Chef Biography
Eric Wadlund was born in Plattville, Wisconsin to a family who owned a bakery. His father taught him to love food and cooking, as well as all the tricks of the trade. At the age of 18, he apprenticed at the Madison Club in Madison, Wisconsin under Chef Jerry Zackerski. Following that, he began to work his way up the kitchen ladder under Great Chef Jeffery Buben at the Occidental Restaurant in Washington, DC.
In 1994, Great Chef Donna Nordin hired him to work at her Café Terra Cotta in Tucson, Arizona. He worked his way up to executive chef, and in 2000 the Great Chefs television crew showed up to tape him for their Great Chefs of America series for the Discovery Channel.
In 2001, he moved further out west to Coachella, California to work under Great Chef Jimmy Schmidt at the Rattlesnake Club at Trump Casino. In 2004, another Great Chef, Eric Ripert, was opening a new restaurant in the La Quinta Resort & Spa called Azur, by Le Bernardin and called on Chef Wadlund to be the executive chef and restaurant manager. Two years later, Chef Eric Wadlund opened his own restaurant, Beefsteak, in Rancho Mirage. Two and a half years was long enough, and in 2008, he was offered the position of Chef / Director of Operations for Spencer’s Restaurant at the Toscana Country Club, in Palm Springs, California. Six years later, in 2014 he was promoted to Executive Chef and General Manager of the entire Toscana Country Club, where he remains today in 2016.
Recipes
Sunflower Seed-crusted Salmon Fillet on Enchilada with Mole Aji Amarillo
Serving: 6 Print Sunflower Seed-crusted Salmon Fillet on Enchilada with Mole Aji Amarillo By Great Chefs September 30, 2015 Corn enchiladas serve as the base for a southwestern variation on salmon, combining crusted fillets with mole aji amarillo, salsa, and cheese. The mole preparation is similar to other nut-based sauces in southwestern cuisine, but Chef […]