Chef Spotlight: Alex Stoy of Gilded Unicorn

This occasional series helps us get to know local chefs.

We’ll learn about where they dine out and who or what inspired them in their culinary careers. Plus, they’ll share a recipe. Here’s a Q&A with Alex Stoy, chef at Gilded Unicorn in Spokane.

What’s your favorite dish to cook at home? Mexican or stir-fries. I love leftovers.

Where do you eat when you eat out? The Elk, Durkin’s Liquor Bar, the Boiler Room.

Who or what inspired you to become a chef, and how? My brothers. I loved being in the kitchen with Adam (Hegsted) and Ryan (Stoy), and I later became a dishwasher for them and fell in love with the industry.

What are your go-to ingredients? Garlic, potatoes, pork and cayenne.

What was the first dish a customer ever sent back to you, and how did you handle it? The first dish I had sent was a brick-oven half-chicken. It was under-cooked. I apologized and cooked a new chicken for the customer but I was very hard on myself for making a mistake.

What’s a dish you’ve never made but would like to, and why? I don’t have a certain dish that I want to make but I do want to learn how to make authentic Asian cuisine.

What dish or ingredient best represents you? I would have to say pork because it’s so adaptable. Pork can be made into almost anything and will take on so many different flavors.

Bloody Mary Clams

From Alex Stoy of Gilded Unicorn

1 pound clams

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 onion, diced

3 red potatoes, cooked and diced

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon pepper

1 tablespoon lime juice

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon horse radish

1/4 teaspoon Tabasco

4 ounces tomato juice

Place all ingredients in a large skillet and cook in the oven at 350 degrees until all clams open.

Gilded Unicorn is at 110 S. Monroe St. in downtown Spokane. Call (509) 309-3698.