Josh Monopoli Black Cat 1964 13th Street, Boulder 303-444-5500 www.blackcatboulder.com Bramble & Hare 1970 13th Street, Boulder 303-444-9110 brambleandhare.com
This is part one of my interview with Josh Monopoli, chef de cuisine of Black Cat and Bramble & Hare, Part two of our chat will run tomorrow.
Josh Monopoli is definitely not cooking the same food he made as a teenager growing up in Savannah, Georgia. "My parents were great cooks, and we had family dinners seven nights a week, but I didn't start cooking until I was a teenager, and my signature dish was salami and pepperoni on an everything bagel that I'd pop into the microwave and then dip into salsa," recalls the 26-year-old chef de cuisine at Black Cat and Bramble & Hare, Eric Skokan's season-celebrating restaurants in Boulder. "There's no microwave in Eric's kitchen," notes Monopoli.