Written by FEIFEI SUN
BORN IN ATHENS, GREECE, Chef Derek Simcik had also lived in Tunisia, Germany, France, Hong Kong, Japan and Austria, all before the age of 20. Now settled in Savannah, he’ll bring his passion for travel — and the flavors of the Italian coast — to Saint Bibiana at Hotel Bardo (formerly The Mansion on Forsyth Park) when the revamped urban resort opens this fall. Here, Simcik talks about returning to his Southern roots, his love for travel and why he hasn’t watched “The Bear.”
ON RETURNING SOUTH TO OPEN HOTEL BARDO
I’ve been a part of opening about 16 to 18 properties throughout my career, and when I heard about this opportunity, I immediately saw the vision of Hotel Bardo — the idea of taking a historic building in a new, modern direction. I’ve been in big cities most of my career, most recently in Seattle, but I’ve always been drawn to coming back to the South. My mom’s from Louisiana, and my dad is from Texas. When I visited Savannah, I fell in love with it, and everything seemed to line up: the right place, the right time, the right project.
ON BRINGING COASTAL ITALIAN FLAVORS TO SAVANNAH
I wanted to take a thoughtful, modern approach to coastal Italian cuisine, from Rome to the Amalfi Coast, over to Sicily and around the Lecce region. Savannah and the coast of Italy have similar weather, so those dishes play really well here. Most Italian food you find in America is actually Italian-American, so I’m excited to showcase a different side of this cuisine. You’re not going to see a Caesar salad on the menu — though it may show up on the pool bar menu — but you will find oysters with housemade vinaigrette, crudos, a puntarelle salad with anchovy flavor and grilled octopus. You have to have grilled octopus. We’re also going to make our pasta in house, and I’m excited to bring in local ingredients from Gannon Organics and Hunter Cattle Co.
“I wanted to take a thoughtful, modern approach to coastal Italian cuisine … Savannah and the coast of Italy have similar weather, so those dishes play really well here.”
– Chef Derek Simcik
ON GROWING UP AROUND THE WORLD
My father was in the CIA, and we spent a lot of my childhood moving for his job. Because I’d spent so much time abroad, I actually spent most of my 20s exploring the U.S. Before the pandemic, I’d go to Italy once or twice a year. I still love to travel, and I’m drawn to places where people have a real passion for what they’re doing, whether it’s eating, dancing or simply living well.
ON EATING AROUND TOWN
One of my favorites is Late Air. Everything from their execution to flavor profiles to the types of wine they serve is right up my alley. I think the atmosphere of The Garage at Victory North is also great, and I’m friends with a lot of the team, so it’s fun to have a “Cheers” moment when I walk in. I’m also a fan of Moodright’s, Over Yonder and Lone Wolf Lounge. And it’s a Sunday ritual to go out on the water and then come back and stop at Huc-A-Poo’s for an hour or two.
ON COMPARING HIS CHEF LIFE TO “THE BEAR”
A few years ago, there was this meme that went: “A tattoo sleeve used to mean you were a biker who would kill, now it means you’re a chef who makes a lovely pork belly with balsamic drizzle.” People were sending it to me nonstop on social media, so I started blocking everyone who did. That’s like “The Bear” now. I know a set designer on the show, and he talked about how they brought in chefs to train the actors, which I thought was cool. And I appreciate that it’s giving people an inside look at kitchens, like [Anthony Bourdain’s] “Kitchen Confidential.” But I have yet to watch an episode. I live that reality day in and day out. I don’t need to relive it.
PIPE RIGATA PASTA WITH BROCCOLI RABE PESTO AND PINE NUTS
Shared by Chef Derek Simcik
Start to Finish: 30-40 minutes
Serves: 4
“At Saint Bibiana, we make our own pasta for this dish and infuse it with Spirulina. For at-home, you can use any type of pasta you would like, but I recommend either rigatoni, spaghetti or bucatini.”
FOR THE BROCCOLI RABE PESTO
1 bunch fresh broccoli rabe
2 cloves fresh garlic
¼ c. extra virgin olive oil
½ c. Parmesan cheese, grated
Wash and trim the broccoli rabe. Blanch broccoli rabe in boiling water for 3 to 5 minutes or until slightly softened. Transfer to paper towels to dry and cool slightly. Roughly chop.
In a food processor, pulse garlic. Add broccoli rabe and pulse. While pulsing, slowly add the olive oil and periodically pause to scrape the side of the bowl.
Remove the pesto from the food processor into a mixing bowl and fold in the Parmesan cheese. Cover and store in refrigerator until ready to use.
FOR THE PASTA
10 oz. dry pasta of choice
2 tsp. red chili flakes
1–2 tbsp. olive oil
¼ c. broccoli rabe pesto
Half lemon, juice and zest
Toasted pine nuts, to taste
Grated Parmesan cheese, to taste
Begin by bringing some salted water to a boil. Once boiling, add pasta to the water and cook until it’s about 95% done.
While the pasta is cooking, add a small splash of olive oil to a saute pan, just slightly coating the bottom. Heat the oil on medium-low then add a pinch of chili flakes. Allow the chili flakes to toast and oils from the flakes to season the oil in the pan. Add 1?4 cup of the broccoli rabe pesto to the pan and stir.
Drain the pasta, reserving 2 to 3 ounces of pasta water, then add the pasta and the pasta water to the saute pan. Toss to make sure all the ingredients are combined.
Increase heat to medium and allow the pesto to come together with the starches from the pasta water for about 1 to 2 minutes.
Squeeze lemon juice onto the pasta. Remove pan from heat and spoon pasta into a large serving bowl. Top with zest of the lemon, toasted pine nuts and Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.
