An Interview With Martita Mestey
… We all recognize how food plays a big role in overall health. Social connection is also a huge piece of overall well-being that society, as a whole, is learning to prioritize. Atria believes people belong together, and there are proven health benefits to sharing meals with friends in a social setting. Everything we do at Atria is geared toward helping older adults live life to the fullest. This goal includes creating welcoming spaces and delicious menus, so our residents look forward to a dinner with their neighbors and friends.
In this interview series, called “Chefs and Restaurateurs Helping To Promote Healthy Eating” we are talking to chefs and restaurateurs who are helping to promote and raise awareness about healthy eating. The purpose of the series is to amplify their message and share insights about healthy eating with our readers. As a part of this series, we had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Chef Chad Welch.
Chad is an American Culinary Federation Certified Executive Chef® and began his career in the United States Navy, Four Seasons San Francisco and a winery before joining Atria. Welch has had the honor of preparing meals for Dignitaries in Spain, Members of French Parliament, many sports figures, recording artists and film stars. He has led culinary teams at Atria Senior Living for 14 years, most recently leading the opening of Coterie Cathedral Hill in San Francisco.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to ‘get to know’ you a bit. Can you share with our readers a story about what inspired you to become a restauranteur or chef?
A career as a chef was not my original plan. It was after the Navy and after my first job in a restaurant. when I realized a career as a chef was in the cards.
Do you have a specific type of food that you focus on? What was it that first drew you to cooking that type of food? Can you share a story about that with us?
I grew up with Mexican food and those are the first dishes I learned to cook from my family. At Christmastime, my family makes tamales together. It’s our tradition. Christmas without tamales would be the same as Thanksgiving without turkey.
In my own dishes, I prefer to pull inspiration from the place or region where I am. Whether that’s northern California, Texas, Kentucky or New York. Each region has a marquee dish or flavor, and it’s fun to put a new spin on something everyone loves to eat.
Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that has happened to you since you started? What was the lesson or take away you took out of that story?
This story is funny in terms of how life knew better than I did at the time. I joined the Navy immediately after high school and intended to enter as a mechanic. Because of a paperwork error, my job on the naval ship was cook. I spent years cooking for thousands of sailors, and then I was responsible for feeding the executive officer and department heads in the wardroom. What a way to prepare for culinary school.
None of us can be successful without some help along the way. Did you have mentors or cheerleaders who helped you to succeed? Can you tell us a story about their influence?
When I came home from the Navy, Otis Nostrand hired me at his restaurant in Pleasanton, California. At the time, I could never have predicted how important he would be to my career. Otis saw my talent and passion as a chef before I started culinary school. When he opened a new restaurant, he believed in me to entirely redesign the kitchen. His belief in me meant the world because it set the stage for the rest of my career.
In your experience, what is the key to creating a dish that customers are crazy about?
We know that what we eat is an important piece to our overall health, especially for seniors. Food should be tasty and healthy. Those ideas are not mutually exclusive, which is why I go back to the key principles of salt, fat, acid and texture. Add in the creativity with ingredients that my team and I come up with, and menus at Atria Senior Living are built to offer well-rounded, nutritional, and wholesome meals.
Personally, what is the ‘perfect meal’ for you?
The perfect meal is classic for me. It’s a staple, American cheeseburger with true American cheese, no fuss, no deviations.
Where does your inspiration for creating come from? Is there something that you turn to for a daily creativity boost?
My brain works visually, so I want to see enticing, vibrant photos of a unique, fun dish versus a recipe. Gourmet magazine isn’t around anymore, but Instagram is my dose of creativity boost. It’s even more fun to follow new, young chefs on Instagram. I know how I want the dish to taste from a enticing picture.
Are you working on any new or exciting projects now? What impact do you think this will have?
For more than a year, I have been laser-focused on the launch of Coterie, the new luxury brand of senior living by Atria and Related Companies. Coterie Cathedral Hill recently opened in San Francisco, and Coterie Hudson Yards is soon to follow later this year.
