Don Durante - Co-Proprietor, Business and Food Management, Cin-Cin Wine Bar

Don Durante is no stranger to the South Bay dining scene - his 30+ years in the restaurant industry have taught him the importance of impeccable customer service and enabled him to master the workings of a well-oiled restaurant. Don was owner and executive chef at the award-winning Le Mouton Noir in Saratoga and executive chef at the Silicon Valley icon Birk's Grill in Santa Clara. Don’s most recent success is Cascal Restaurant in Mountain View where the Tapa-style menu offers bold flavors and exotic cocktails.  Don looks forward to another great success with Cin-Cin Wine Bar.

 What is your favorite meal to cook at home?  A plump, juicy, crisp skinned roast chicken with lots of fresh herbs under the skin, butter lettuce salad with mustard vinaigrette, roasted potatoes and watercress on the side.

How old were you when you started getting interested in cooking?  I got started cooking around 9 years old, making desserts out of Good Housekeeping Magazine articles and keeping a file of all their recipes.

How were you inspired to make it your career?  I’ve always been fascinated with the restaurant business.  My folks used to take trips throughout Ohio and we would stop at roadside diners and coffee shops for lunch. I loved to see people eating all different kinds of foods that I knew nothing about. 

What is your favorite food memory?  I was raised in a three-story home with my grandparents, an uncle and aunt, and my mom and dad. My grandparents cooked twice a week for all of us to eat together and it was the best Italian food you could get anywhere.  My favorite dish was my grandmother’s raviolis that she made mostly for the holidays - they were made by hand with roasted beef and spinach filling with lots of cheese.  My childhood memories still spark me today to reflect on those flavors and dishes that I was raised with.

What is your food philosophy?    I would say that my key to success has been to evolve my food philosophy over time - when I first started cooking professionally; I was really into French food.  But then Nouvelle Cuisine came along in 1979 and really impacted my development in the early 80’s with my Saratoga restaurant, Le Mouton Noir.  My food philosophy today is keeping things simple with lots of flavor in the dish – something at which Chris is a master.    

Why do you feel sustainable, organic, and biodynamic farming is important?  I appreciate the way many farmers and ranchers are trying to get themselves oriented back to the biodynamic way of farming.  Farmers markets have helped to proliferate this by offering consumers and restaurants alike pristine products that weren’t readily available 10-15 years ago and that has really impacted how people cook.  I fondly remember growing up in Ohio, when all we could purchase was biodynamically raised produce, meat and poultry – of course, they didn’t call it that!  It was a time when you could pick, pick and smell the food and you knew it had marvelous all-natural flavors.  Personally, I feel we all have an opportunity to influence the farming industry and say that we have had enough of the mega commercialism that is creating and manipulating our food supply.  We need to get back to understanding what and how our food could be like – and taste like –  with farming practices that protect our bodies and the earth.

What famous people do you look up to?  I met two people in my life that I look up to and they are Julia Child and Paul Bocuse. Julia Child caused a cooking revolution in this country and got people into really cooking at home and trying things they may never have attempted before.  The “father” of Nouvelle cuisine, Paul Bocuse was a real food ambassador for France and got Americans into fine dining.

Favorite local ingredients?  Olsen’s seasonal fresh cherries in Sunnyvale, Saratoga fresh apricots and Monterey Bay spot prawns when you can find them.

Favorite restaurant city?  Not just one!  New York, Chicago, and San Francisco are the three most cutting edge food experiences in this country. In Europe it would be Paris and Florence, where chefs really know how to put food and flavor together to create an unmatched dining experience. 

Favorite Local cheap eats?  In-N-Out Burger and Jake’s Pizza in Saratoga.

Favorite food trend?  Right now it’s probably Thai and Vietnamese.  I love the mix of flavors and the vibrant use of herbs, chiles, nuts, oils, flavoring sauces and vinegars.

Favorite wine producer?  I drink probably 90% red wine over white wine and Syrah is my favorite red wine right now.  Many universal producers are raising the level of this wine style, but my favorite Syrah is produced by the Sadie Family in South Africa, called Columella.  It’s a rare find and always a pleasure when I find it.

What is your favorite food and wine pairing?  A great steak and a glass of Syrah are one of my personal favorites.

What wine are you drinking now?  Lately I have gotten a good introduction to German and Austrian whites, such as Rieslings.  Given my penchant for spicy food and hearty red wines that I talked about above, I haven’t been real familiar with these grapes in the past.  I am really becoming to appreciate their crisp, clean, food-friendly style.