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at one of nj’s most venerable dining destinations, a dedicated gourmand is living his culinary dream, and hosting a standout chef’s private dining room to boot

by Laura D.C. Kolnoski

Chefs’ private dining rooms are proliferating at upscale restaurants around the Garden State. A lively and challenging stage, they provide tasty experiences for those on both sides of the prep table. One of the preeminent and most luxuriously appointed is the Chef ’s Room at the renowned Ryland Inn, presided over by Executive Chef Craig Polignano. Gourmands flock to this private space, with its panoramic kitchen views for a Tasting Dinner featuring changing seasonal menu items like Day Boat Scallops with Shiitake Mushrooms and Preserved Truffles, Olive Oil Poached Salmon with Tomato Jam and American Caviar, and Pistachio Custard with Vanilla and Black Pepper Ice Cream. Each course is paired with a specially selected wine.

Up to ten guests can take in the experience—under a dramatic iron and crystal chandelier and before a grand fireplace.

Raised in Millburn and Basking Ridge, Polignano wanted to play hockey as a teen. Given the cost of equipment, his father decreed he could play if he footed the bills. With no intention of becoming a chef, Polignano took a job at a local pizzeria…and stayed for eight years. He left the University of Connecticut, where he was studying, as he put it, “the artistic side of advertising,” for the Culinary Institute of America at Hyde Park in 2000. While there, he landed an intern position at the Ryland Inn, consistently included among New Jersey’s best restaurants—its associated inn built in 1796 as a country home and stagecoach stop.

“It was the best and worst time of my life,” Polignano recalled. “I was at the bottom of the totem pole, but was exposed to so many different types of cuisine…and amazing cooks.” Upon graduation, he returned to the inn for another six years before taking a sous chef position at the Copeland in Morristown. He moved on to the Bernard’s Inn, where he was promoted to chef de cuisine within six months before an executive chef position lured him to California. A year later in 2012, he learned the Ryland Inn was reopening after an extended closure. He sent a letter seeking to apply, and was quickly hired back as chef de cuisine.

“I always had a love affair with the Ryland; it’s my home,” he said, adding that he honed his skills under its Executive Chef Anthony Bucco. When Bucco left for Sussex County’s Crystal Springs Resort, Polignano became the inn’s executive chef, taking the farm-to-table movement to new heights by building relationships with local farmers and purveyors.

A half-acre onsite garden provides produce in season, in part because Polignano prefers simple preparation to “let the food shine.” In addition to innovating upon contemporary American/international menus for weddings and special events, Polginano, 34, crafts succulent creations for the Inn’s a la carte and six-course tasting menus, aided by his staff of fourteen.

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“We push ourselves and the cuisine,” he said. “The Chef ’s Room, which is our pride and joy, offers 12 to 17 courses. It’s a fun way to please people while they watch us prepare the food.” Menus tempt with Jersey Tomato Soup, Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras, Local Tilefish, Short Rib Reuben on house-made rye, and Roasted Griggstown Chicken with fingerling potato puree, baby fennel, carrots, and buttermilk. The chef elevates Sunday brunch into the culinary stratosphere with such delicacies as Smoked Trout Salad, Squid Ink Tagliatelle, Smoked Duck Sausage, and Lemon & Ricotta Pancakes. His favorite dessert creation? Peanut Butter Mousse.

On November 19, the chef and his staff will re-create the menu from the James Beard House dinner they presented this past summer, making the same dishes available for the public. His popular “full feast” Thanksgiving dinner also draws repeat customers. Looking ahead to New Year’s Eve, Polignano promises Scallops Tartare with black truffles and apple, and a special Wagyu beef dish.

“The Ryland Inn holds a special place in my heart,” Polignano said. “When I first started as an intern, I watched how they produced such great food at such a rapid rate, and always had the objective to be executive chef here. This has always been a place of exceptional hospitality.”

Executive Chef Craig Polignano
Ryland Inn / 111 Old Highway 28, Whitehouse Station
908.534.4011 / rylandinnnj.com