Off to School at 15
Josef began his formal training at the young age of 15 in the Goldener Hirsch Hotel & Restaurant School some 2 hours away from the Austrian village where he grew up. At 20, after serving 1 year as an apprentice chef aboard one of the Holland America Cruise Ships, Josef decided to spend a year in America to learn English. He accepted a position at the famous “Brennans” in New Orleans in 1975 and has remained in this country ever since.
Josef has worked at some of the most prestigious hotel restaurants throughout the US, most recently doing a 7 ½ year stint as Executive Chef at the acclaimed Doral Golf Resort & Spa in Miami.
In July of 2000, Josef & I took a road trip down through Austria and into Northern Italy and the idea for "Josef's" was born...
Fred Plotkin, a favorite food historian & author of ours, summed up our feelings about this region in a much more eloquent way than I could have. He wrote -
“There is a place that is home to one of the most refined food and wine cultures in the world. It has been occupied by Julius Caesar (for whom it was named), Celts, Attila the Hun, Charlemagne, Hungarians, Venetians, Napoleon (who brought French grapes), Hapsburgs,Yugoslvia and ultimately, by Italy.
This special place is called Friuli-Venezia Giulia. It is the most northeastern of Italy’s 20 regions. Its capital, Trieste is in many historians opinion's Italy’s most cosmopolitan city. It is the only Italian city where Catholics, Jews, Moslems, Protestants and the Greek & Serbian Orthodox communities do not simply coexist peacefully, but create a magnificently complex society”
In our opinion, the above is one of the prevailing reasons that this region exhibits such interesting cuisine and it is why we have chosen to represent it's style. We hope you will agree!
It is our goal not only to provide you with wonderful food, wine & service, but to deliver an overall memorable dining experience that you will want to repeat over and over again.
Thank you for joining us.
Beth Schibanetz, Owner
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