Ok super. Let’s now jump to the main part of our interview. You are currently leading an initiative to help promote healthy eating. Can you tell us a bit about what you and your organization are trying to change in our world today?
We all recognize how food plays a big role in overall health. Social connection is also a huge piece of overall well-being that society, as a whole, is learning to prioritize. Atria believes people belong together, and there are proven health benefits to sharing meals with friends in a social setting. Everything we do at Atria is geared toward helping older adults live life to the fullest. This goal includes creating welcoming spaces and delicious menus, so our residents look forward to a dinner with their neighbors and friends.
Can you tell us the backstory about what inspired you to originally feel passionate about this cause?
The day before I interviewed with Atria Senior Living, which was 14 years ago, I cooked for my grandma and her friends at nearby assisted living community. I walked into the interview knowing little about the senior living industry, but I had culinary experience and the experience of watching my grandma enjoy herself at the dinner table with friends. I saw how the meal I cooked for them was more than food. They laughed together, shared stories and became even closer friends over food.
Without saying specific names, can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was helped by your cause?
I have dozens of these stories. The touch points Atria staff have with each resident every day are so important in supporting older adults’ overall well-being. For instance, a server in Atria’s dining room sees and speaks with a resident twice a day or more. They know this resident’s food preferences, their eating habits, and can often be the first line of defense in noticing if a resident is not getting their daily nourishment.
Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do to help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?
Our society treats older adults as a homogeneous demographic. While we all crave connection and wellness, each individual person has unique preferences, wants and desires.
If society were to see retirement as truly another new beginning, everyone would also see the possibilities for maintain overall well-being and purpose. By having the goal and ambition to try new food, new hobbies, and activities, you continue a strong sense of purpose.
Lastly, there are big ingredients to overall well-being beyond tasty, good food. Those include social connection, engagement and wellness. The simple act of coming together over a dining table for good food checks every one of these boxes.
What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Started as a Chef or Restaurateur” and why? Please share a story or an example for each.
One of the biggest things I wish I knew on my first day at Atria is to throw away our society’s tendency to treat older adults all as the same. Older adults have unique likes and dislikes. The myth that older adults want food without spicy, strong or hot flavors is just wrong.
I wish someone had told me how much there is to learn about dementia and memory care. I have learned so much, and there is more to know. I have seen firsthand how finding the right food makes a difference for someone with dementia.
A chef in senior living has the same obligation to the residents who call the community home, just as a chef at a restaurant. Atria’s waitstaff must know the ingredients in our dishes just as a server in a restaurant.
Take every advantage of freedom for creativity. Some of my best dishes come out of creative thinking with ingredients or assembly, not in overdoing it.
The opportunities to learn more are invaluable. We are constantly fine tuning and learning more about senior nutrition and partner with dieticians to offer well-rounded, nutritional, and wholesome meals. When my knowledge continues to grow and Atria chefs continue to learn through new studies in well-being, medical and research advancement, strategic partnerships, and through holistic approaches to caring for older adults, we design menus that serve our goal: tasty, flavorful and healthy.
What’s the one dish people have to try if they visit your establishment?
The salt roasted beets at Coterie are a must have. This dish arrived on the menu because we wanted something with complex flavors and simple ingredients. The salt is used in the roasting process, and then the skin is peeled before serving. You get the flavor without the high sodium content. Then, we pair it with yogurt, nuts and a cold pressed olive oil. This dish is packed with flavor. Beets also bring fiber and brain health benefits.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
This question is too hard to choose. Of musicians, Quest Love is at the top of the list. Of restaurateurs, René Redzepi of Noma. His out of the box perspective is inspiring. His story of persevering and overcoming challenges evokes awe. Shaquille O’Neal is also at the table. He was underestimated early in his career, and he isn’t braggadocious about the many good deeds he does.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
Follow Atria Senior Living on Facebook, LinkedIn or Instagram or online at AtriaSeniorLiving.com.
This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!
How Chef Chad Welch Is Helping To Promote Healthy Eating was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.