Chef

Jemiko L Solo

✻

There are too many words to describe my cousin and business partner, Chef Jemiko L. Solo – kind, talented, dedicated, earnest, passionate, ambitious, inventive, generous. Having began his culinary career as a teenager in Tbilisi, Georgia, he learned from and cooked alongside some of the greatest chefs in the world. He was so young, they gave him a chef’s hat taller than he was! He once showed me his handwritten recipe book from this time – dozens of recipes he had learned or developed himself, the margins flooded with notes about ingredients and technique. Even at such a young age he possessed the passion and skills of any seasoned chef I’ve met. He excelled in pastry arts and always dreamt of creating his own Italian restaurant and bakery. After an extensive career, his dream finally became a reality.

Senza Gluten stemmed from Chef Jemiko’s kindness, from his desire to help people. Some of our close friends have celiac disease, and he made them a promise – someday he would open a charming restaurant for them and others for whom eating gluten free was a necessity. Everything would be gluten free, and all of the food would be more flavorsome and beautiful than you could imagine. Chef Jemiko never wavered from his vision. He believes that everyone should be able to enjoy delicious food, that no one should feel left out.

To him – to the both of us – the greatest reward is witnessing the joy our guests experience after they take their first bite. Guests often write notes to the chef on the backs of their checks, thanking him for making them feel safe. This means everything to us, and comments like these provide Chef Jemiko with a constant source of inspiration. His goal is always to bring our guests happiness on a fork, to give them what they dream about and miss the most. His enthusiasm is infectious – every member of our staff is excited to learn of new menu items and welcome new guests from around the world into our restaurant. And he loves surprising people! Tell him you miss a specific entree or pastry, and he’ll take it as a personal challenge. He’ll be in the kitchen or bakery all week, working away until it’s perfect.

It has been my personal joy and privilege to work alongside Chef Jemiko on this journey. What began as a dream to open a restaurant has turned into a family – Chef Jemiko, myself, our amazing staff, and our incredible guests.