Homegrown chef reconnects with culinary roots for Oak Ridge restaurant Fire & Salt

Chef Alex Gass is opening his first solo restaurant this fall in Oak Ridge.

Gass has cooked in the restaurant industry for almost his entire life. After helping his family with church cooking, he got his first job at Big Ed's Pizza.

He helped start Babalu in Knoxville, served as sous and executive chef at The Walnut Kitchen and toured with musicians as a private chef.

Fire & Salt is his way of reconnecting with his roots while creating an elevated dining experience for Oak Ridge.

"Fire & Salt is a vision of mine," Gass said. "I've always wanted to do something at home. I've always loved my home here in East Tennessee and in Oak Ridge. I had always talked about doing things here, but I was a little nervous because there's nothing like this out here."

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Out of the frying pan …

The location at 792 Briarcliff Ave., located near El Jinete Mexican restaurant, is still under construction. It's the former home of The Roasted Tomato.

Fire & Salt should open before Gass hosts a Nov. 2 dinner event with supper club Peat and Pearls, which is partnering with several East Tennessee chefs to host pop-up events.

With a following around the South, Peat and Pearls is a way to raise early awareness about his brand.

"October is the tentative date," Gass said.

His restaurant will specialize in "reimagining East Tennessee dishes" by building off of "heirloom recipes" that have been passed down.

"We're gonna use a lot of local ingredients and support our farmers and just ensure we serve the very highest quality and best food we can to our guest," Gass said.

The menu will change daily based on the ingredients he gets, the season and what he's feeling. One of the only staples will be the Grit Chips, which he's bringing over from his time at The Walnut Kitchen.

"I'm a musician, I like improv music," Gass said. "I play a lot of heavier jazz and stuff, and so I like to cook like that also. So a lot of the things, I wait till they come off the farm and then I make a menu around with what I feel like it needs to be."

… and into the Fire & Salt

Gass is still navigating opening his first restaurant, but he's excited to bring something new to Oak Ridge.

He's passionate about teaching culinary arts in the community, something he noticed wasn't prominent within the area. He's observed that when high schools don't have a culinary program, the community doesn't have as many exciting local restaurant options. Gass is on the board of the culinary department at Pellissippi State Community College.

With his experience and knowledge of the kitchen, Gass hopes Fire & Salt can bring the culinary world to Oak Ridge.

"I really hope that we're able to teach this community more about ... quality of life and how that is directly related to the food we're consuming," he said. "I hope [I can do] that and that we can help spread the culinary arts."

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Oak Ridge restaurant Fire and Salt debuts from Chef Alex Gass