Suttle Lake Resort has a new chef

Jennifer King is the new chef at Suttle Lake Resort.

More accustomed to landing big fish, the Suttle Lake Resort management team has quite a catch in its new chef.

Direct from the Caribbean, Jennifer King recently signed on as head chef at Suttle Lake.

King, who is originally from Tumalo, last worked as a chef for the Carambola Beach Resort in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. She was back home visiting when she saw the opening at Suttle Lake.

"I didn't really know if I wanted to stay here (in Central Oregon) just working at some restaurant; but this came along, and it's a nice fit for me," said King.

"Plus I can do a lot of the high-end cuisine that I want and even more specials during the year."

Resort managing partner Stephanie Kirsch commented, "Who would have thought we'd get a chef from the Caribbean who was originally from around here?"

An honors graduate of the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco, King came unusually well-equipped for her new job at Suttle Lake.

One of the first things she did was to overhaul the menu at Suttle Lake's Boathouse Restaurant.

King kept some of the resort's old favorites like the Killer Fish Chowder, Four-berry Cobbler and the wood-fired brick-oven pizza; but there have been some interesting changes, too.

"One of my favorites," said King, "is the herb-rubbed rack of lamb with cherry confit sauce. We also offer a hazelnut encrusted trout and Northwest salmon with mushroom duxelle."

Regarding the new upper-end additions, Kirsch said, "We're not just fine dining, though. You can get a dinner here for $21 or for $6."

She's bent tradition a bit to suit local tastes.

"French cuisine typically offers several courses in small portions," said King, "but for this location, we have what I call 'rustic portions' which are quite a bit larger with fewer courses."

King says there are as many similarities to her Caribbean job as there are differences.

"What I found interesting about the food in the Caribbean is the locals' food, and what they eat is very different. They wanted things like macaroni and cheese, mutton stew and instant sweet potatoes -- which was just bizarre.

"But, just like here, you have to have a local following in order for a resort to survive," she said.

"Of course, tourists didn't want that stuff, so we had high-end items, too....things like mahi mahi, broiled lobster, foie gras mashed potatoes and tropical fruit salsa.

"But it was hard to get good produce. Everything had to be flown in," King explained.

"But I've had quite a problem getting some of the things I want to use here, too. I went through a few suppliers before I found the quality I want."

Last Friday, as King was putting the finishing touches on an oyster appetizer special, June snow flurries were falling at the resort, punctuating the fact that she's no longer in the Caribbean.

Still, she seems to be adapting to the change.

"This is a really fun place to work," she said.

The Boathouse Restaurant is located on the shores of Suttle Lake, west of Sisters. For more information, call 595-6662.