BRADENTON — The savory aromas of truffle oil, seared Maine diver scallops and lobster fill the air inside Bonni Bakes restaurant in the Village of the Arts.
It’s a dry run of sorts for Chef Walter Murawinski, a French Culinary Institute graduate who runs a local catering business.
Murawinski is one of five rotating chefs who will begin cooking at the restaurant again in January as part of a unique experiment dreamt up by Bonni Brown, owner of Bonni Bakes.
Starting this December, Brown began the concept of inviting different local chefs to cook in her establishment, offering varied cuisines on each day.
“I actually tried to do it last year, but I couldn’t get anyone interested,” Brown said. “But this year, everyone was interested, which may be a reflection on the economy.”
Murawinski, who runs Chefs NYC catering in Sarasota, acknowledges that the economy has put a dent in business and says cooking at Bonni Bakes is a good way to make extra income and gain exposure for his French-inspired cuisine.
The arrangement also works well for Brown, a baker who is still very passionate about food but no longer wants the food business to occupy all of her time.
Brown, who started out in her location at 930 12th St. W. as a baked goods store in 1999, actually decided to close the restaurant this spring.
She lost her husband five years ago and decided that operating a restaurant on her own was too much work for one person.
“I did not want to work five days a week,” she said.
But Brown also didn’t want to be completely out of the food business, either. So the rotating chef idea was born.
Chefs rent the restaurant for six hours each day on a rotating basis, five days a week. They clean up at the end of service and make way for the next day’s chef to prepare his or her dishes.
Brown declines to say how much she charges chefs to rent the restaurant.
Chefs must commit to one month of restaurant rental, Brown said.
Brown cooks on Saturdays and specializes in thin-crust pizzas with gourmet toppings like pesto, goat cheese and roasted vegetables.
Other chefs specialize in Jamaican and Mediterranean cuisines, among other offerings.
Currently, Brown has four other chefs besides herself cooking at the restaurant.
Brown is looking for other people interested in sharing their passion in the kitchen, and being a professional chef is not a requirement.
“I’m always looking for people — even home chefs,” Brown said. “I would love Indian, African or Asian (foods).”
Brown lets chefs set their own prices but tries to keep the menu affordable.
For instance, Murawinski’s menu, which he typically serves on Thursdays, includes crab cakes with roasted red pepper remoulade for $7 and house smoked roasted chicken aus jus, with haricot vert and roasted fingerling potatoes for $6.
The decadent Maine diver scallops dish with watermelon radish ravioli filled with poached Maine lobster he and a friend whipped up on a recent visit would go for $7 or $8 if it were on the menu, Murawinski said.
Murawinski, who ran a catering business in New York and used to feed the set of the “Law & Order” TV show, can see the Bonni Bakes concept taking off.
“It’s just a real cute family and cultured kind of place,” he said. “It’s a good concept. I can see this as a place people really want to come to.”
Bonni Bakes officially reopens Friday to coincide with the upcoming ArtWalk in the Village of the Arts. The restaurant will be open that evening from 6 to 9:30 p.m., and Brown will be serving her pizzas.
On Jan. 6, the restaurant will return to its regular schedule, serving lunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday.
To view each week’s offerings, visit www.bonnibakes.blogspot.com. For more information, call (941) 746-6647.
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