundation, Futurewise, Just Cauz and Cooking with Class. "We can’t do them all. Sometimes we have to rotate events and skip a year with someone," says Kaspar.

Demo cooking classes are offered some Saturdays and end with lunch. Teambuilding classes have teams cooking their own six-course lunches. Kid’s events started appearing after they had their children in 1997 and 1999. Kaspar created a cooking camp at the restaurant. "He’s a great teacher and loves to teach kids," says Nancy. "Our employees would bring their children in and they’d hang out with Kaspar." They began making gingerbread houses with their kids in pre-school and then started at the restaurant. In 2007, there were 190 kids. "Every year we say we won’t do it again because December is such a crazy month, but we always give in," sighs Kaspar. There are many culinary students in the kitchen who also work the larger off-site and charity events.

Photo: Student Mattie and Kaspar working the gingerbread house

Kaspars recycles, uses local and organic products whenever possible, composts everything and uses china and linen or corn-based disposables. In summer, they’re a drop-off point for Community Supported Agriculture, a program that helps people buy direct from farms. In 1995, they bought Springhill Farm in the Lynden/Mt. Baker area where they grow many of their herbs, vegetables and even flowers for event floral arrangements. They also hold a five-course dinner under tents each July.

Very wine oriented, their focus is on local wines and winemakers. At Mt. Baker Winery, near their farm, they bottle their own house wines, Chardonnay/Chasselas and Merlot/Cabernet blends.

Twenty-two years ago Kaspar left Switzerland with a return ticket in his hand. We can all be grateful that his and Nancy’s experiences led them to Seattle instead.

Connie Adams/April 2008 

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