Kitchens, stress, health and happiness. A cautionary tale.

It started out like any other summer morning for Lion Gardner. The executive chef and co-owner of Rehoboth’s iconic Blue Moon restaurant and bar got up early to do his daily exercise. It was particularly quiet in the house; his wife and business partner Meghan was on the other side of the continent attending a wine conference. As the workout wound down, Lion felt a little discomfort in his chest.  In spite of his being surrounded by food every day, he’s a particularly fit guy, staying slim and trim from exercise and doing his best to watch what he eats. 

“I probably pulled a muscle,” he thought. But the discomfort didn’t go away. When he started to feel short of breath, he hopped into his car (I’d expect nothing less from Lion Gardner) and drove himself to Beebe Healthcare. After a thorough examination, he discovered - much to his surprise - that he was having a heart attack. We hear all the time about chefs with physical problems who are overweight and/or making use of, shall we say, “controlled substances.” But Lion’s health-conscious life is the exact opposite. Heck, he doesn’t even smoke. 

He contacted Meg from the hospital bed, reassuring her over and over that he was going to be fine and was receiving excellent care. Undeterred and unconvinced, Meghan booked the next flight home. The next morning, the installation of a stent near his heart was 100 percent successful. So successful, in fact, that he was not at risk for any further complications. But that reassurance came with a caveat: The blockage near his heart was almost certainly due to unrelenting stress. What could possibly be more stressful than working day-in and day-out in – and owning - one of the busiest fine-dining restaurants in town?  Cheffing - particularly executive cheffing - is not high on the list of non-stressful jobs. Examples are all over the place; not the least of which are the demise of TV chef Anthony Bourdain and, much more immediate to our Cape Region, the recent loss of beloved Ocean City chef Travis Wright. Both took their own lives. It goes without saying that these events were probably the culmination of many factors both inside and outside the kitchen, but the undisputed fact remains that cooking in and operating a fine-dining restaurant can, in Lion Gardner’s words, “chew people up.” No wonder that that profession attracts so many who can be described as workaholics. Lion sums it up nicely: “Let’s face it, anything with an ‘…aholic’ at the end of it has got to be bad.” 

As if those few days weren’t eventful enough, when Meghan returned from the left coast and picked her husband up from the hospital, she requested that they stop by the drugstore for … wait for it … a pregnancy test. A positive result marked a change in their lives forever. It was time for Lion to take a step back. “With my brand-new stent and a brand-new child on the way, it was time for me to think about and re-evaluate my priorities.” He continued, “I had to build a constructive relationship with work and not continue what was obviously a destructive one.” 

Easier said than done. He tried to modify his hours and schedules when he returned to the Blue Moon kitchen, but found himself falling back into the same routines. In many cases when dealing with that “…aholic” thing, it’s either all or nothing. My chef and restaurant owner friends who read this column regularly know exactly what I mean. 

So with his future, that pesky stent and the new family member in mind, Lion has relinquished his position of executive chef to his 10-year veteran sous chef and friend Nelson Martinez. Martinez, along with Meg’s catering expert Dom Pandolfino, will act as “co-chefs” to keep the Blue Moon restaurant and catering operations running as they always have. 

“The Blue Moon is approaching its 40th year. The kitchen culture of the Blue Moon has been one of respect and deference. People who work for me need to know why things are done a certain way - not just that they have to do things a certain way,” says Lion. “I’d like to think I’ve helped create curious cooks who feel free to ask questions. That’s why I feel so confident that nothing will change at the Blue Moon as I step back so Nelson and Dom can take the helm.” 

When I asked him about the future, Gardner said, “Of course I’ll stay in the business of cooking. I have a lot more to give, but I’ll do it with my family and my health in mind. Not all chefs who have heart attacks or physical problems are abusing drugs or living a crazy lifestyle. But most kitchen bosses - especially in fine dining - ingest a diet of stress every day. It’s part of the job. If my experience can make a difference in just one other cook’s life, then I’ll feel like telling my story was worth it.”