A lot of chefs can whip up food fast, but few know speed like Mason Street Grill Executive Chef Mark Weber.
In addition to helming the kitchen at one of Downtown's most popular eateries, Weber races cars at track speeds approaching 150 miles per hour as a member of the Porsche Racing Club.
Weber, who has been top man in the kitchen at Mason Street Grill since it opened four years ago, began racing in 2007 and now travels across the country to race. He's finished in the top three in six races to date.
On Labor Day weekend, he will compete in the Road America Challenge at Elkhart Lake.
But, Weber says, he's not quitting his day job. As much as he loves racing, the culinary arts still fuel his passions.
"This is so satisfying on so many levels when things go well," he says.
We asked him about the kitchen, the race track and more ...
OnMilwaukee.com: Tell us about yourself. Are you a Milwaukee native?
Mark Weber: I am originally from Rochester, N.Y., although I have lived here for the last 25 years. I feel like a native.
OMC: Before we talk about the restaurant and your experience, tell us a bit about racing.
MW: I compete in a series call Porsche Club Racing. This is a venue where Porsche Club car owners can compete against one another with similar cars across the nation. It is an awesome opportunity to race at just about every national race track anywhere in the country where the local PCA club is sponsoring a race.
There are many different classes of cars from showroom stock to fully race prepared Porsche Cup cars. The classes allow drivers to compete against other drivers with cars that have similar horsepower and handling capabilities. We like to race Porsches against other Porsches.
We sometimes race with other organizations like SCCA, NASA, and SVRA as we share reciprocity with our competition driving licenses.
OMC: Is it a good stress reliever, zipping around the track at 150 mph?
MW: I never thought about it as a stress reliever but I guess you could say that it is. Everything is so intense during a race that it requires 150 percent of your concentration. You lose yourself in it. It's not like anything else I have ever done. Part of the excitement in the stress and danger involved!
OMC: Do you see any parallels between being a chef and a race car driver?
MW: Lots of preparation, focus on the details, constant learning and improving, (an) ultra competitive nature.
OMC: What kind of experience and training brought you to your current position?
MW: A great school experience at the CIA (Culinary Institute of America) in the '80s, years of hard work and long hours, fortunate to have always worked with people who are talented, driven and passionate about food.
OMC: Is it challenging to distinguish a restaurant in a neighborhood with so many great eateries in a two-block radius?
MW: The great part of being in a neighborhood with lots of restaurant in it is the energy level it creates for the neighborhood.
There is a niche for so many different types of restaurants that if we just focus on creating a guest experience with great service and quality food, we will be distinguished.
MW: We always wanted Mason Street Grill to have its own identity and a street presence and that is why we gave it its own grand entrance. It is a part of The Pfister, no doubt, but we want to be considered by Milwaukeeans as a great restaurant regardless of being in a hotel or not.
OMC: What's your a signature dish?
MW: I have always enjoyed preparing fish, I think the best fish dishes are simple and focus on the fish itself with simple and clean preparations.
OMC: What do you like most about your job?
MW: What could be better than a job where you are encouraged to endlessly play and create with food?
OMC: And least?
MW: Milwaukee is not on the ocean.
OMC: What are your favorite places to eat out in Milwaukee?
MW: Original Pancake House, Solly's, Stefano's (in Sheboygan), close to Milwaukee.
OMC: Do you have a favorite cookbook?
MW: "New American Classics" by Jeremiah Towers was my first favorite ... followed by "The Cuisine of Freddy Girardet."
Two completely different books; I still look at both.
OMC: Do you have a favorite TV or celebrity chef? Why?
MW: I love to watch Tom Colicchio on Top Chef. He is a great chef! He doesn't cook on the show but I like to imagine what the producers must edit out when he speaks his mind.
OMC: What's been the biggest development in the culinary arts over the past 10 years?
MW: People dining out are becoming more focused on the quality and integrity of ingredients. People want to know the story about the food they eat. Where does it come from, how is it produced? What makes it special or better than something else?
It is very exciting to see people interested in the aspects of food products that chefs get excited about.
OMC: Which kitchen utensil can't you live without?
MW: It's a toss up, after a chef knife, its pretty hard to live without a blender, chinois and a mandolin.
OMC: What's the next big trend in food?
MW: Sustainable food sourcing is gaining importance rapidly and this ties in with people's interest in knowing all about what they are eating. Its not the most romantic trend but as we fight for market share we need to consider it.
OMC: What's the toughest night to work in the business?
MW: Sunday. It's a good one to spend with the family and usually your pretty beat up after a busy Saturday.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
