Harrison Ford may be a star of the silver screen, but his his son, Ben, is the star in the kitchen.
The younger Ford has been in Park City the past few days — not hobnobbing with Sundance celebrities, but cooking. He was hired by Andersen Windows to cater a dinner during the film festival at its posh model home, called inHOME.
While working in the state-of-the-art kitchen, Ford spoke about his food philosophy, his famous dad and what people can do to be better cooks.
Ford, 37, resembles his dad in voice and build. "But I'm a bit heavier, because he's got a personal trainer who makes him work out. It's hard having a dad who can out-bench press you, even when I was an athlete for a living. But, I guess he's doing it for a living, too."
A few years ago Ford created a culinary buzz when he opened Chadwick, a Beverly Hills restaurant based on organic ingredients, some of it grown in his own garden. The menu changed daily, depending on what was ripe and at peak flavor. It was named after Alan Chadwick, the organic gardening pioneer and a colleague of Ford's maternal uncle, Paul Lee.
Ford sold the restaurant last January but retained the name for his catering company, Chadwick Fine Food and Special Events.
"We dethroned Wolfgang the first year, we really gave him a run for his money," said Ford, referring to Wolfgang Puck's trendy Spago, which usually topped the "best-restaurant" list. "But it took a lot of work to pull off that concept, we had to run our own organic farm. I do want to do it again sometime, but I need the energy and effort and time to do it."
When you own a restaurant, he added, "You are in it for the long haul. Maybe that's why my dad likes to act, there's a beginning and and end to it. But when you have a restaurant, there's no end to it, no finish line."
Catering gives Ford a finish line for each event, and more time with his wife, Elizabeth, and 3-year-old son, Ethan.
Ford said he grew up watching the French chef, Jacques Pepin, on TV, and learned to cook from his videos. But he didn't consider doing it for a living until a shoulder injury sidelined a potential baseball career while playing for the University of Southern California. He studied at the University of Dijon in France and the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco and honed his skills at high-profile "foodie" spots — Chez Panisse, Greens, Opus, Campanile, the Arzak in San Sebastian, Spain, and The Farm of Beverly Hills.
No, his dad didn't encourage him to try acting instead of working long hours over a hot stove.
"I think there's a desire in my family for everybody to earn your own keep and take responsibility for your own success," he said. "You should know what your own accomplishments are."
Consequently, he's not star-struck when cooking for the Hollywood crowd. "I'd rather cook for someone who really appreciates my food rather than another name I can add to the list. Besides, the majority of these actors don't stick; one day they've got their own TV series, and the next day they're done. So why treat them differently? It will only be harder on them later."
Ford designed the Andersen inHOME menu after seeing photos of the Park City house, which affords stunning views of the mountains. He chose herb-crusted halibut with warm mushroom potato salad and truffle essence, braised short ribs with salsa verde and winter vegetables, and ricotta-apple fritters with apple jam.
In the kitchen he showed how to pat the herb-and-bread crumb crust onto a halibut fillet to get more of a "lacy" crunch than a breaded texture. He sauteed it, then let it finish cooking in the oven, which he says is a good technique that home cooks could adopt.
"Your oven is your friend, because it has a nice slow temperature. You don't need to cook something only on the stovetop or blacken it to death on the grill. Just get the grill marks on it, and then finish it off in the oven."
Another lesson for home cooks is "not to be so recipe-oriented. Just learn your technique."
Ford remains passionate about organic foods and using them in season. "You can get tomatoes year-round, but I wait until they're at their best."
His catering gig — from last Thursday to Tuesday — didn't allow time to take in any Sundance flicks. Besides, he added, "I'm kind of a movie nerd, I don't get out to many movies. At night when people are going out, I'm working."
But he did name his favorite Harrison Ford films: "Mosquito Coast, Blade Runner, The Fugitive and Presumed Innocent — not necessarily in that order."
The younger Ford has his own productions that his dad enjoys. "He's a meat-and-potatoes guy, so he likes all the roasted stuff, like leg of lamb," he said. "We have dinner together on a weekly basis, and I probably cook for him once a month."
With his show-business connections, a celebrity chef-style TV program would seem a natural fit. In fact, Ford did a stint a few years ago, and admits it's a great way to promote your restaurant. But some chefs pay less attention to their restaurants once they get in front of the camera.
"It's a different generation now, and it's hard for the young chefs to see what's really important," he said. "What's not important is ego, or being a movie star. What's important to me is being a good chef, a good teacher, and a good boss."
E-MAIL: vphillips@desnews.com