DiningOut: What are some of your earliest food memories?
Dupree: When I was really little, I was at a Chinese restaurant with my family. I wanted to eat a Thai chili, but my mom wouldn’t let me. I threw a fit, so my dad told me it was ok. I took a bite and burst into tears…my parents thought I would hate spicy food forever.
I really started cooking on my own when I was in elementary school. I was very independent and never asked for help. I would come home from school and make myself a snack, usually ramen or macaroni and cheese. As I got older, I started making more complicated things. During high school, I would bring friends home with me and cook for them.
Before you were a chef, you played baseball. How did you make that transition?
Baseball was my life growing up, but I always enjoyed cooking as a hobby. I got injured after my sophomore year of college. I was able to play my last two years, but I wasn’t the same player. After graduating and working a few dead-end jobs, I decided I needed to start a career. The only thing I enjoyed doing was cooking, so the decision was obvious.
The transition wasn’t easy. Baseball was always intuitive for me and cooking never has been, but some of the skills that made me good at baseball helped me as a cook. Staying focused under pressure and staying disciplined have helped me in both.
How did you set yourself apart as a chef?
My work ethic and dedication have always set me apart. I’ve always looked at everyone else as competition. I thought, if I’m working harder than them, I’m going to be better and have more opportunities.
What drew you to the Chicago food world?
My fiancé and I were tired of New York. I was working 80 hours a week, and we never saw each other. We needed a change, but I wanted to live somewhere with a good food scene. I had spent a few months in Chicago in 2011, and we decided that this would be the best place for us.
And what drew you to Bernie’s specifically?
I felt like it was a place where I could make an impact and have a life outside of the restaurant as well.
How are you bringing your own personal spin to the menu?
I’ve only put a couple of my own dishes on the menu at this point. In the coming weeks we are going to make some big changes, and I’ll have more of my culinary influences on the menu. It’s going to be more focused and approachable.
What are your favorite menu items right now?
I like the tuna poke. It’s a nostalgic dish for me. When I lived in Hawaii, I ate poke on a regular basis. I merged the nostalgic dish with some flavor combinations I was introduced to by my mentor chef Harold Moore in New York and came up with the poke on the Bernie’s menu.
How does the bar program support your menu?
It usually starts with the food and our bar manager makes cocktails or chooses a beer or wine that goes with the different dishes. We have a weekly meeting where we share ideas with each other and can constantly be on the same page.
What does “fine dining” mean to you?
To me, fine dining means refined food, polished staff, and attention to detail.
What is something no one tells you about being a chef?
Being a chef is 20 jobs in one. You spend part of your day on a computer, part of your day making phone calls, part of your day cooking, running errands, dealing with cooks’ personal issues, etc. Every day I come across something unexpected.
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