Orland Park native puts twist on fine dining
Chef Jenner Tomaska opens art-focused, philanthropic Esmé in Chicago’s Lincoln Park
When chef Jenner Tomaska was planning his next big career step, the first restaurant he could call his own, he asked himself a tough question.
“Is a restaurant really necessary right now?” said Tomaska, a Sandburg High School alumnus. “As a person who’s done this for their entire life — it’s the only job I’ve ever done — it’s a very daunting thing to ask yourself.”
But he said the culture has been challenging the importance of fine dining, so he felt there had to be a deeper mission if he moved forward.
That’s what led to Esmé, French for “beloved,” the restaurant Tomaska launched in August with his wife and co-owner, Katrina Bravo, in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. The business is about more than another tasting menu. So much so that the food is one of the last things Tomaska talks about when discussing his artist-inspired and philanthropic concept.
“It’s about the story and mission of what we’re trying to create,” he said. “We’re trying to set a higher standard and create an experience that can bring people in and showcase others, whether it’s the art on the walls, whoever is making the plateware, the silverware, the tables, the table bases.”
The restaurant was designed by architectural firm Harley Ellis Devereaux with Esmé’s art focus as a core building block. A Champagne tower by industrial designer and artist Benjamin Edgar greets diners, and walls function as canvas for exhibiting artists and collaborators.
Esmé offers a 12-course tasting menu that evolves seasonally, inspired by Chicago’s artistic community while simultaneously showcasing it. Tomaska and Bravo also plan to curate collaborative dinners with creative talents. A quarterly dinner series may see those collaborators actively participate, telling diners who they are and what they stand for. A portion of proceeds will support that individual’s philanthropic endeavors or projects.
That philanthropy was a cornerstone of Esmé as a concept, made possible by selling seats in advance. This allows Esmé to set prices in a way owners know how much they can spend for something meaningful.
“Most restaurants operate tonight’s revenue to pay last week’s bills,” Tomaska said. “That isn’t the case here. We know what our revenues are for the next two months.”
Tomaska said he wants people to enjoy the food, sure, but he also hopes they find something they don’t get anywhere else.
“I hope the art on the wall gets sold,” he said. “I hope the silverware on the table gets spotlighted. I hope the wine we’re pouring gets the time it deserves.”
Climbing the ladder
Tomaska grew up in Orland Park. He does not come from a great lineage of skilled chefs, but said he was “lucky enough to eat at some OK places growing up.” He fell in love with the restaurant industry, getting his first job around 14 years old busing tables and washing dishes at The Wild Boar.
“I had to get a note from school to make sure it was OK,” Tomaska recalled.
He also worked at a Dairy Queen and 94 West in Orland Park. He relates his love of food service to what some find in sports.
“It’s like a team. It’s like you’re competing every night, and the people you work with are your team members,” he said. “That competitive nature and family aspect has always been something that keeps drawing me back.”
After high school, Tomaska considered several culinary programs before settling on Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island.
“Leaving the state is something I wanted to do to venture out,” he said.
Tomaska earned degrees in culinary arts and food service management. He briefly worked on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, but found himself quickly back in Chicago, taking a job as a tournant with mk restaurant.
“Chicago has always been home,” Tomaska said. “It just felt right, and it’s really where I wanted to continue learning and educating myself on my craft.”
Under chefs Michael Kornick and Erick Williams, he honed his skills. There was a high standard for the food there, of course, but Tomaska said the education did not stop at the kitchen.
“It was these life lessons in critical thinking skills,” he said. “It was about connecting with your team members and treating them like family, and going above and beyond to support a team. That embodied a lot of the values I still have today and I hold dear today that we hope to keep here at Esmé.”
Tomaska was hired by Next Restaurant, which rotates themes seasonally, helping him build a foundation for a concept that changes cuisine, plateware and service on a regular basis. He was promoted to sous chef and then chef de cuisine, working under executive chef Dave Beran. He said he was a soundboard of sorts for Beran’s creative process, talking flavors, presentation and how to be creative in a kitchen.
“I don’t think I’m this natural savant of a creative,” Tomaska said. “That was a skill set that I had to learn and sharpen. I’m very much just driven as a hardworking person. I’m really good at doing the day-to-day tasks.”
Tomaska was eventually promoted to executive chef, reporting directly to famed Alinea chef Grant Achatz. He also earned two James Beard Rising Chef Star nominations during his time there. But he and the restaurant parted ways in late 2018.
‘My dream was to open a restaurant and be a business owner,” he said. “That’s what sparked my interest in leaving.”
Collaborating
Tomaska said he has worked on the concept for Esmé for a long time, building relationships and doing research and development.
Bravo supports staff, development and more. Tomaska said they complement each other well.
“I’m just very thankful my wife is as passionate about this and dedicated and supportive,” he said.
Tomaska also found a collaborative partner in beverage manager Tia Barrett, who oversees pairings for the tasting menu and a bar that features craft cocktails, spirits and beer. Barrett’s aim is to showcase underrepresented winemakers as well those with philanthropic missions.
“Tia very much so was passionate about those things,” Tomaska said.
The collaborative spirit is apparent in the dishes Tomaska and his team create. One of Tomaska’s personal favorites is a saltbaked sablefish wrapped in squash blossoms. Tomaska said the idea came from his time with David Kim of DTK Ceramics, who is working on plateware for Esmé.
“He let me hang out in the shop for a couple of days and walked me through throwing clay and what other mediums he works in — just how he goes through creating,” Tomaska said.
While in the studio, Tomaska spotted burnt wood ash used in the glazing process to turn everything a unique black color. He decided to use plates and a giant platter in that black, and then took some of the burnt wood ash to make a salt bake for an otherwise traditional wrapped fish loin to be opened tableside.
“The salt bake’s kind of mimicking the platter, in a sense,” Tomaska explained.
The uncle of Esmé’s sous chef, Sebastian Cruz, whittles wood and made a trio of plates out of hickory. The culinary team serves a three-component dish on them highlighting Santa Barbara spot prawns and peaches.
“Always one person gets the recognition,” Tomaska said. “It’s a famous chef or a name. None of this is possible without a team. That’s how I’ve always operated.”
But Tomaska said he also has fun with his creative freedom.
“It’s very much so about breaking the traditional fine dining model,” Tomaska said. “I don’t like the word casual. I don’t like the word fine dining. It sets you up for an expectation of something we’re not necessarily trying to accomplish here.”
The opening months of Esmé have been exciting and busy, he said.
“We’re just trying to take it one day at a time and still enjoy it and be in the moment,” he said. “You get swept away in the day-today routine, so it’s hard to appreciate things while we’re in the moment, but we are happy with where we’re at right now.”
Esmé is at 2200 N. Clark St. in Chicago. Reservations for the tasting menu must be booked in advance, but a 20-seat bar is open to walk-in customers. For more information, go to esmechicago.com.