Smitten with the Kitchen: Trillium Woods Chefs Bring Fine Dining To Senior Community

Gourmets and foodies of Trillium Woods rejoice! New menus, new chefs, and new technology are all a part of the reimagined dining services now being offered at this luxury retirement community. Led by the knowledgeable Andrew Hall, Trillium Wood’s newest Director of Food and Beverage Services, the kitchen is creating cuisine that residents are calling barre none some of the best in Minnesota.

For those with a savory palate, try the char-crusted tenderloin steak salad, served over seasonal greens, and drizzled with a tangy western dressing. Or perhaps sink your teeth into the community’s favorite appetizer, crispy coconut shrimp with sweet chili sauce for dipping.

Sugar fiends will have their sweet tooth cravings satisfied with an array of handmade dessert options. With offerings from homemade rocky road ice cream to silky smooth caramel flan, you can always expect something completely different, and more importantly, delicious from the Trillium Kitchen.

Menus and special dining requests are handled by Hall and his team of classically trained chefs. Hall graduated Summa Cum Laude from the California Culinary Academy in 2007 and brings over 15 years of hands-on culinary experience. He has worked as Executive Chef of Twin-City staple Cocina Del Barrio (Edina, MN) and is an expert on international cuisines. Hall is influenced by his Danish heritage and when cooking likes to incorporate Scandinavian elements into his dishes.

Executive Chef Jon Nolden comes to Trillium with over 40 years of experience cooking in various kitchen environments, most recently in private golf clubs. An expert in all things American cuisine, Nolden likes his food to be an expression of art, choosing to cook with big bold flavors and using fresh, locally sourced, and sustainable ingredients.

Sous Chef Rob Silkey is pushing the boundaries at Trillium Wood’s fine-dining venue the 58 Fifty Five Restaurant. Rob oversees producing Market Fish and Chef Specials, which change daily. These items can range from Grilled Lamb Chops, Braised Lamb Shank, Pan Seared Diver Scallops, or Crab-Stuffed Dover Sole.

Pastry Chef Ana Soczynski is a seasoned sweets expert and has been creating tantalizing treats professionally for 10 years. Soczynski most recently worked for Shattuck-St. Mary’s Boarding School (Faribault, MN), where she as Lead Baker/Chef was responsible for planning and executing meals for 500 students and staff daily.

“We are excited to have Andrew and his team working in our kitchens. The expertise and backgrounds they bring with them are revolutionizing the way we are serving our residents” said Mathew Phipps, Executive Director of Trillium Woods.

Patrons can not only expect to have a 5-star meal but can expect an out-of-this-world selection of wine, beer, and cocktails hand-picked by the Assistant Food & Beverage Director, Kaitlyn Van House. The kitchen as a team curates specialized wine pairings with the meals they are creating and will even take resident recommendations. “We want our residents to have input on what they are eating and drinking,” said Hall. “If they have suggestions of things they would like to see on the menus, we are more than happy to accommodate their requests.”

Hall has noted that people love the dishes they are making in the kitchen. “I get around 12 emails a week from residents about how good the food is,” he says. “Many of the comments focus on how the food reminds them of eating at high-end restaurants, but others highlight that even our simplest dishes, like a baked potato with butter and sour cream, are exquisite.”

Hall’s team makes the meals from scratch using farm-to-table fresh ingredients. “We have a dedicated pastry chef, who makes our ice cream, and we even make mozzarella in-house. Top-of-the-line food and beverage offerings are what residents can expect to have on a nightly basis,” added Hall.

Rounding out Trillium Woods’ dining experience is a dedicated team of servers and hosts who provide expert service and warm hospitality, with the aid of a new team member, “Trilli” the robot. Trilli helps its human coworkers by delivering armloads of plates from the kitchen right to patrons’ tables, where servers can deliver them by hand to each diner. This saves the servers time as they don’t need to make multiple trips back and forth from the kitchen and can spend more time on the floor seeing to the needs of the diners.

Interested in taste-testing some of the delicious cuisine at Trillium Woods? Visit their website https://www.trilliumwoodslcs.com/ or give them a call at 763-744-9400 to schedule your tour today!