Executive Chef Bernie Kantak
Cowboy Ciao, Kazimierz world wine bar, Mexican Standoff

Syracuse, New York native Bernie Kantak is living proof that cooking is an art form. As a child, he was more interested in art than food. After his first experience with college cafeteria food, he saw the necessity of learning to cook if he wanted to eat well during the next four years. Early attempts had him randomly tossing things in pots and hoping for the best. Between the hits and misses, the lasting lesson was to follow his instincts, fearlessly experiementing with flavors, textures and temperatures, something now second nature to him.

After receiving a degree in sculpture (B.A. Fine Arts, SUNY Cortland) he realized the depth of his passion for cooking and accepted it as an extension of his artistic talent. After being graduated from culinary school (A.S. Culinary Arts, Scottsdale Culinary Institute/Le Cordon Bleu) he began combining classical training and relentless creativity to develop his personal approach to cooking.  Despite his formal education and years of experience, he still insists he just throws things together in whatever artful ways strike him at any given moment.

When creating new dishes, Kantak says he cooks "by feel." Coming from a Neo-Dadaist art background, he begins with a handful of ideas but since the result he envisions isn't necessarily what a typical guest might enjoy, he often seeks feedback and adapts dishes accordingly. He fondly and vividly remembers many family recipes prepared by his Hungarian grandmother while he was growing up and draws considerable inspiration from them today.

A disciple of finely crafted beers, Kantak enjoyed cooking with beer for many years, but when he began at Cowboy Ciao and later became executive chef of both the restaurant and neighbor/sister venue, Kazimierz world wine bar, his introduction to the world of wine began. He discovered the powerful, synergistic effect of a wine and food pairing elevating a dining experience to greater heights. Perhaps his artistic background fuels his almost innate ability to invent uncanny and successful food & wine matches, making him a perfect match for the wine-driven venues of Spaghetti Western Productions. Although he initially found wine-pairing dinners intimidating, he now relishes them and in September 2007 collaborated with his fellow SWP chefs on a pairing dinner at the James Beard Foundation in New York.

Since Kantak neither rests on his laurels nor basks in the limelight, the October 2005 PHOENIX Magazine named Bernie "the most underrated chef in the Valley" and said "while you never see him, you know he's there." Arizona Republic restaurant reviewer Howard Seftel has bestowed numerous accolades on Bernie's one-of-a-kind dishes and in the 2005 Best of Phoenix called Cowboy Ciao the "Best Place to Expect the Unexpected" (although legions of fans and first-timers have made Kantak's addictive Stetson Chopped Salad a fixture on the lunch and dinner menus).

As a creative force in downtown Scottsdale restaurateur Peter Kasperski's acclaimed and growing collection of one-of-a-kind dining experiences, Kantak and his recipes were included in the April 2008 Food + Wine feature which dubbed Kasperski an 'oeno-provocateur'. The duo's most recent collaboration is Mexican Standoff, a sophisticated interpretation of regional Mexican dishes and other Latin cuisines, opening at SouthBridge in Summer 2008.