In the kitchen with chef Rebekah Krieger at Two Bees Café + Patisserie in Dover
DOVER — Rebekah Krieger, chef and owner of Two Bees Café + Patisserie, welcomed us into her business. She gave us a behind the scenes look at her specialty, kouign amann, and many other sweet treats and savory dishes for the latest edition of Taste of Local, featuring Seacoast chefs.
Krieger is a Dover native who returned home after training and working in San Francisco and Boston. Her business features pastries, sandwiches, charcuterie, beer, wine and specialty coffee at 100 First St.
Here's how she responded to our questions:
Where are you from? Dover, New Hampshire.
Do you have a family? I do, I’m married to my business partner and best friend, Ross, and we have two children, who are 3 and 1.
Why did you want to become a chef? The simple answer is because I love food. In addition, I enjoy working with my hands, learning new techniques and skills and trying to perfect them. I’m inspired by ingredients and interested in how unique ingredients can come together and create something beautiful and delicious.
What made you want to work in a restaurant in San Francisco? The farmers markets are such an integral part of the food landscape in California. Getting your hands on such fresh, beautiful produce is thrilling to a chef or anyone who loves food and appreciates great ingredients. Having access to this type of food was inspiring to me and is what pushed me to pursue a career in kitchens. I’ve worked in San Francisco, Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, but coming back home was always in my plan, so I made it my goal to open a café in Dover.
Where did you train and for how long? I went to culinary school at the City College of San Francisco. It was the best $1,200 I ever spent. I attended a two-year program and got an associate's in culinary arts and hospitality.
What did you learn in your training? I learned all the basics — garde manger, sauces, butchery, baking and pastry, line cooking, restaurant accounting. The culinary program ran the cafeteria and three other dining outlets on campus. There was a ton of hands-on experience gained through my time there. It was an amazing program.
Have you worked in any previous restaurants? If so, where? I worked at Incanto and Prospect in San Francisco, Harvest and Puritan & Company in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Oak + Rowan in Boston, Raleigh Wine Bar + Eatery in Portsmouth and at the White Apron Catering in Dover. I’ve also worked at many other restaurants where I worked front of house and bartended. I’ve done it all in this industry.
Have you won any awards? If so, what award and how did you feeling winning it? I’ve never won an award personally but I was the pastry sous chef at Oak + Rowan when our team won best desserts in Boston from the Improper Bostonian. I attended the awards ceremony with my chef at the time, Brian Mercury, to accept the award. It was a great feeling to be recognized because we worked really hard and were pushing the envelope with some really cool desserts. Brian was my mentor for a long time, I credit him with so much of what I know.
Are you involved with any community events? I have recently begun my involvement with the Dover Children’s Home as a volunteer and I’m scheduled for some community events through the Dover Chamber of Commerce. Since we opened in mid January things have been really crazy and I haven’t been able to get time for everything we want to do. But as things become more predictable and stable we will be able to give more time to the community and get involved in some important causes.
Is there a fun fact or interesting fact you'd like to share about yourself? I love karaoke. I haven’t done it in a long time but whenever I get the chance, I’m 100% down to sing.
Who inspires you? My mom actually. She is really good at all sorts of things from gardening, design, carpentry and so much more. She can get pretty much anything done and does it very well. I aspire to be like that.
More Taste of Local:
Ceo’s Gelato Bistro owner Carolyn Ottney shows how it's made and why it tastes so good
Bryce Harrison of Cheese Louise makes Wake and Bacon sandwich
Will Myska of Ore Nell's Barbecue shows how to smoke meats low and slow
Nikki Nachampassak, chef and owner of Nikki’s Banh Mi makes Vietnamese, Laotian dishes
This article originally appeared on Fosters Daily Democrat: Chef Rebekah Krieger at Two Bees Café + Patisserie in Dover NH
