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Innovative Flair
Written By: Marlene Osteen | Issue: August - 2022
Years of discoveries, and a series of kitchen adventures and innovations have brought Matt Weinstein to Skyline Lodge’s Oak Steakhouse.
In the sort of twist that you’d find in a Hollywood biopic,16-year-old Matt Weinstein was washing dishes at his localbar and grill on the day the fry cook walked off the job.That, as it turned out, was Weinstein’s big opportunity. Fromthe dish station, he moved to the fryer. He learned on the job,eventually moving through all the kitchen stations, workingthere through his remaining high school years.“I loved the comradery in the kitchen, creating new anddifferent dishes that people loved to eat,” he said.He took a year off after high school “to figure out what Iwanted to do,” and started thinking about cooking as a career.In 2007, at the chef’s urging, he enrolled at the CulinaryInstitute of America.By 2012, after an internship at Asheville’s Biltmore Estate and astint at Washington, DC’s 701 Restaurant, and two years work-ing the hot and cold stations at Volt Restaurant in Maryland,he landed the Sous Chef position at Family Meal. Foundedby celebrity chef and Top Chef finalist Bryan Voltaggio, therestaurant featured upscale diner food.Weinstein moved to Atlanta and accepted the sous chef positionat Woodfire Grill – eventually taking over the kitchen andworking there for two years before it closed in 2015.He found a new home as Executive Chef at One Midtown Kitchen,where he was recognized by The Atlanta Journal food critic forwhat she described as ““creativity happening in the kitchen rightnow as Weinstein and his team give a modern spin to recognizabledishes and aren’t afraid to call on global influences.”Last year, Weinstein found his next course at Indigo RoadHospitality Group’s Oak Steakhouse in Atlanta. And hecouldn’t have been more thrilled when he was invited to leadthe kitchen at the location at Skyline Lodge. Weinstein and hiswife, Markie, had long yearned for an opportunity to leave citylife behind and settle in the mountains.Weinstein brings an innovative flair to the Oak menu, empha-sizing imagination and a marriage of mountain ingredients toclassic steakhouse fare.Dishes like Venison Wellington with a carrot puree and huntersauce, and NC Trout topped with a crab cake and a sorrel beurreblanc are a burst of energy and bright flavors.As Weinstein says, “I like to experiment, while letting the seasonand surrounding area inspire me. But it’s a team effort, I makesure it’s a collaborative effort and we have fun in the process.”
by Marlene Osteen, photo by Molly Harris
