Michael McDonald—the prolific local chef, not the Doobie Brother—has experimented with so many ingredients over his three-decade career that he’ll occasionally forget parts of his own recipes. Luckily his contact list is full of former mentors, students, and collaborators.
And the great thing about sending a quick text is “you don’t have to have a full-blown conversation,” he said.
“I don’t really need to find out how your kids are doing, I just want to know what’s in this,” said McDonald, the chef, founder, and owner of the Salty Brigade Kitchen, a new Santa Maria eatery that opened its doors in July.
Although McDonald’s background is primarily in high-end fine dining, his goal with the Salty Brigade Kitchen was to keep its casual menu as approachable and affordable as possible. Part of this is achieved by constantly shifting the restaurant’s offerings, based on what’s in season and locally available.
“I’m trying to keep my prices very reasonable and low, and that’s from being able to shop from different purveyors and asking, ‘Hey what’s going on with this?’ or, ‘What price is this,’ so I can keep my price points low, by being able to know how to bring in different proteins and stuff,” he said.
Tuna, for example, is currently “running all the way up the California Coast” and thus the headliner of the Salty Brigade Kitchen’s tuna tartar taco, which McDonald described as a customer favorite. Another popular taco at the eatery is the crunchy chicken taco, but it’s getting axed soon to make room for the new Korean short rib taco.
“People are already upset because they want me to keep it on there,” said McDonald, who chose to list his ever-evolving menu on paper spools above the restaurant’s front counter, making it easier to revise.
As a casual eatery, the Salty Brigade Kitchen asks its patrons to seat themselves (no reservations taken) and order at the counter. For particular groups of customers, McDonald currently offers a special 10 percent discount—members of law enforcement, firefighters, doctors, nurses, and teachers, as a way of thanking them for their services, especially over the past year and a half.
“I don’t think many people appreciated how hard teachers really work until the pandemic,” said McDonald, who wants all kinds of essential workers to feel included on the discount.
Some of the Salty Brigade Kitchen’s current menu offerings, which range from “munchies” to “chef master plates,” include the grilled citrus mahi mahi, the all-American burger, beef sliders, chicken yakitori, fish ’n’ chips, deviled eggs, and the grilled maple Texas pork chop (perfectly placed atop a bowl of lemon truffle macaroni and cheese). There’s also a kids’ menu, nicknamed “Lil Brigaders.”
McDonald occasionally personalizes the names of his items—from the Palm Springs arugula to the San Diego hot dog—to reflect nostalgia for the various cities he’s worked in, largely because one of his favorite aspects of the restaurant industry is the amount of travel opportunities it’s allowed him. It’s also the only field he’s ever worked in.
“It was something that came easy to me,” said McDonald, who enjoyed cooking from a young age.
At 18, he started working his first restaurant job. He then went on to study culinary arts and hospitality at both Santa Barbara City College and Cal Poly Pomona.
Although he took the scholarly route himself, McDonald recommends that young, aspiring chefs seek mentors to work under instead, adding that “it’s better to work for a chef and at least make minimum wage” than pay an arm and a leg for culinary school.
Recently tasked with training new staff members in his own kitchen, McDonald described the teaching aspect of his job as “part of my passion.” He likes to think of his kitchen staff as an athletic team.
“It’s just like sports. The more practice and the harder we work together, the better the team will get,” McDonald said. “Have you ever been to a restaurant on a Tuesday and it’s really good, but then you go on a Wednesday and it’s meh? Those inconsistencies come from the team.”
While the “brigade” in the restaurant’s name is a nod to McDonald’s kitchen staff, the “salty” solely refers to the chef in charge.
“Because I can be kind of salty, you know? Myself,” McDonald explained.
Send sweet and salty comments to Arts Editor Caleb Wiseblood at cwiseblood@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Sep 30 – Oct 7, 2021.