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Art Culinaire, Fall, 2005

A graduate of Penn State and the Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College, Paveglio acknowledges that joining the Starr organization has put her on a fast track. After completing an apprenticeship at the Park Hyatt in Philadelphia, she reported for duty at Jones, having decided that, "I wanted the ability to move ahead a little more quickly." She worked a year at Jones before being plugged into the void left by departing pastry chef Sonjia Spector (who currently co-owns Matyson, also in Philadelphia, with her husband Matt). "She really gave me a lot of autonomy," says Paveglio. "She'd show me how to do something and let me grow from there, and she taught me by example how to make staff happy and keep them around." One of her biggest management challenges has been the tension that arises when a "career changer" is faced with a boss who is half their age and a job that's nothing like the romantic notion that propelled them out of law firms or banks in the first place.

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"I don't have a problem with the age. I have a problem with the mentality," she says, recalling one short-lived intern who couldn't take orders from Paveglio's sous chef in her absence. "I can understand, it must be hard, if you're 50 and here's some 19-year old telling you what to do, but at the same time, that 19-year old has a lot more experience in the task at hand, and if you're not comfortable with that, maybe a kitchen is not the place for you."

Paveglio notes that being part of Starr's aggressively expanding restaurant empire has helped her develop the skills necessary to deal with such conflicts. "We opened four restaurants in one year, which was a little difficult because, as far as our corporate staff goes, there are only so many to go around. It forced me to develop other solutions," she says. Asked about her future with the company, Paveglio indulges in a bit of daydreaming.

"This company would benefit from having a commissary-style bakery, where we all worked out of one huge area," she says. "Especially now, with my taking on a fourth restaurant's pastry program, it would be great to have a lot of different chefs together in one space. We all have our specialties, and we could all learn from each other."

RELATED ARTICLE: Dark Chocolate Coconut Cookies (Yields 1 dozen cookies)

Connie McDonald & Pamela Weekes

Espresso

directions

For the dark chocolate coconut cookies: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In bowl of electric mixer fitted with paddle, cream together butter and sugar until well-blended and fluffy. Add eggs and beat until well-incorporated, then beat in cocoa powder. Mix in flour, salt and baking powder until just combined. Gently fold in remaining ingredients. Transfer dough to clean work surface and gently mix dough by hand to ensure even distribution of ingredients. Divide into 12 equal portions and place each on sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Bake in oven 12 minutes, taking care not to overbake. Let cool on rack and store in airtight container.