Chef Ryan Leinonen, owner of Trillium

You can’t swing a spork in Denver without hitting a top-notch chef. That being said, there are a few who are blazing new trails—in the realm of Scandinavian cuisine, for instance. Chef Ryan Leinonen of the now two-year-old Trillium in LoDo has given us a new temptation for our palates. Instead of Colorado-centric game meats or European sauciness, he’s opted for the flavors of the icy north—think fish of every kind, roe, pickled vegetables, head cheese. And while that might seem a bit of a stretch for your average Denverite, Leinonen has managed to reel them in. I got a chance to chat with him about his colorful inspiration, and how Trillium has become a sought-after culinary destination in the Mile High City.

Jeff Steen: Your background starts in Michigan, but somehow led you to the culinary world of Colorado. What inspired the move?

Chef Ryan Leinonen: After I graduated from the Culinary Program at Schoolcraft College, I went to Eastern Michigan University to study hospitality management, where I met my wife, Taffy. After we both graduated, we decided it was in our best interests to leave Michigan and pursue life out West. Denver seemed like the logical choice: a beautiful city, a blooming culinary scene, lots of skiing, and great people. We moved in 2003 and never looked back.

JS: Among other spots, you’ve spent time behind the line at The Kitchen (Boulder) and Colt & Gray (Denver)—both of which are keen on locally-sourced, American-styled fare. How has that informed your own style?

Chef RL: I’ve always been interested in where the food I cook comes from. I did some farm-to-table work in Michigan before I moved out to Colorado, but once I started working at The Kitchen in Boulder, it changed from an interest into a passion.

Chef Hugo [at The Kitchen] taught me a lot about procuring local ingredients and why it’s so important. As the chef de cuisine, I ended up developing a lot of long-lasting relationships with local farmers that I’m proud to say I keep to this day. A short while afterwards, I worked at Colt & Gray. It was at C&G that I helped develop a lot of the farmer-restaurant relationships. I just have a lot of respect for all farmers and ranchers.

It’s hard work and requires a ton of passion, focus, and energy—probably more than being a chef. It’s through that realization and understanding that my cooking style has become more mature—focused on cooking within seasons and buying local and sustainable whenever possible.

JS: When you opened Trillium in 2011, it’s safe to say there weren’t any Scandinavian restaurants in town. Why did you pick that concept?

Chef RL: [Laughs] I still say there are no Scandinavian restaurants in Denver. I never intended Trillium to be strictly a Scandinavian restaurant, though. The concept was to develop an American bistro in which the food and space were focused and inspired by the foods of Scandinavia and the American Great Lakes—rather than the same by the cuisines of France, Italy, and the Mediterranean. In 2010, I was able to spend some time in Finland and Sweden in the late summer during harvest time. I ate my way through both countries—from farmers’ markets to fine dining—and came back with an inspiration that was closely tied to some of my grandmother’s food from childhood. Over the years, I’ve been really interested in the cuisine at Noma and Aquavit in New York City; similar to those concepts, my idea was to bring an American bistro to Denver focused on farm to table cuisine, incorporating some traditional and modern Scandinavian fare into a core menu of New American fare.

JS: For those of us who aren’t familiar, can you touch some of the fundamental flavors and dishes of Scandinavian cuisine?

Chef RL: Scandinavian cuisine was originally born out of necessity. It’s very focused on fish, lean meats, dairy, vegetables (especially root vegetables), and foraged mushrooms, Nordic berries, and other edible forest goodies. Preparations were based on how to preserve those ingredients over time because of the short Scandinavian growing season and long, cold winters. Techniques such as salt curing, pickling, and smoking are prevalent, and we utilize these every day at Trillium.

The resurgence of this truly old cuisine is important, because it tends to be healthier and focused on core practices of seasonal and farm-to-table cooking. You only eat what’s coming out of the ground during a specific season, and you make the most of what you have. It relies heavily on the sea as well, because of the specific topography of Scandinavia—sandwiched between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea.

In traditional Scandinavian fare, flavors tend to be simple, straightforward, and a bit on the bland side, but are brightened with vinegar and other acids, salts, cheeses, and some of the wonderful hearth baking that is renowned in this part of the world. Herbs and spices such as dill, horseradish, cardamom, lavender, cinnamon, citrus, caraway, and anise are also pretty common.

JS: I’ve been told there’s a new dinner series in the works. Tell us about that.

Chef RL: Last October through this past February, we featured a monthly “Scandinavian Dinner Series,” where for one day every month we feature modern twists on traditional fare from a specific country in Scandinavia, like Sweden for example. This four-course dinner with pairings is separate from regular dinner service (although we do offer our regular menu as well), and gives us a chance to dive deeper into the specific cuisine of that month’s particular country, offer our guests a truer experience of this cuisine, and have fun while doing it. We even had the pleasure to host Jenna Johansen as a guest chef for our Denmark Dinner in January.

After a great response to every dinner last winter, we decided to bring back the series this year and showcase the summer foods of Scandinavian countries. We’ll bring back the winter series again in the fall.

Let’s switch to some of the juicy details about restaurant ownership. No doubt the building of a restaurant from scratch is a monumental feat. Can you offer some titillating stories from your many hours of restaurant ownership and cooking?

Chef RL: Ha! Where to begin? I could write a book on that alone. Building Trillium was one of the most fun and most challenging things I’ve ever done. I had a large hand in the design of the space, and actually did some demolition and construction. The most memorable moment of that adventure was standing on a wobbly 12-foot ladder, perched on a sand pile, hand-chipping plaster off of our (now) brick wall in the north dining room. It was well over 100 degrees in there, with no A/C. Powderized plaster was sticking to my face and melting.

As far as the cooking goes, I have at least 20 years of stories I can share. I’ve been fortunate to cook for many celebrities (Will Farrell, Lisa Loeb, Jeff Daniels, and Jennifer Garner to name just a few), but I really just enjoy the daily grind of putting my head down and cooking great food for our guests. That’s what it’s all about.

JS: Ok, so beyond the job—when the lights finally shut off and you get to go home—how do you spend your free time? Where do you like to eat?

Chef RL: Well, I don’t get a lot of free time, so I spend it wisely. My wife and I are expecting our first child this September, and the prospect of being a father for the first time really excites and scares the hell out of me, so I spend as much time with her as possible. I golf and ski when I can, and do my best to juggle my work and home schedule with friends and family. I love music, as it keeps my sanity in check—especially old school underground hip-hop and jazz. I definitely make some time to go back to Michigan once every summer, sometimes to see family and friends, and sometimes just to sit by the lake with a cold beer and do nothing.

I don’t go out to eat too often, but when I do, I try to visit some of the top restaurants in town to see what all of those talented minds are doing. I usually try to keep it simple though. I frequent Hana Matsuri in Westminster for sushi, for example. In my opinion, there is none better on the Front Range.