Chef Brandt Evans
Owner BKM Hospitality LLC, Pura Vida by Brandt and Partner of Blue Canyon
Chef Brandt Evans is one of Ohio’s top chefs. He has received numerous accolades since 2002 following the opening of his first restaurant, Blue Canyon Kitchen and Tavern in Twinsburg, Ohio.
His love for the culinary arts began at age 16, as he entered into his first job at Starboard Tack. He went on to train at the Culinary Institute of America and with a fresh diploma tackled the stove at Charlie Palmer’s Manhattan restaurant, “Alva”. There he perfected his technique and waited for the perfect opportunity to break free from convention.
Returning home to Cleveland Evans began creating the menu for “Kosta’s”, a newly opened restaurant, where he combined the ethnic flavors of Manhattan with the cold winter comfort foods of Northeast Ohio. Following Kosta’s he opened “Blue Canyon Kitchen and Tavern” where his new signature Creative American Cuisine grew exponentially. Evans currently owns restaurants in Twinsburg, Ohio; Missoula and Kalispell, Montana.
He was recently one of eight chefs nationwide chosen to be a Chef Ambassador for The Wisconsin Cheese Board. In 2009 and 2010, he won Grand Champion Akron Canton Super Bowl Chef, which allowed him to showcase his recipes as the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s representative at the 2010 and 2011 Taste of the NFL event. In addition, Evans was acknowledged as being the “Top Chef” at St John West Shore Festival of the Arts 2008 and 2009. He has also reached out to the community through publications in Better Homes and Gardens, Plate Magazine, and his monthly column in Living Magazine. Evans also represented the finest cuisine in Cleveland when he appeared on the Food Network and Celebrity Cooking Stage of the Fabulous Food Show in 2008.
Driven by a passion for food, he is committed to expanding the flavors of any dish beyond the plate with his custom Blue Canyon wines. He has traveled around the world to personally pick and blend fruits that compliment several of his signature dishes. He strives to produce the most tantalizing experience for the taste buds and continues to exhibit his ability to do so.
Chef Brandt Evans is known for his extraordinary palate and warm personality at charity fundraisers and community events. He looks forward to using his experience and expertise to create new concepts and opportunities in the culinary world.
Chef Brandt is currently Chef-partner of Blue Canyon Kitchen & Tavern in Twinsburg Ohio. He launched his new company, BKM Hospitality LLC, in June of 2010. This restaurant management company launched its first of many projects in downtown Cleveland in the former May Co Building. Opened in June of 2011, named “Pura Vida,” (translate to Pure Life, the motto of the restaurant) and ready to introduce Public Square to gourmet breakfast, distinctive lunch and coining the name “Urban Picnic” which introduced a new style of dining for NE Ohio.
Pura Vida offers the opportunity for Chef Brandt to showcase his culinary talents with an aggressively creative menu, craft beverages and piece together direction for upcoming restaurant and hospitality industry hopefuls while offering growth for the many careers he has encouraged as a true mentor in the industry.
Chef Scott Coffman
Executive Chef of Pura Vida by Brandt
A culinary creative drive was instilled into Chef Scott as long as he can remember. Chef Scott met his destiny when he was introduced to Chef Brandt Evans. Chef Scott met Executive Chef Evans, founder of Blue Canyon Restaurants and owner of BKM Culinary Concepts, at the age of 17, at the celebrated Kostas restaurant in Tremont, Ohio, where he started off as part of the dish team. As a dish washer, he was eager to learn prepping techniques and with Executive Chef Brandt, Scott began his decade long apprenticeship gaining his culinary skills standing side by side with Chef Brandt.
Chef Scott joined Chef Brandt’s Twinsburg concept in June, 2004 as pantry cook and excelled to the Executive Sous Chef position during his four years in Twinsburg. As Blue Canyon expanded, Chef Scott was offered the Executive Chef Position for Rockwall, Texas. He cultivated the Texas culture and cuisine while keeping the Blue Canyon pride infused and leading the kitchen crew for more than three years.
Throughout his career in the food industry, Chef Scott has experienced several cuisine genres ranging from sushi to Italian, and a love of the Asian panache.
Chef Scott joined Pura Vida by Brandt in early 2011 as Executive Chef. A new adventure offering a substantial difference from any other Brandt Evans conception… from the menu creation, charcuterie, gourmet cheeses, breakfast, lunch and the Pura Vida coined “Urban Picnic” which is taking Public Square by storm.
Katie Klonowski
Director of Operations, BKM Hospitality LLC
Katie has been intermingled within the restaurant walls since 1995 starting off a life time of roles in many facets of the restaurant business. With a Marketing and Sales degree from the University of Akron, her creative vision was clearly labeled as a strength and was proven strong as her career path progressed in the restaurant field.
Katie’s first role as management started in 1999 as Manager of the Club House at Northfield Park Race Track. As an entertainment destination, her role was to control spending, oversee reservations and staffing along with guest relations in the dining room which held a capacity of 1200 guests. After nine years of loyalty to Northfield Park, she became motivated to strive for advancement that was not foreseen in the horse racing industry and accepted an opportunity with Blue Canyon Kitchen & Tavern.
Katie moved to Blue Canyon Kitchen & Tavern in the spring of ‘05 as an Assistant Manager. Her initial focus was the bar, but she found a passion for events and guest interaction. Her dedication earned her the Assistant General Manager title with a strong drive to continue to host the best events in house.
As opportunity expanded within the walls of Blue Canyon, a fourth location was launched in Rockwall, Texas where Katie was a strong force on the opening team and continued communicating with the Rockwall management team, along with Twinsburg team, as the Marketing and Promotions Director for both locations. Her travels to Texas became frequent and perpetuated events in both markets as some of the most unique and fluently operated around. As Texas progressed, a lack of full management was concerning, therefore Katie took on a “traveling” role as General Manger in Texas while holding on to the Marketing and Promotions Director responsibilities for both locations.
Strong guest relations are vital to Katie as she became “family” with many guests in both states. Her passion was clear and dedication was sturdy. Her belief in continued education for front of the house team members was her top priority in the continuing strive for success as a restaurant.
Owner-Chef of Blue Canyon, Chef Brandt Evans, branched out with his new company in June of 2010 where Katie joined him as Director of Operations for BKM Hospitality, LLC. A restaurant management company, BKM launched a new concept in downtown Cleveland in 2011, called Pura Vida. Constructing projects from the start, Katie’s role is essential to building the brand and creating the concept along with her owner. As a young woman in the professional world, Katie is a recognized member of the National Association of Professional Women and is eager to explore more groups in the years to come.
BKM Hospitality has future projects on the horizon and hopes to expand rapidly within the next five years.
Katie has a passionate eye for the Restaurant business and is dedicated to making the experience memorable for the guests, creating an exciting atmosphere for with the staff and continues to be herself in any task given to her from start to finish.