Baker & Wife
“When we opened the restaurant, ‘season’ was season and ‘out of season’ was a time to relax, regroup, reinvent. Now Tuesday is Saturday and Saturday is something else entirely…” —Isaac Correa, owner and executive chef, Baker & Wife
Baker & Wife is full to the brim on this particular Tuesday night. There are people waiting for tables, the bar is packed, the dining room is buzzing, and the sidewalk tables are enjoying the late-February weather that has long attracted snowbirds to Sarasota and is now attracting “birds” (read: many many people) of a longer-term variety. Owner and Executive Chef Isaac Correa is occupying the same domain that I’ve always seen him occupy during service: He’s behind the line, checking dishes and pizzas for perfection and adding finishing flourishes with the finesse of a symphony conductor.
“When we opened, everyone told us it was a cursed location and that we would be closed in six months. We’re still going strong eight years later. We always feel like we must move forward, we don’t grow complacent—and nobody in this business should. It’s nice to be a part of something so successful.”
A busy night is never the right time to chat with a chef, so I take the opportunity to enjoy a meal with some friends and absorb the atmosphere. My friend, Jakub, remarks that he feels like we’re eating dinner at a speakeasy located on the showroom floor of a high-end home décor store. This would probably tickle the chef; he and his business partners are all about innovating and pop-ups and high-concept ventures. One of those partners is Louis Robinson, a talented chef in his own right who started doing pop-up dinners with Baker & Wife shortly after they opened. Isaac and friends have recently helped to open a Caribbean restaurant in Walnut Creek, California, and are working on a seafood restaurant in Chelsea, New York.
“I have spent a lot of time in both Russia and the Ukraine. It is a delicate and disturbing situation. I’ve been losing sleep.”
Chef Isaac hails from New York and both of his parents are from Puerto Rico. He and his wife, Iya, have deep social and professional roots in Russia and Ukraine and have spent a lot of time in both countries. Their son, Kannon, was born in Moscow. Isaac recently opened his eighth restaurant in Ukraine, a totally vegan eatery called Good Girl with a beautiful Instagram feed. Kannon worked at their bakery in Moscow for fun as a young man and now waits tables at Baker & Wife. He is the reason that his family discovered Sarasota: He played basketball in Moscow and was then referred to IMG Academy in Bradenton through a camp in California. Iya fell in love with Sarasota and the family ended up here with no intention of starting a restaurant but Isaac’s life revolves around food and the inevitable happened as it inevitably does.
“Often you think ‘I’m going to teach these people; I’m going to show them how to do it.’ But if you are humble and open-minded then you learn from them, you can adapt and grow.”
Baker & Wife managed to retain their core staff through the pandemic and have been lucky enough to attract more staff recently, even as other restaurants struggle to find decent help. Isaac attributes the new staff to referrals from loyal guests. He believes in a collaborative approach to mentoring; he tries to have a special from every station every night and encourages the team members running those stations to come up with ideas. He likes to keep them challenged and motivated and empower them to contribute. Isaac’s second in command is Andrew Rawley (who, proud New York native Isaac loves to mention, is the son of Shane Rawley, former pitcher for the New York Yankees). There’s also Jan on pizza and Ryan on the cold station. Jan was a bartender and server before becoming the pizza guy and Isaac plans to send him to more pizza classes for continuing education. Ryan works the cold station as well as making desserts, which is also a collaborative part of the menu. All team members are encouraged to focus on seasonality: Think bubblegum ice cream with seasonal strawberries and red velvet cake.
“I’m getting close to 60 and I’m still able to do what I love, and what I am passionate about—I never really have time to get bored.”
Chef Isaac shows no signs of slowing down but he’s not planning a new restaurant in Sarasota any time soon. He won’t open a different place unless it’s right. He is, however, interested in adding on to what’s working so well at Baker & Wife. He’s considering a pop-up ramen night, a Monday-night pizza throwdown, and maybe (if season ever lets up this year) brunch. On a rare night off, Isaac and Iya had occasion to visit a new restaurant in Southside Village— Meliora. He was impressed and delighted by the experience.
“When you work in this business so much you are often tired, and you stay home and cook a simple piece of chicken. Meliora, hats off to them, we enjoyed it so much. It was something unexpected. That was such a great experience. I hope they do really well.”
I asked Chef Isaac if there was anything that he really wanted to say, anything that I absolutely had to include in this article, and I’ll leave you with his answer.
“Thank you, Sarasota, that we are still here and successful—it is beyond our wildest dreams.”
>Baker & Wife: 2157 Siesta Dr, Sarasota; 941-960-1765; bakerwife.com
Visit ediblesarasota.com for Kimche Omlette recipe
