Spring 2025

160 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • S P R I N G 2 0 2 5 J erry Regester is sitting in the cat’s bird seat of a chef ’s career: He’s been cooking long enough and at levels high enough that he knows (and his customers know he knows) what he’s doing. But he hasn’t been doing it so long that he’s lost his passion for creating meticulous plate after meticulous plate of food. The plate and what’s on it is not only his occupation: It’s his preoccupa- tion. “As chefs, our minds are constantly going,” Regester says. “You sleep, you wake up and you think, ‘How can I make it better? What can I do to make it better?’” He’s arrived at the place where he knows he belongs: His own place, making the food he chooses to make, in the way he chooses to make it. It’s been decades in the making. First there was culinary school in Vermont. And before he arrived here—here being the Spotted Duck Restaurant in Pacific Grove—he learned from those that to this day he still considers his mentors, with stints at Domaine Chandon in Napa, The Santa Lucia Preserve, the Monterey Plaza Hotel and, of course, Rise and Roam Bakery. And beyond his love of the kitchen, Regester has an eye on humanity, proudly supporting charitable endeavors that include Comics for Kids (benefitting the Boys & Girls Club) and, previously, Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Cooking for Solutions. At his Spotted Duck, the brasserie in the historic Holman Building he co-owns with business and life partner Gail Grammatico, there are things he tries to make better, and things he just tries to make consistently well: “When you have duck in your name on the window, you better do a good duck dish,” he says. And don’t even get him started on the beauty of a great braise. “It’s a great union,” he says. Grammatico runs the front of the house, welcoming guests in and making sure their experience is top notch, while Regester is in the kitchen with one other cook and a dishwasher. Post-pan- demic staffing has been difficult, he admits, but Spotted Duck has devel- oped enough of a reputation that those who work in the industry know that if they are working for Regester, they are working at a place that prizes quality and experience. Regester grooves on farmers markets, sourcing the best local ingredients he can find, the aforementioned braising and talking about his mentors, Chef Phillipe Jeanty, of the famed Bistro Jeanty in Yountville, and Chef Cal Stamenov, the famed tastemaker who set the standard for modern food, wine and dining in Monterey County. “The process of being a chef is a journey,” Regester says.The passion of doing the work has always been there, but it’s been a matter of figuring out how to make it all work with the kind of life he wants to live. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Q: You are two years into own- ing your own restaurant with Spot- ted Duck.What did you set out to accomplish and how is it going? A: There were a couple of things I wanted to accomplish in owning my own restaurant. You work at different places and you build your career and you go through ups and downs and highs and lows and you get inspired again. In coming to open my own restaurant, I now can walk down to the farmers market and get inspired by a great head of purple cauliflower, or chard, or a certain fruit. I can change the menu when I want to. I don’t have to get approval from anyone. That’s what’s great—working off of what is fresh and in season. Q: You’re in the space that previously housed Jeninni Kitchen + Wine Bar, which for about a decade was a wildly popular place in its own right. How have customers responded to the change? A: Jeninni was a different style. It was true Mediterranean-style food, and it was known for great wine too, but the way I approach food is a little dif- ferent.We upset some loyal guests, but we built our own clientele as well. We are in year two of changing the name and the cuisine and people are excited about what we’re doing. Q: What are the things customers come back for, and what are you excited to make? Making Food on His Own Terms Spotted Duck Chef Jerr y Regester Revels in Ever ything Local and Fresh B Y R ENE E M I G I E L “When you look at great chefs, they love flavor and well-executed food. It doesn’t have to be prissy. It’s what you eat every day.”