There are a lot of stereotypes surrounding chefdom. Visions of the back of house are often caricatured as larger-than-life celebrity chefs with even larger egos. Kitchens can be mislabeled as loud and emotional workplaces, and though there are reasons in the restaurant industry’s long and storied history why those pigeonholes can typecast chefs, there are many more modern examples that defy the stigma. Today, the calm and calculated often prevail, and in an industry that sees rampant turnover both on the floor and in the kitchen, composed and consistent are the character traits that almost always buck that trend. The best chefs are leaders with those qualities that are simultaneously able to bring the best out of a team. At El Five, Chef Corey Ferguson’s compassion, integrity and patience makes all the difference.
“I opened El Five,” said Chef Corey Ferguson, who has been at the helm of the staple Highlands Iberian and Mediterranean restaurant – known equally for its paella and its stunning view of Downtown – since 2017. “So, this last week makes eight years here. And I‘ve been with Edible Beats going on 14 years.” He started at Root Down – the beloved Highlands eatery – in 2011, and has been working alongside the 100% employee-owned local group and Chef Justin Cucci ever since. Before that, Ferguson was imbibing a love for Spanish culture that would eventually come full circle.
“I say it and it’s cheesy, but Spanish food is my love language,” he mused. “I was living in Spain before moving to Colorado, and I fell in love with the country right away. A lot of that love was because of the food and the culture that surrounds cooking and eating there.” He wanted to cultivate that culture in Denver, so he did so, and has been evolving El Five’s seasonal offerings ever since – having just gone through a 12-dish menu change for springtime. But through all the menu changes over the years, his team has remained impressively steady.
“My average tenure is something pretty unheard of in the industry,” he explained. “Most of my team has been with me for at least five years. And for those that haven’t, I hope they will have been someday.” So much of that is because of the creative workplace culture that has defined El Five’s kitchen since the beginning. “I tell the chefs, and I tell my cooks, never bring me an idea that’s at a six or a seven, because I guarantee you by the time we get done talking about it, that dish is not gonna be what you had in mind,” he detailed in the signature calm and understated confidence that he surely delivers to his team when reviewing a new idea “Bring me a dish that’s at a nine, and that way it’s already great. It may be a challenge to get a dish to that level, and we may have to tweak one or two things, but it’s worth the work when my chefs and my cooks are getting to see their vision on the menu.”
This Spring, Kyle Clark – who has comprehensive experience with Asian cuisine – is plating up Lamb Sausage with labneh, green chermoula and a Mediterranean take on Chili Crunch, made from fried lentils and fennel seed, served with pita bread. Pastry Chef Lauryn Markle has a number of new treats on the dessert menu. And taking inspiration from both a Turkish pastry and Catalonian calçots – “somewhere between a leek and a Spring onion,” explained Ferguson – Chef de Cuisine, Gabriel Sauer – who can often be seen plating at the garde-manger chef’s counter – has a Duck Yufka with potato, oloroso sherry, grilled spring onion and romesco. For Chef Corey Ferguson, it’s the Scallop Escabeche that has him most excited. “ You get the most beautiful mahogany, burgundy color on the scallops after pickling them in red verjus – the juice pressed from unripe grapes. And then we slice them super thin and layer them with roasted baby beets, some raw baby beets, radish and some heirloom water cress. Top that with a little trout roe, a bunch of olive oil and a bunch of smoked sea salt. It’s just this beautiful, delicate little dish, and people have been buying the shit out of it.”
The creative, ever-evolving menu – inspired by seasonal ingredients and high caliber service standards with breathtaking views – are only part of the reason why Chef Corey Ferguson and El Five have retained such a talented back of house team for as long as they have. So much of it is also due to Ferguson’s demeanor and approach, which defy the stigmas of outdated kitchen culture.
“ Why am I gonna spend time being mad at someone on my team for making a mistake? I need you to do something, and I need you to do it well. So how can I influence that situation in a positive way? Through effective, compassionate empathetic communication. Giving people the benefit of the doubt. Being okay with things not being exactly as you envision them because the result can still be amazing,” he explained. ”I credit a very specific time in my career to figuring that out. Professionally, I started with chefs from New York who were your traditional type. Well, that was exciting and thrilling to never know if you were gonna get your ass chewed out, or if it’s just gonna be a normal day. But I moved from New York and spent some time in Big Sur, California working in the Esalen Institute which is a holistic healing community. It was a kitchen experience like I’ve never had before. Your people are working to live there, so you have fresh faces in your kitchen almost every day, and you’re cooking three meals a day for 300 people. So, all the real pressures of feeding 300 people, but with a team that didn’t always know what they were doing.”
Now serving the masses that take their seats at El Five every night of the week, Chef Corey Ferguson is using what he’s learned as a cook, a chef and a leader to consistently plate exciting, new dishes for guests that won’t find anything like them anywhere else in Denver. And he’s doing so alongside the creatively inclined team he’s fostered through a calm, collaborative kitchen culture.
El Five is located at 2930 Umatilla St., 5th Floor, Denver. Its hours are 5 p.m. – 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and 5 p.m. – 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
All photography by Jimena Peck