Joseph L. Paire III
HOW A D.C. CHEF IS REVIVING BERKELEY’S LIMEWOOD BAR & RESTAURANT AT THE CLAREMONT
When it comes to job security, Joseph L. Paire III has many of us beat. Since arriving at the Limewood Bar & Restaurant at Berkeley’s Claremont Club & Spa, which reopened in August, the new executive chef has infused the menu with Southern California touches, like his bay scallop succotash with squash, corn and pole beans.
But the recent Atlanta transplant can also bake bread, make pastries and manage hotels (he holds bachelor’s degrees in hospitality management and culinary arts). Did we mention he’s now studying for certification with the Wine & Spirit Education Trust? Soon, he’ll be swirling like a sommelier, too.
Paire, 38, arrived in Berkeley in March after more than 20 years in fine dining kitchens in Atlanta (The Southern Gentleman) and Washington, D.C. (Barcelona Wine Bar & Restaurant), where he was born and raised. Earlier in his career, Paire landed a job at Mulebone, an upscale Southern eatery in D.C., by winning a “Top Chef”-style competition judged by the owner and Carla Hall. He won them over with his sweet potato biscuit with shrimp and tasso ham.
The Limewood job started on March 9 — you know where this is going — and by mid-march, when the shutdown started, Paire
“I realized people still want to enjoy the experience of dining.” — Chef Joseph L. Paire III
had enough free time to find himself an apartment in downtown Oakland and develop dishes in his kitchen, like that summer succotash hit.
We caught up with Paire recently to discuss Southern cuisine and his hopes for Limewood POST-COVID (hint: it includes a chef’s table). For now, you can enjoy Paire’s dinner and weekend brunch menus on the restaurant’s deck or under a canopy in a space known as the Limewood Bungalow.
Q This isn’t your first time in California. You were on the Food Network’s “Guy’s Grocery Games” in 2016, right?
A Yes! I won the Big Bacon Battle competition. The show is filmed in Santa Rosa. It doesn’t get as much respect as “Chopped,” but it was the hardest thing I’ve ever experienced. You don’t have a base like you do on “Chopped.” It’s basically a fullsized grocery store and you’re running around for ingredients to make three dishes. I made a warm Brussels sprout bacon salad, udon noodles and pork belly with green curry and yuzu, and a montage of “I- don’t-even-know.” It was intense.
Q So, what did you do between March and August besides R&D?
A I snuck out of town once — in July, for my birthday — and went home to D.C. to get a little bit of inspiration because all of the restaurants here, even some Michelin ones, were doing comfort food for takeout. Back in D.C., they were open for limited indoor seating and I wanted to see what they were doing in the time of a pandemic. At Fialo Mare in Washington Harbor, I loved what they were doing with seafood, both indoors and outdoors. When I came back, I realized people still want to enjoy the experience of dining.
Q Tell us about your fried chicken and skillet pancakes. How did it come about?
A I developed that recipe about five years ago. It’s my favorite. I love chicken and waffles, but hate how the waffle always gets cold. I wanted to make a skillet pancake because I love making things in cast iron and knew it would stay hot this way. It’s a 6- ounce pancake served with a fried chicken breast that’s brined for eight hours and soaked in buttermilk and hot sauce. We serve it with candied pancetta and toasted almond syrup.
Q You’ve talked about changing the narrative around Southern cuisine. What do you mean?
A Southern cuisine is such a diverse landscape, but the general perception of it is heavy soul food. And that’s not true. If you look at migrant paths starting in early South Carolina, there was no meat. Seafood and vegetables were your primary things to eat. Now if you want to cook collard greens heavy, with bacon, cook it heavy. But that’s the narrative that has to change. It’s the same with charcuterie and offal. We don’t talk about it the same way as chitterlings when a famous chef in San Francisco works with preserved meat or offal, but it is the same thing. That narrative has to change, too.
Q The weather’s cooling down. What are you excited about featuring this fall and winter?
A I love Dungeness crab, so we’re going to do it in a cioppino with white sea bass and fennel-tomato broth. I love roasted Brussels sprouts, and we’ll serve them with pomegranate seeds. The braised item on the menu will be a lamb shank with roasted honeynut squash. It’s got all the flavor of a big butternut squash, but pint-sized.
Q What do you envision for Limewood post- COVID? Is there something you’re dying to do?
A I want to continue to build on our outdoor space and show people it can be enjoyed year-round. But when we get guests inside, I really want to highlight our raw bar and seafood program. I’d also love to put in a chef’s table where I curate an experience for you. I’m not here to be a D.C. chef in Northern California. I’m here to have fun and learn and be a part of the community.