FRESH HORIZONS

Chef Lee Kuebler cradles a tiny young goat in his arms—the two of them looking like figures in a Dutch realist painting. The little kid blinks and bleats, nuzzling for release to the cool pavement below.

“He’s ready to explore,” laughs Kuebler, the executive chef at Elawa Farms who is shaping its first café.

Hands washed and fresh apron tucked, Kuebler deftly peels fava beans for a private dinner dish and describes the unusual career path he followed that made the job at Elawa irresistible.

“Professional Gardener Certification … flower farming … culinary schooling … owning and operating restaurants. Amazingly, working here brings everything full circle,” he says. “It allows me to draw from all of the work experience and training I have had in the last 15 years, and to take that in new directions.”

Delve a little more into that timeline and it all adds up. Gardening in his youth and a Professional Gardener Certification from the Chicago Botanic Garden led Kuebler to work as a commercial flower farmer in West Central Illinois. There, his skill at creating elaborate meals from local goods for clients at the flower farm led him to complete culinary training at Kendall College. After that, he had stints working for such renowned chefs as Carlos Gaytan, Michael Lachowicz, and Michael Kornick. Those experiences, along with valuable mentoring in the restaurant business from David Morton, prepared Kuebler to open three restaurants in Libertyville. After a successful run, Keubler sold the restaurants and came to Elawa.

Joining the team at this juncture in Elawa’s 107-year history is especially exciting for Kuebler, as many new horizons expand. With the closing of the campus’s Wildlife Discovery Center last March, Elawa launched plans for a major $2 million expansion that will enhance its campus and community programs. Construction for phase one of the project started this spring, with phases two and three projected for completion in spring 2025.

“We received approval to develop a farm animal program, on-site café, new production kitchen, community cooking school, visitor center, classroom, hoophouse and more,” explains Laura Calvert, Executive Director. “Everything aligned with our mission to enrich the greater Lake County community as a center for experiential learning, increased access to education, nutritious food, and our local food system.”

The animal barn, for example, will allow Elawa to host farm animals for youth and educational programs, plus allow for the development of animal therapy programs to benefit community members with disabilities. The new commercial kitchen will not only service the café, community dinners, and private events, but will accommodate Elawa’s growth in food production and distribution, showcase Elawa’s harvest, and highlight the farm’s partnership with a network of more than 50 local farms and food producers.

Plans to partner with local culinary institutions here will also provide training for next generation farm-totable chefs. Meanwhile, the new classroom and Visitors Center will expand Elawa’s “Seed to Plate” educational offerings and demonstrations to year-round programs. And the newly refurbished Learning Kitchen will be used to develop a community cooking school and provide incubator space for emerging food businesses.

While Kuebler will have a hand in many of the programs, his current focus is on shaping menus for the new daytime café. Because of the historic nature of the original farm, the café—to be located in the building at the south end, will be small, with 35 indoor seats.

“The vision is for the café is to be an added amenity for farm visitors with an approachable, pleasant ambiance and a seasonally driven menu,” says Kuebler.

While price points will be reasonable (menus will have plenty of sandwiches, salads, and soups) preparations will be elevated to best showcase hyper-fresh Elawa-grown produce and local farm provisions.

“The goal is that 85 percent of what we serve will be sourced from Elawa or one of the 50 local farms and growers that we work with,” Kuebler explains.

Menu stylings for the café will be Midwestern, French-influenced, and rooted in Old World European traditions—applying minimal technique and allowing the key ingredients to shine.

“There will be plenty of small plates, with a few knife-and-fork offerings,” he adds.

While much is still under wraps, Kuebler did reveal that he is recipe testing a porketta sandwich, and agreed to generously share the recipe for his meltingly-tender Leek Terrine with Whipped Goat Cheese Mousse (also in this issue on page 38) which will be on the café menu.

Elawa Farm Foundation is located at 1401 Middlefork Drive in Lake Forest. For more information, call 847-234-1966 or visit elawafarm.org.