Don’t be fooled by Chef Brad Kilgore’s gentle and quiet demeanor. Behind the soft-spoken Midwestern disposition lies a powerhouse of culinary talent and creativity that’ll blow your socks off.
It explains the unabating success Kilgore, 36, has experienced, beginning with stints at Chicago’s 3-star Michelin-rated Alinea and 2-star Michelin-rated L20 by the time he was just 23 years old. He went on to open Epic in Chicago (the restaurant has since closed but was named one of food-critic John Mariani’s Best New Restaurants of 2010), before heading down to Miami on vacation in 2011 and deciding to stay and call it home.
“[Miami] kind of has its own thing going. It was buzzing and it just seemed like a great place to really try to be a part of something,” Kilgore says, before adding gleefully, “One thing I like to say is that most people work their whole lives to retire here — I got here in my 20s!”
In South Florida, he began working at Azul in the Mandarin Oriental Miami, the lauded restaurant that served as launching pad for other greats like Chefs Michelle Bernstein and Clay Conley. Kilgore drew national attention with the opening of Alter in Wynwood in 2015, whose 15-course tasting menu won him a slew of awards, including Best New Chef in America by Food & Wine magazine in 2016. Other hits followed: Kaido, a Japanese-inspired cocktail lounge and Ember, a wood-fired American bistro.
His latest project, MaryGold’s, recently opened much to the glee of those carefully following Kilgore’s resplendent trajectory. Housed inside the Arlo Hotel in Wynwood, the airy, jovial space is a partnership between Kilgore and two close friends and industry icons, Gabe Orta and Elad Zvi, co-owners of Bar Lab and the famed Broken Shaker, responsible for raising the bar on creative and thoughtful cocktails in South Florida.
“Their careers started off very similar to mine — in the beverage world. They broke out, being creative and doing something that wasn’t found regularly here in Miami or in South Florida. They took a chance on themselves and started making cool cocktails with different ingredients and flavors,” Kilgore says.
Open the menu and you’ll find the genesis for the restaurant’s name:
French Onion Burger
“Like a single rose blooming in a concrete jungle, MaryGold’s is a haven amidst the hustle and bustle of the Wynwood Arts District. The restaurant’s name is inspired by the classic, yet eclectic and carefree personality one might find in a cosmopolitan city. Cultured, worldly and well-traveled, while remaining true to her roots, Mary G’s is a muse for the ‘New Wynwood.’”
Kilgore, who has coined the term “Florida Brasserie” as a descriptor for the eatery, explains: “We wanted to represent the sort of melting pot of all the cultures that Miami and Florida are now and how there’s a lot of things at our fingertips [and] that there’s also different expectations.”
Steak Au Poivre
He adds that, while not a French restaurant, a brasserie means diners can expect good service and find something on the menu everyone is going to love. One look at the selection emphasizes that. Starters like the Layered Brioche, freshly baked in the shape of a marigold, served piping hot alongside sourdough butter dotted with orange blossom honey sets the tone for the elevated comfort food that awaits. Beignets crowned with Jerk Oxtail, coconut-gouda and green onion or Ribiolina Tortellini with Escargot, pistachio bourguignon and parsley emphasize Kilgore’s creative genius. For those craving a good old-fashioned burger, the French Onion Burger (steak patty, compte brulee, grilled onion marmalade and roasted garlic dijon) simply cannot be beat.
Caviar And Sweet Potato Waffle
Unless you do as we did and ask Chef what his favorite go-to meal is.
“I love just a good pomodoro pasta,” Kilgore says, adding that he offers a version of it on the menu.
He’s talking about the Hand Cut Tagliatelle made with Homestead pomodoro, sweet crab, “gjetost” (a Norwegian cheese) crema and scallop parmesan.
Listening to him describe the dish is almost as lyrical as savoring it. Long, flat ribbons of pasta dressed in creamy, bright sauce brimming with crab and just the right amount of heat, topped with shavings of parmesan is the ultimate Kilgore power punch of flavor, vision and skill.
Layered Brioche
“My mother’s side of the family, they’re all artists one way or another. I’m not a painter, I’m not a drawer, so I think I found the need,” he explains.
A new father (his son, Liam, is 7 months old), Kilgore recently made a few adjustments with his eating habits, introducing intermittent fasting and losing 50 pounds. He still enjoys his favorite dishes — like the tagliatelle — just not seven days a week.
“I don’t even want to call it a diet. It wasn’t this big thing, it just felt good immediately and I felt results immediately and I feel physically better, more energized, more confident,” Kilgore says.
For now, he’s enthusiastic to be working with people he admires and creating inspiring dishes in one of the country’s most vibrant culinary spots.
“We love that we’re a part of the next chapter of Wynwood and part of the growth of Miami itself, “he says.
Chili Crab Pomodoro With Creamy Tomato Jam, Gjetost Crema & Fresh Tagliatelle
Serves 4-6
Creamy Tomato Jam
1 28-ounce can San Marzano tomatoes
4 garlic cloves, sliced
½ cup heavy cream
¼ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped
Juice of half a lemon
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 teaspoon crushed red chili flakes
Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit
• Line a baking tray with olive oil and parchment.
• Drain the liquid from the tomatoes and gently crush by hand. Reserve the liquid.
• Mix the crushed tomatoes with the rest of the ingredients in a bowl.
• Pour onto the parchment-lined pan and bake for 35-45 minutes, you want the juices to concentrate but don’t want the sides to burn. Stir with a rubber spatula every 10-15 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and let the creamy tomato jam cool to room temperature.
• Pulse gently in a food processor to keep some texture.
For the Gjetost Crema:
4 ounces Gjetost Cheese (available at specialty markets and Amazon), diced
2 ounces cream cheese
2 ounces parmigiano
10 ounces heavy cream
1 teaspoon dashi powder (Hon Dashi)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon sea salt
• Place all ingredients but the cream in a blender.
• Heat the cream to a boil and pour over the other ingredients in the blender.
• Blend on high until smooth (about 45-60 seconds).
For the Finish:
1 pound fresh tagliatelle pasta
3 cups of the Creamy Tomato Jam
1-pound blue crab lump or jumbo lump meat
¾ cup parmesan
Juice of 1 lemon
Zest of 1 lemon
¼ cup unsalted butter
2 tablespoons fresh tarragon, chopped
Pinch of crushed red chili flakes
• Boil tagliatelle in gently salted water.
• While it’s boiling, place the Creamy Tomato Jam in a wide shallow pot or sauté pan (non-stick preferably).
• Warm the tomato jam but be sure not to boil or reduce.
• Once the pasta is al dente, remove from boiling water and add to your tomato jam pan.
• Gently stir 2-3 times.
• Add the remaining items and fold/stir it all together until creamy and emulsified.
• Serve immediately and pour the Gjetost Crema around the pasta, top with more chili flakes and parmesan at your discretion.