Sisters couple are culinary artists

If you dine out in Sisters for breakfast, lunch or dinner, there's a good chance you've eaten some of Thomas and Meg Lubinski's culinary creations. The couple has carved out a place for themselves in Sisters, offering high-end, delicious food from crème brulée to pan-seared salmon.

When the two got together, they combined skills and experience that made them a culinary force in Central Oregon. Their first meeting came about because of food. Thomas, who worked in Bend at The Decoy, contacted Meg.

"He said he wanted to talk scones with me," she said. The scone talk must have gone well: They have been married for a year-and-a-half.

Meg's main focus is wedding cakes, desserts and catering. She grew up in Vermont, and has lived in Central Oregon for five years, and Sisters for two. She graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in 2001 and began baking in 1995.

"I was in the first all-female graduating class," she said. "We learned a lot from each other."

After graduation, Meg spent nine years traveling. She spent time in countries like Greece and across the states in places like Vail, Colorado.

"I moved around to get firsthand knowledge of what's out there," she said.

The Lubinskis are proud of the reputation they've developed. Their love for their craft of cooking and baking is evident in all the meals they create.

"I'm always evolving my recipes and palette," said Thomas. "I love creating comfort food that brings on fond memories for individuals."

Thomas cooks for Jen's Garden and Poppies. One of his most recent creations at Poppies was an ox-tail soup. The flavors were balanced and infused with fresh vegetables and a red wine sauce that warmed patrons on a cold autumn day.

His love of cooking began in his childhood in Minnesota, where his grandmothers cooked with him on the farm. Since then he's worked in Belize, Germany and Alaska.

Meg's favorite dessert to bake is crème brulée. Many of them are inspired by the seasons.

"I like to extend and infuse them with seasonal ingredients. I have yet to meet someone who doesn't like crème brulée," she said.

Right now, Meg is baking for Jen's Garden, Thyme, Sisters Athletic Club and, since April, Poppies. With all of that baking she still finds time to bake for their own business, Nut Meg Cakes and Catering.

Meg's wedding cakes are extremely popular.

"Most people say it's the best they've ever had. It actually tastes as good as it looks."

When Meg isn't whipping up amazing baked goods, she spends her time as a photographer and jewelry designer.

"My first degree was in visual arts," she said.

She still takes head shots and family portraits and some of her photographs are in a small gallery in Boston. Her earrings are on display at life. love. yoga. in Sisters.

"I do classic designs in silver, gold and copper," she said. "I make my own posts and ear wires. I like to keep busy; I just can't sit still."

Contact them by e-mail at [email protected]