Ella Dining Room and Bar in Sacramento Welcomes their New Executive Chef from San Francisco’s Wayfare Tavern
Industry: Food & Drink
Chef Michael Thiemann comes home to Sacramento as the new executive chef of Ella Dining Room and Bar after a culinary journey that landed him as executive chef of Wayfare Tavern and Hawks Tavern, both located in the Bay Area and owned by famed chef and Food Network star, Tyler Florence.
Sacramento, CA (PRUnderground) January 4th, 2012
Native son, Chef Michael Thiemann, comes home to Sacramento as the new executive chef of Ella Dining Room and Bar after a culinary journey that landed him as executive chef of Wayfare Tavern and Hawks Tavern, both located in the Bay Area and owned by famed chef and Food Network star, Tyler Florence.
During Chef Thiemann’s tenure at Wayfare Tavern, it was named “Best New Restaurant” by the San Francisco Bay Guardian and “Best Standby Kitchen” by Eater SF, and is also one of Open Table’s Top Five Most Booked Restaurants in the Bay Area.
Thiemann honed his kitchen skills over a decade, starting in 1995 at Midtown Sacramento’s beloved Greta’s Café. He then worked at some of the area’s top sushi restaurants in order to expand his culinary repertoire, meanwhile remaining a noted member of the city’s music scene until 2003, when he was named sous chef at the forward-thinking modern restaurant and lounge, Mason’s, under his mentor, Executive Chef Phillip Wang.
In 2007, Thiemann left Sacramento for New Zealand, where he was opening executive chef of the boutique restaurant, Hapuku Lodge, in the New Zealand wine country. He also spent time in the northern New Zealand city of Wellington, and then traveled to Hawaii as executive chef at Merriman’s on the Big Island, after which he landed the prestigious assignment with Tyler Florence at Wayfare and Hawks, opening as executive chef for both.
Says Thiemann, “I’ve always admired the Selland Family (who own Ella Dining Room and Bar, Selland’s Market-Café and The Kitchen), for setting the bar so high in the region, so I couldn’t pass up the to come back to Sacramento and take the reins at Ella. It’s all very exciting for me because we share a love of food, family and the region. It’s a perfect fit.”
“We’ve known Mike for a long time and have followed his career,” said Randall Selland, chef owner of Ella Dining Room and Bar. “We were surprised and delighted we could convince him to come back to Sacramento.”
Michael Thiemann starts at Ella Dining Room and Bar on February 1, 2012.
About Ella Dining Room & Bar:
Ella Dining Room and Bar is a casual fine dining restaurant that offers the highest quality seasonal and regionally sourced ingredients – promoting local and sustainable growers, farmers, and ranchers. The menu features entrees of seafood, steaks, and pastas, many small plates, salads, a fresh cold seafood bar with oysters, shrimp and more, as well as an award winning wine list, handcrafted artisanal cocktails and in-house desserts. Ella is centrally located in downtown Sacramento, on the corner of 12th and K streets, just a block from the State Capitol, the Convention Center and major hotels and theaters. Ella has won accolades for food, service, and design from local, national and international publications and organizations.
Ella Dining Room & Bar
1131 K Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 443-3772
Hours: Monday – Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. & Saturday, 5:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
www.elladiningroomandbar.com
