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Chef Spotlight

Cindy Wolf: Co-Owner & Executive Chef Foreman Wolf

A 2006 & 2008 James Beard Foundation nominee for Best Chef, Mid-Atlantic, Chef Wolf's cuisine is backed by French fundamentals and grounded in preparations that emphasize the natural flavors of the very finest regional products.

A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, Wolf has received notices in Food Arts, Food and Wine, Bon Appetit, The New York Times, The Washington Times, The Washington Post among others.  She has also appeared in cooking segments on major local, national and cable television stations.

In addition to Charleston, Chef Wolf along with her partner Tony Foreman, own Petit Louis Bistro, a French restaurant in Baltimore's Roland Park, Pazo, a Mediterranean restaurant in downtown Baltimore, BIN 604 Wine Sellers, BIN 201 Wine Sellers and Cinghiale, a modern Italian restaurant in downtown Baltimore. 

Chef Wolf was awarded the 2007 BRAVO business achievement award for professional excellence, the 2008 University ofBaltimore Virtuoso award for her contributions to the city of Baltimore, and 2008 Influential Marylanders Award.  She was appointed to the Maryland Tourism Development Board by Governor Martin O'Malley in late 2007.  We had a chance to sit down with Chef Wolf and get to know her a little better:

VB: When did your passion for food begin?

CW: I have been fortunate that my mother and grandmother were great cooks, and that my father was in the restaurant business.  My family appreciated great food and my mother cooked with the seasons.  My passion and love of food started with my family.

VB: What do you enjoy most about being a chef in Baltimore?

CW: The guests, the local farmers, and my incredible kitchen staff.


VB: Where does your inspiration come when creating a new menu?

CW: I am inspired by local farm product.  From sping to fall we receive all kinds of beautiful local product, as well as year-round from Gunpowder Buffalo Farm.  My trips to France and Spain are incredibly inpsiring.  And I am inspired by the seasons.

VB: What is your favorite dish to cook?

CW: I love to make risotto.  The slow and constant stirring of the pot.

VB: Is there a particular ingredient you enjoy cooking with most? Why?

CW: Fresh black winter truffles from France regions of Périgord or Vaucluse.  The perfume of the truffle is intoxicating.  It tastes like nothing else and can be served with so many different things.

VB: What is your favorite wine pairing?

CW: A great Châteauneuf-du-Pape with pan roasted squab, fois gras, crispy potato, and fresh black winter truffle.

VB: What do you feel are some of the themes and trends emerging in restaurants this season?

CW: I hope an interest in moving away from molecular cuisine and moving more toward support for local farmers.

VB: Are you working on any new dining concepts or projects?

CW: Yes, a new restaurant next to Petit Louis Bistro in Roland Park.

VB: If you could cook for anyone in the world (past or present), who would you choose and what would you cook for them?

CW: I would cook for my father.

Amuse: Cornmeal Fried Oysters
First Course: Cuban Black Bean Soup
Second Course: Hearts of Palm, Vinaigrette
Third Course: Scottish Smoked Salmon, shallots, capers, egg yolk mousse, and warm toast points
Fourth Course: Pan Roasted Wild Rockfish, mushroom friccasse, lemon beurre blanc
Fifth Course: Grilled Beef Tenderloin, Argentine Chimichurri, local asparagus
Sixth Course: Stilton, local strawberries, with vintage port
Seventh Course: Grand Marnier Souffle