Chef Joseph Hafner
Chef Joseph Hafner insists on ingredients so fresh they taste like they were just plucked from the soil moments before they appear on your plate. His flavors are always simple and clean. And his ever-changing menu at Gracie's never ceases to surprise. It's why Chef Joe's creations are a happy marriage of the freshest ingredients and the most inventive culinary thinking. If wine berries are ripe for the picking at a local farm, then they just might be in a parfait or the dessert treats on the Chef's Tasting menu that evening. One never knows. And that's the pleasure of eating at Gracie's.
One could attribute Chef Joe's approach to his experience cooking in many notable kitchens, such as the Michelin starred Les Trois Marches in Versailles, Babbington House in Somerset, England, Philadelphia's Susanna Foo and Carambola restaurants, along with Cafe Zelda, Salvation Cafe and The White Horse Tavern in RI. Or maybe it can be credited to his experience cooking at events for The James Beard Foundation and alongside other award-winning chefs at dinners for Share Our Strength, The March of Dimes, and Cystic Fibrosis Foundations.
Talk to Chef Joe and he'll tell you that he attributes his passion, style and culinary philosophy not only to his work experience, but also to a fervent desire to improve and progress with every dish. It's what makes the food at Gracie's cutting edge, yet approachable. Chef Joe is always thinking. Creating. Obsessing. Perhaps it's why everyone within a plate's reach of him is always blissfully eating.
Pastry Chef Susan Vandenberg
Delicate, flaky pastry crust. Tall, dense layers of pound cake. Silky smooth mousses. A creme brulee with an oh-so-fragile layer of burnt sugar. These are the perfect endings to the perfect meals.
Gracie's pastry chef Susan Vandenberg didn't follow the typical path to becoming a pastry chef. But she has always, always worked with her hands, to great, and now in this case, delicious success.
Educated and trained in Michigan and Virgina as a physician, Susan has been board certified in general surgery and emergency medicine for more than 20 years. After two decades in medicine, Susan began to wonder if there was something else that she could do that would indulge her love of working with her hands on detail-oriented work, but that would be more creative and less stressful than being a doctor.
Several years ago, she and her husband moved to Europe, where she attended culinary school first in Florence, then at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. She then worked at a pastry shop in Paris, perfecting her techniques and experimenting with textures and flavors. "I learned that the roots of things have to be delicious," she says. "And then you can build from there."
At Gracie's, Susan's choices are driven by what is in season, especially when it comes to her pastry tarts, a favorite of her and her customers. Other can't-say-no choices include a lemon pound cake, a brioche, and a creme brulee. Susan also loves to experiment with desserts in miniature, and to present dessert trios, so that diners can experience many flavors and textures at one sitting.
One look at her delicate pastry crusts and creamy mousses, and you won't argue with her.
