[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 153 (Thursday, September 28, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1854]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      TO HONOR THE TWENTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE BAYWOLF RESTAURANT

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                         HON. RONALD V. DELLUMS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 27, 1995

  Mr. DELLUMS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to acknowledge the 20th anniversary 
of the BayWolf Restaurant, a vital and vibrant part of our Oakland and 
East Bay community.
  On any given night, a winemaker whose wine appears on the list, the 
artist whose painting hangs on the wall, the graphic artist who 
designed the menu, the fish purveyor who provided the evening's fish 
and the florist who arranged the flowers may all be dining in one of 
BayWolf Restaurant's two intimate dining rooms. Regulars and newcomers 
alike enjoy superb food, wine and a warmly inclusive atmosphere in the 
handsome wood frame house on Oakland's Piedmont Avenue. The creators of 
this scene are Michael Wild and Larry Goldman, childhood friends who, 
with Michael Phelps, opened BayWolf in 1975 as a means of making the 
shared values and passion for food of their community of artists, 
artisans, academics and hippies, a way of life.
  Michael Wild was born in Paris, in 1940, to German and Russian Jewish 
refugees who relocated to Hollywood when he was 7 years old. Even 
amidst wartime scarcity, Wild remembers delicious food, and when 
presented with plenty, the family's food got much better. While much of 
America was reaching into the freezer, the Wild's special outings were 
to the San Fernando Valley in search of fresh eggs and produce from 
small farms for Sunday gatherings of Germans, Hungarians, and Russians. 
Good food was ``The social glue for those Europeans,'' he recalls, 
``Food was the main event.'' When he met Goldman in 1953, there was 
instant affinity: his new friend carried a bag of oranges, real food, 
rather than candy as a snack.
  During the sixties, Wild and Goldman reunited in San Francisco and 
roomed together in the Haight Ashbury District While Goldman dropped 
out of dental school in favor of teaching troubled teenagers and Wild 
taught world literature and English at San Francisco State University, 
their flat was the site for legendary, impromtu dinners shared by 
counter-culture friends. Wild was Chef, but everyone joined in the 
cooking and on weekdays the party moved to Napa to better take 
advantage of the local produce and wines. Members of this chosen family 
were discovering the satisfaction of doing something with their hands 
and the joy of doing it very well. Several dropped traditional careers 
to become craftsmen. Others continued academic careers, but, always, 
they cooked great food and drank well.
  By 1974, both Wild and Goldman had grown tired of teaching and 
decided to open the ideal restaurant: a restaurant that would provide 
nourishment for the soul and intellect as well as the body. Friends and 
family would pitch in, friends' works would grace the walls, enhance 
the rooms and be the subject of discussion. Employees would be treated 
with respect. It would be a work of art and a business with heart. 
Thanks to ingenuity, hard work and luck, they were able to pull it off. 
After a long and plentiful Naming the Restaurant feast, Wild's beloved 
Beowulf, Oakland native Jack London's Seawolf, the Wolf Range (known as 
the Dragon of the kitchen) and San Francisco Bay metamorphosed into 
BayWolf.

  They acted as their own carpenters, secured loans for kitchen 
equipment, and enjoyed the warm support of fellow pioneers. Wild 
recalls Alice Water's extraordinary generosity as she suggested 
suppliers, loaned and delivered equipment on a moments notice, shared 
ideas and discoveries and provided luxuries. When he asked to borrow a 
truffle from the Chez Panisse kitchen for a special holiday dinner, he 
was presented with three, in Madera, in a wine glass, by then Chef 
Jeremiah Tower: ``One for the customers, a second in case the first 
isn't enough and a third for you to enjoy when the evening's 
finished.''
  After 2 exhausting years turning out the seasonally based 
Mediterranean dishes that had been part of his repertoire for years, 
Wild returned to Paris in 1977. He had spent several years there as a 
student in the sixties, familiarizing himself with the markets and 
great little budget bistros. This time, his great uncle, a charming bon 
vivant and raconteur, treated the burgeoning chef to a tour of three 
star restaurants and the opportunity to observe friend Roger Verge's 
kitchen. It was a revelation. He returned to BayWolf with a new 
dedication and the conviction that a restaurant could provide the 
worthiest and most fulfilling of lives. At this point, the 
extraordinary personable Mark McLeod joined BayWolf as maitre d'--a 
position he still holds.

  Wild pursued his wine education with the same passion he devotes to 
cooking and is renowned for his wine cellar and his wine and food 
pairing skills. California's best winemakers became his personal 
friends, just as fellow restaurants and artists had years before.
  Today, Wild, Goldman and Phelps take immense satisfaction in the fact 
that 50 percent of their reservations are names they know well. They 
share hosting duties with McLeod and are in the restaurant daily. Wild 
collaborates on menus with chef Joe Nouhan, oversees the wine list and 
acts as BayWolf's ambassador to the food and wine world. Goldman 
oversees finances, works with designers and artists and is transported 
when everything works perfectly. Both are relaxed and happy when in the 
restaurant and say they genuinely enjoy coming to work. Seeing them in 
their restaurant one believes their proclamation that they can't 
imagine a more satisfying way of life.

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