Dorothy McNett of Happy Cookers fame lends her expertise to
cooking store in Carmel Valley, Clementine’s Kitchen
Dorothy McNett feels like she’s at home, doing what she does
best
– cooking on a stage for her adoring fans.
McNett, the former owner of the now folded Dorothy McNett’s
kitchen emporium in downtown Hollister, has found a new platform
for her talents in a place where people truly take their food
seriously: in Del Rey Oaks, near Carmel Valley and Monterey, in
another fantastic gourmet kitchen store called Clementine’s
Kitchen.
Dorothy McNett of Happy Cookers fame lends her expertise to cooking store in Carmel Valley, Clementine’s Kitchen
Dorothy McNett feels like she’s at home, doing what she does best – cooking on a stage for her adoring fans.
McNett, the former owner of the now folded Dorothy McNett’s kitchen emporium in downtown Hollister, has found a new platform for her talents in a place where people truly take their food seriously: in Del Rey Oaks, near Carmel Valley and Monterey, in another fantastic gourmet kitchen store called Clementine’s Kitchen.
“It looks like my store did – not quite as big, but it features high-end kitchen gadgets, cookware, gourmet foods like fancy cheeses, and wine,” said an excited McNett.
McNett gained fame throughout Hollister and the Central Coast in the late 1990s for her fabulous kitchen wares and cooking classes, which later became televised on the local cable access channels. The “Happy Cooker,” as she was known, had started her business in her Hollister home, giving cooking classes from her own kitchen.
The classes quickly outgrew the space and she moved to a building in the Rite-Aid mall on Hollister’s south side. Later she moved the business – which by now was accompanied by a booming and popular website — to a small shop downtown on Sixth Street, which, again, was too cramped to accommodate all her clients. McNett remodeled the old spacious Tiffany Building on San Benito Street, and moved her business there in early 2001. The building became an anchor for the south end of the downtown business district.
Then 9-11 happened. The economy tanked, and while McNett made a brave go of it, leasing out parts of the Tiffany space piecemeal, she eventually had to fold. She became the Wine and Food Ambassador for Ridgemark Country Club where she continued doing cooking demonstrations.
Now two gourmands from the Carmel Valley have snapped up McNett, and have made her part of their enterprise in Clementine’s Kitchen.
“We’re very excited to have her here,” said Drew Chernoy, who co-owns the business with David Babock, a gourmet who trained at the Cordon Bleu Academy in Paris. “We used to shop at her store! David used to teach at the California Culinary Academy in Salinas, and he would send his students over to Dorothy’s for their tools.
“Our teaching kitchens are set up for hands-on or demonstration,” Chernoy added.
And they plan to take full advantage of McNett’s talents. Right now they are running radio spots on Magic 63 that feature riddles about McNett: “Three clues; Hollister, her little dog too, and if McDonald’s would introduce fishing gear.”
The answer is Dorothy McNett, and the winner gets a $50 gift certificate at Clementine’s Kitchen.
McNett will join another talented chef, Glen Hoekstra, as part of the cooking/teaching staff. Hoekstra previously taught at the Culinary Center of Monterey.
The Clementine’s Kitchen website (www.clementineskitchen.com) lists a full schedule of cooking classes that will showcase McNett, starting with “You Look Mahvelous,” a class in how to garnish and present delectable concoctions. The demonstration class will take place on Tuesday, June 6 from 1 to 3 p.m.
Like McNett’s business once had, Clementine’s Kitchen is experiencing great success. It opened in 2002, and Chernoy says they doubled in size in 2003. Since then, the owners have added a fine wine and cheese section and a cafe with patio for lunch-goers, featuring specialty beers and gourmet sandwiches.
The store also features a variety of hard-to-find cookware and accessories for food enthusiasts, such as Emile Henry ceramics, Riedel glassware, Viking professional cookware, Anne de Solene European linens, Demeyere fine cookware and Scanpan High Endurance nonstick cookware.
The store even has a bridal registry and free gift-wrapping.
“We’re very much an advocate for the small independent retailer,” Chernoy said.
Clementine’s Kitchen is located near Tarpy’s Roadhouse restaurant, off Highway 68, not far from the Monterey Peninsula Airport. The address is 465 Canyon Del Rey Boulevard, Del Rey Oaks. Phone: 831-392-1494, and check out their website at www.clementineskitchen.com.
