Bistro owner relates life-saving experinence

By Keeley Fitzgerald for The Three Rivers Edition - 02/05/2008

High Country Bistro owner Chris Kauffman offers customers variety with an ever-changing and unique menu. Kauffman says he is lucky to be where he is today and has a Good Samaritan to thank for his life. Keeley Fitzgerald photo

Chris Kauffman has a lot to be thankful for. The 20-year-old Ennis man has a new business underfoot, an eye for anything having to do with food and a Good Samaritan to thank.

In the early morning hours of Dec. 13, Kaufman hit a patch of black ice on the Virginia City hill that sent his Jeep spiraling off the road. After rolling twice down a steep hill, the Jeep skidded to a stop upside down.

Kauffman was able to free himself from the Jeep into the frigid morning air. Gathering all his strength and climbing a steep embankment despite multiple injuries, a blood covered Kauffman was rescued by a passerby who quickly rushed him to the Madison Valley Hospital. While en route, Kauffman says his rescuer’s two dogs licked his face to keep him conscious.

Two months later, Kauffman is healed, but is still unsure of his rescuer’s identity.

“I still don’t know the identity of the man who saved my life,” he said. “All I can say to him is, thank you for all that you did to help me. I might not be here today if it wasn’t for you.”

Although the rescuer’s identity is unknown, Kauffman says he thinks about him a lot while making a double shot espresso, putting together a gourmet dinner for a crowd, or greeting a rush of early morning customers at his newly opened High Country Bistro and Personal Chefs business.

“I was in the planning stages of this place before the accident. If he wouldn’t have found me and taken me to the hospital, I wouldn’t be here doing this today. It’s all thanks to him, that’s for sure,” he said.

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High Country Bistro and Person Chefs, which officially opened on Jan. 7, is set to celebrate its first month in business this week with an eye on brining something new to Ennis.

“What you’ll find here is that the food is like nothing else here in town. I’m trying to add something different and bring some new tastes to Ennis,” said Kauffman.

Open Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., High Country Bistro offers a menu filled with variety. The menu changes daily and monthly, with a new soup, salad and sandwich everyday and an entirely new menu each month. The only thing that stays the same is Mexican Thursdays.

Kauffman, who learned to cook from his grandmothers, says he doesn’t want customers to get bored with the menu, especially since there are so many options out there. As a chef, he also enjoys the challenge and variety of an ever-changing menu.

“It takes me about a month before I get bored cooking something. If I’m bored making it, I assume people are bored eating it, so why not switch it up,” said Kauffman.

After attending a 2 ½ year long culinary arts program in Seattle, Kauffman spent the next six months interning with a high profile event planner. It was during these three years that Kauffman really developed a passion for cooking.

“Our chef always taught us that your plate is like your canvas and your food is like the paint,” he said. “Cooking challenges your creative side. I think that is why cooking is so fun.”

Aside from serving breakfast, lunch, and gourmet beverages at his counter location at Madison Square, Kauffman’s business also offers private dining services, catering for events large and small, cooking classes, event planning and personal chef services.

Kauffman says his new business merges his favorite aspects of cooking into one concept.

“I love cooking, event planning and catering,” he said. “If you bring food to something, it brings more people and makes then happy. I want to bring more different tastes to Ennis. There are so many different culture and tastes to try, why limit ourselves to just one thing.”

He’s also hoping that hosts will take advantage of his unique, full-service personal chef concept when planning a party or gathering.

“We’ll come to your home and cook for the party of gathering. Basically, the host can just sit around and enjoy their party because we do everything. We cook it, serve it, and clean-up,” said Kauffman.

Starting Feb. 12, High Country will begin offering cooking classes. This month’s schedule includes lessons in the history of cooking, knife skills, presentation, meat preparation techniques, and the preparation of specialty foods such as canapés, desserts, hors d’oeuvres, and sauces. The classes end with a March 1 cooking competition that will be judged by area chefs.

“My big thing is to teach people that you can make a $5 meal look like a $30-40 meal just by the way you present it. It’s the flair of making everything unique,” said Kauffman.

The deadline to sign-up for the classes is Feb. 7.

Kauffman hopes his new business will leave his customers with a new take on food. Food doesn’t have to be boring and it doesn’t have to be difficult to prepare. It does, however, need to taste good.

“I want people to leave here knowing that the food was great,” he said. “I want them to leave here with a new taste experience—something that opens their minds to the world of food.”