Chef Kim Alter and Haven in Jack London Square

Haven started at the Farmers’ Market, like so many great things. Chefs Kim Alter and Daniel Patterson – the man behind Coi – dipped in and out of farmer stalls as they talked about their philosophies of food, whether or not to use seaweed considering the dire environmental ocean situation, and what was next for California cuisine.

They got along well. After a month-long “let’s see how we work together” stage at Coi, Kim joined the team at his recently-opened Plum in Oakland’s burgeoning Uptown district. (I may have said this before, but this was my choice for a birthday meal last year, and I don’t regret that decision in least even though I was compelled to have ‘cheesecake in a jar’ rather than the requisite birthday chocolate something-or-other. It was enjoyably memorable.)

Now this vibrant chef is making her next leap with the Daniel Patterson group – creating the concept and acting as head chef at a soon-to-open Jack London Square restaurant she’ll call Haven. With her impressive experience at keystones like Aqua, Ubuntu, and Manresa, her technical prowess will go into evolving thoughtful yet casual food. There will be family-style offerings and plenty of garden goodies, many grown in partnership with a local Oakland school interested in teaching biology in a hands on way. Patisserie will be headed by Matt Tinder, who’s also developing desserts for two and marvels like moon-shaped Parker House rolls in addition to Haven’s breads. Scott Beattie is busy foraging for aromatic anise fronds and borage blossoms for his whimsical gin-focused cocktail menu that will highlight local spirit producers like St. George and No. 209 among others.

(Listen to the podcast just after the jump)

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Kim is also known to forage – she frequently escapes to the wilds of Sonoma County with Ron Boyd (another rising star chef at Plum) and Joe – apologies for not getting his last name – a farming and foraging expert. Many of the farms from which she sources are really back yards or one-species specialty plots with no names – think an acre of red shiso leaves or a cabin in Anchor Bay blanketed with ficoide glacial, New Zealand ice plant.

I felt so lucky she made the time to sit down with me for this podcast chat in the midst of hosting Haven preview dinners at Plum and preparations to announce Plum Bar (looks like the doors will open early, as in next Friday, November 11th). There are two such dinners left: this Tuesday the 8th and next Tuesday the 15th. A tasty way to celebrate a new culinary treasure, I say. Reserve your spot for Haven pop-ups here.

This tough yet sweet chef is so dedicated to the high art of breaking bread that even hellish seven-day weeks earlier in her career and unfortunate circumstances like the rise and fall of her vision Plate Shop in Marin do little to dishearten her. Instead she seeks fruitful collaborations that elevate the best in her and raise the culinary bar. It’s a pursuit and education she’s embarking on every day. Kims’ is a life of imagining possibilities – working hard to further food as a representation of peoples’ relatiohships with one another and with the soil on which we all stand. She’s down to earth even in the chaos; her double-twisted hair knot displays her playful side.

Chef Kim offers some garden advice – start with radishes. Growing radishes is instant gratification for new gardeners – they don’t take long to harvest, they aren’t too picky in terms of soil or with fog in San Francisco, and there are plenty of varieties to play with. You can grow them in a small window box as long as there are five or so inches of soil beneath the seeds and they are thinned once they sprout to a few inches apart.

Update 12/6: Haven should be opening in the next week or two!

Update 12/14: Haven’s open! The first night is tonight!