Celebrity chef goes fusion with Jewish roots

With Thanksgivukkah around the corner, Food Network star Adam Gertler hopes to leave his mark on the once-in-a-lifetime convergence of Thanksgiving and Hanukkah.

Since his childhood in Commack, Long Island, Gertler has been obsessed with food, including its role in expressing different cultures. From his family’s seder table to the backyard barbecue pit of more recent years, the chef’s Jewish roots have always been a key ingredient, he said.

Many years after falling in love with chopped liver and Hebrew National hot dogs, Gertler hosted two primetime series for Food Network – one focused on disparate food jobs, and the other on sweets. Known as an exuberant and versatile chef among food TV junkies, Gertler connects most closely with fellow lovers of smoked meat.

The approaching Thanksgivukkah gave Gertler an opportunity to craft a sausage infused by two of his favorite holidays. Now being served at California’s Dog Haus restaurants, Gertler’s “Thanksgivukkah Dog” is a heady mix of turkey, whiskey-soaked cranberries, and brown sugared sweet potatoes, topped off by tater tots – filling in for latkes – with apple cranberry sauce.

After many years of experimenting with smoked meat, the 36-year old chef is about to launch his own line of sausages – called Gertler’s Wurst – in partnership with Costco.

The 72-store deal was an epicurean milestone for Gertler, who once co-owned a Philadelphia barbecue restaurant with his brother. His line features brands inspired by that experience, including Thai Red Curry Wurst, Garlic Herb Kielbasa, and Smoked Cheddar Wurst.

The Long Island native’s path to food stardom began on stage, where he appeared in everything from religious school plays to the title role in Hamlet, not to mention a prize-winning “Grease 2” drag review. Gertler decided to pursue acting at Syracuse University, where he experienced a culinary breakthrough.

“At college I met people from different parts of the US, people who had steak that was pink, and I realized that is why people like steak,” he said. “Growing up in a Jewish household, everything was well-done. There is that safety thing, that Jews are pragmatic, practical people in times of disease and crisis,” he said.

Gertler admitted he was not born with such pragmatism, having declined to pursue a traditional career path. During the four years he spent exploring new meats in upstate New York, he took note of celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse, who was becoming a household name.

‘I knew I wanted to do whatever that dude is doing, what they call food porn’

“When I saw the Food Network and Emeril for the first time,” he said, “I knew I wanted to do whatever that dude is doing, what they call food porn. That stuff he was doing was so crazy.”

After moving to Los Angeles in 2002, Gertler worked a variety of food jobs while auditioning for acting parts. Increasingly, he found any involvement with food to be more enjoyable than endless callbacks and hunting for the next role.

“I enjoyed waiting tables a lot, and serving people,” said Gertler. “Does that make me a bad actor?”

Though he filmed a commercial for Kentucky Fried Chicken and scored other roles, Gertler’s first Hollywood stint earned a mixed review. In 2004, he was wooed to Philadelphia to open a barbeque restaurant – The Smoked Joint – with his brother, Keith Gertler.

“We were young and all in over our heads,” said Gertler of the short-lived venture. “I had no chef or kitchen experience, I was totally acting. It was blissful ignorance, but it’s worth chasing that dream and having something of your own,” he said.

Two years after the restaurant closed, Gertler got his big break on food television. Having been accepted to appear on the 2008 season of the popular “Food Network Star” show, Gertler wowed audiences with his sense of humor and creative takes on popular dishes.

“Being on the Food Network inspires you to step up your game,” said Gertler on being named the show’s runner-up.

His stepped-up game included the “Will Work for Food” series – a world tour of food-related jobs, from harvesting bee honey to sculpting ice with a chain saw. For his 2010 series, “Kid in a Candy Store,” Gertler uncovered America’s sweet tooth by touring facilities where the sugary magic is made.

‘You just try to give them as much of a show as possible, so the producers won’t get rid of you’

In recent months, Gertler’s “Last Call Food Brawl” has aired on Destination America. The series had Gertler visiting six of America’s top party cities to conduct cook-offs with local chefs.

“You just try to give them as much of a show as possible, so the producers won’t get rid of you,” said Gertler, who, five years ago, got down on his knees to serenade Martha Stewart with a harmonica blues song.

“I wish I could say there is a master plan,” said Gertler. “I am trying to go where the road is leading me.”

Along that road, Gertler makes time to revisit the Jewish recipes of his childhood, and update them for family and fans.

Earlier this year, he created a “pop-up” restaurant with a modern Jewish deli theme. Running for a week in Los Angeles, each course updated a traditional classic with surprising ingredients. Gertler’s latest Jewish-inspired creation — the “Thanksgivukkah Dog” — was preceded by inventive takes on latkes, kreplach, and other childhood favorites.

“I love being Jewish,” said Gertler. “I don’t like being told what to eat or think, but our cultural heritage is important to maintain,” he said.

For Gertler, food has always been a path to understanding people. He’s anything but solitary in his process, frequently engaging family and friends to prepare new recipes.

“The kind of food I do now is not what grandma and mom made,” said Gertler. “But there is something magic about the familial connection to food. It’s the great equalizer and how everyone can relate to each other.”