Cara Stadler

Coming Up

Le Cordon Bleu is the formal ground in Cara Stadler’s training, but the more defining schooling came in kitchens that move across French and Asian registers. At Café Rouge in Berkley, under Marsha McBride, at Striped Bass in Philadelphia, at Guy Savoy in France, and at Gordon Ramsay’s Au Trianon Palace in France, the work stacked technique against different standards of service and pace. That sequence set up Gourmet Underground in Beijing, where private fine dining became the next format to manage. Since 2011, Tao Yuan has been the central post in Maine, with Cara Stadler as chef/owner. Bao Bao Dumpling House, co-opened in 2014, extends that ownership into a second room with a different cadence.

Where They Are Now

Tao Yuan has been the anchor since 2011, with Cara Stadler holding the chef/owner role in Maine. Bao Bao Dumpling House, co-opened in 2014, adds a separate project rather than a duplicate one. Taken together, those roles show how long service in other kitchens can turn into ownership. In Brunswick, Tao Yuan remains the primary post; Bao Bao Dumpling House broadens the range without changing the core discipline.

Signature

Duck confit fried rice and Maine Jonah crab wide noodles sit at the center of Cara Stadler’s signature menu language, showing the range she brings to Chinese and French-inflected cooking.

In Their Words “My background is Asian um I should say Chine- well, heavily Chinese and French um mixed with sort of all of the all of Asia. And I sort of dabble in all sorts of cuisines.” “I mean, cooking for the judges was huge and terrifying and amazing at the same time.”

Honors

A James Beard nomination places Cara Stadler in national recognition without changing the fact pattern of the work itself.