WESTBROOK, Maine — Chef Jamie Bell could be in the Old Port angling for a James Beard Award or teaming with a mixologist on a hot, new food pairing, but he chose a different path.
Miles from the hubbub of Commercial Street, Bell walks the halls of Avita of Stroudwater, an assisted living facility in Westbrook, asking graying residents if their haddock is up to snuff. After serving plates of hot meatloaf, which he grinds by hand from sirloin in the kitchen, he asks a table of women digging into salads, “How is everything today, ladies?”
The former executive chef at Ri Ra Irish Pub in Portland needed a break from the punishing demands of the cutthroat restaurant scene. Bell found a place to alight that allows him to perfect his culinary skills while practicing compassion.
“You have to leave your ego at the door,” said the 33-year-old, who sources from local farms and creates healthy, fresh meals for the 70 residents as though he were on Fore Street.
“They get a little bit of everything, although I know what they really want is just straight comfort food. I can put a certain twist on it while keeping it from scratch and local,” said Bell, a graduate of the New England Culinary Institute in Vermont. He’ll work in ramps, fiddleheads and cure bacon for farm-to-table lunches and dinners. “Ninety-eight percent of everything I make is from scratch.”
Despite his effort, that doesn’t mean everyone likes it. Betty Chamberlain, 81, said her haddock lunch was delightful, except for the side of asparagus. Though fresh from a farm in fertile Unity, the roughage is moved to the side of her plate, indicating she could do without veggies.
Bell, Avita’s resident dining director, knows eating healthy is not always what they want. “Many were cooking for themselves before they came here and got used to meals with lots of MSG,” such as cans of Dinty Moore, he said. Now they get soup, salad, entrees and dessert that would plate well in Maine’s foodiest city.
“The only restrictions we have to follow is low sodium. We season lightly. And for diabetics, [we] keep carbohydrates low,” he said.
The facility’s Massachusetts-based owner, Northbridge Companies, is committed to regional fare through their Eat Fresh, Eat Local program, believing “age does not lessen the desire for fresh, quality dining; it often enhances it.” They even use local wineries to keep spirits bright.
Wendy Nowokunski, president and co-founder of Northbridge, said “being part of the local community while providing freshly sourced choices on our residents’ menus” is the goal.
“Chef Jamie has done an incredible job of collaborating with local farms and fisheries to elevate the program at Avita of Stroudwater and will proudly continue his effort at Stroudwater Lodge,” Nowokunski said. The Lodge is another assisted living home opening across the street. Bell will man both kitchens.
This chef may be shielded from harsh Yelp reviews and food critics, but that doesn’t mean he cuts corners. Bell creates inventive new menus daily for these elders suffering from dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
Once a month he makes lobster rolls and offers a special meal on their birthdays. The only request he can’t fulfill is muskrat stew. “A guest remembered hunting for muskrat growing up and wanted muskrat stew,” Bell recalled. Why didn’t he oblige? “There are USDA [U.S. Department of Agriculture] regulations against that.”
He could turn out the insipid fare associated with senior care facilities — stringy beef and mushy veggies — but Bell takes the extra step by making his own soup stocks, deli meats and grinding meat for this captive audience.
“That way I know it’s not coming from 100 different cows across the state,” he said, stopping to sign an invoice from Native Maine, where all his produce comes from. “Nothing we do is pre-packaged, add-water meals. So there is no guessing game to it.”
Ranging in age from mid-60s to 100, his audience is wide and varied. They span different decades and multiple nationalities. “I have 70 different palates to feed,” he said.
Many couldn’t care less about where their food is grown, but they know a good meal when they taste it. “They still have their likes and different takes on food,” Bell said. “Having a great meal still matters a lot to them.”
Enjoying a salad last week, Janet Bockus, gave it two thumbs up.
“I lived through food rations in World War II. There is not much I don’t like,” the 82-year-old resident said.
While Bell’s diners may not remember the nuances of a braised pork shank for days or weeks to come, he feels he is making a difference — not just filling bellies or following trends.
Eating is one of the most basic responses to life, and Bell communicates to the memory impaired through this elemental, human channel.
“It’s fun,” he said. “It’s social and rewarding. I’m able to use my culinary past to shape my future.”
To strengthen the link between food and memory, Bell runs and coordinates cooking classes, such as The History of Pizza Making. In Memory Making Baking, residents make batter while the bread is baking in the oven.
“The scent can trigger memories,” Bell said. “A lot of these women cooked for their families for years. Being in the kitchen can bring it all back.”
And about that James Beard Award? “Who’s to say they can’t give it to an assisted living chef?” Bell said.
