Seattle's Culinary World

The first venues we'll look at were/are owned by Joe McDonnal*—Market Place Caterers and The Ruins, a private dining club on lower Queen Anne. Joe closed the catering company prior to opening The Ruins. He started out as a floral designer and decorator in New York City, and then cooked in the catering kitchen at the Plaza Hotel around 1960. He moved to Spain where he owned and operated two restaurants at different times in Marbella. In 1975, he moved to Seattle. A year later, he started Market Place Caterers in what is currently the dining room of Chez Shea, designing the space, including the chandeliers, and doing a great deal of the handcrafted work in the space. In 1993, he opened The Ruins. It has three kitchens—catering, lunch (the dining room) and dinner (the bistro or elephant room). Joe is known for giving his employees the chance to prove themselves.

Pisano Dining Room, courtesy of The Ruins

The list of known names that have come through Joe's businesses is long. Jackie Roberts worked with Market Place Caterers in the late 70s/early 80s, leaving to open The Pink Door in 1981. Her current website refers to Joe as her mentor.

Joanne Herron started work at Market Place Caterers and worked with Joe for 12 years. During her time there, the catering business closed and The Ruins opened. She moved to The Ruins and was in charge of service and did a great deal of decorating for events. Jim Drohman (whose wife is Joe's niece) cooked for Market Place Caterers in 1987-1989 and again in 1991-1992. Joanne and Jim met there and eventually opened Le Pichet and Café Presse together. "When I was considering leaving engineering, Joe took me on as a cook for two years so I could see if it was going to work. He also helped make the contact for the culinary school I attended in France and then I cooked for him for a year on my return. I have so much respect for him."

Jim Drohman at Café Presse

Scott Carsberg worked with Market Place Caterers in the late 80s. He went on to open Lampreia in 1992.

Carolin Messier de Jiménez took a catering sous chef job in the early days of The Ruins. She met Joseba Jiménez de Jiménez when he began working there; they married and now own Harvest Vine and Txori.

Philip Mihalski worked at The Ruins in the 90s while planning his own place, Nell's.

Ethan Stowell's parents were friends of Joe who gave Ethan the job of cleaning while he waited for a kitchen opening. He became a prep cook, then catering chef. He met Philip Mihalski while there and they did some catering together after they left and Ethan helped Philip open Nell's. "More than anyone else, Joe gave me the passion for cooking," says Ethan. "I saw him go into work every day and the amount of passion and care he put into every event we did was amazing. It just rubbed off on me. He was a huge influence on my career, maybe the biggest."

Ethan Stowell at Tavolata, photo by Tom Barwick

Christine Keff worked at The Ruins for close to a year. She went on to open Flying Fish and Fandango (now closed).

More recently, Diana Culbert, who goes by "Ba," left The Ruins to open Tillicum Place Café at Cedar/Denny/5^th Avenue.

Mitch Newell has spent 14 years at The Ruins, the first five cooking under Joe's direction. He is now the catering chef and the president of The Ruins. "The catering aspect of working with Joe was what drew me in," says Mitch. "We'd load up the car with flowers, plates, glassware, candles, food and drive across town and transform someone's dining room into this excellent venue. Joe demanded perfection; he set a very high bar. If you're a chef, you're attracted to a challenge like that."

Virginia Wyman, Joe's partner, feels that it wasn't so much that The Ruins or Joe created culinary professionals, it was more that, with chefs especially, they sought the Ruins out, responding to its reputation and wanting to cook with Joe.

We'll be looking at Campagne/Café Campagne and Yarrow Bay Grill/Beach Café in upcoming issues.

Connie Adams/March 2009

* Joe McDonnal passed away January 31, 2011, at the age of 79.

Click here to read part 2 of the series.
Click here to read part 3 of the series.

Dave McDonald sells food to restaurants all over Puget Sound for The MacDonald Meat Company in Seattle. He worked as a cook for numerous restaurants in the area including Anthony's Home Ports and Restaurants Unlimited, Inc. He has been in food sales since 1988 and is proud that Seattle has become one of the great restaurant towns in the U.S.