Chefs Tim and Eli Urbanic

Eli grows all of the heirloom tomatoes used at the Café Cimino Country Inn, peppers of all varieties, and nearly all of the herbs come from his Calhoun County farm. As if that’s not enough to keep him busy, Eli also grows Shitake Mushrooms for the Inn’s seasonal dishes.

Eli Urbanic worked by his father’s side at Café Cimino since it opened on Valentine’sDay, 1999 in the little town of Sutton, West Virginia. Eli’s quick smile and easy going nature made him a favorite of Café Cimino guests as that “front-of-the-house kind of guy” acting as manager/waiter for 6 years, then moving right next to his Dad in the kitchen over the past 2 years. The family’s restaurant broke on to the fine dining scene of West Virginia and has not looked back; becoming one of the state’s best culinary finds. Once called “a little gem in the wilderness” by a happy traveler and food connoisseur. Eli and his father, Chef Tim, specialize in Italian/Mediterranean Cuisine and as much as possible, they use organically grown herbs and vegetables from the family farm.

Now, with the family’s move to a century old mansion at the end of Main Street, Eli’s role has grown to Executive Sous Chef, in charge of seeing that Dad’s creative menu gets carried out to perfection. But a little of that young creative spark of Eli’s is making it’s way to the table as well.

Eli grows all of the heirloom tomatoes used at the Café Cimino Country Inn, peppers of all varieties, and nearly all of the herbs come from his Calhoun County farm. As if that’s not enough to keep him busy, Eli also grows Shitake Mushrooms for the Inn’s seasonal dishes. “That’s what it’s all about”, says Eli…”getting the absolute freshest homegrown food on the table for our guests- even if we have to grow it ourselves!” And that he does. Every day, during the harvest season, Chef Eli can be seen carrying boxes and bags of fresh Calhoun County produce in both hands, quickly instructing all the kitchen cooks to jump in and clean and prep the produce for that night’s menu. Once a week Eli meets the “egg lady” at the kitchen door to buy her fresh farm eggs for the Inn’s luscious crème brulee and morning frittatas for the overnight guests.

When asked how he learned to be such a great Chef in such a short time, with no formal training, Eli quickly answers, “I don’t know any other way to cook. We just always cooked from the garden and Dad always taught me how to cook the Cimino Family way. It’s just something I don’t even think about-I just naturally do it…fresh, really good quality stuff is what it’s all about. As far as how the food looks on the plate, I want my dishes to say “dig in, Man…enjoy it!” I want my guests to see all of the ingredients that make up the dish and at the same time, appreciate how I put them together for maybe a new taste sensation.

--Chefs tim and Eli Urbanic