At the sleek and sea-inspired Catch & Cut  in Fort Lauderdale, culinary innovation blends seamlessly with timeless tradition.

From fresh seafood and pristine stone crabs to hand-cut Allen Brothers steaks and a refined raw and sushi bar, the restaurant embodies what South Florida dining does best: elevated simplicity with a touch of warmth.

I had a chance to interview the restaurant’s executive chef and culinary director to discuss how his years of experience, refined palate, and deep respect for old-school hospitality have shaped Catch & Cut’s menu and identity. 

Our conversation included everything from sourcing and seasonality to customer connection and crafting memorable wine dinners, all thanks to their belief that dining should feel as personal as it is exceptional.

How do you balance tradition and innovation when crafting dishes that reflect Catch & Cut’s focus on seafood, stone crabs, steaks from Allen Brothers, and a refined raw/sushi bar?

My age has a lot to do with it. If I designed this menu 20 years ago, it would have been a completely different menu. With my age, I ask myself what I want when I go to dinner. When I go to a high-end restaurant, what kind of menu do I want? I look at it from an age perspective and from the clientele’s perspective, and that’s how I develop the menu for the restaurant. 

I noticed stone crabs are currently off the menu until around October 15, 2025, due to frozen-only availability. How do you navigate ingredient sourcing challenges while maintaining the restaurant’s standard of freshness?

You can get stone crabs year-round, but off-season, they will be frozen. The season is from Oct. 15 through May 1. Stone crabs are such a specialty item and need to be served at their peak of freshness. We didn’t feel it was right to give customers frozen product. The season is so limited, and why not take advantage of the freshness? 

What’s your approach to integrating seasonal or limited time offerings (like “Taste of Europe” or brunch specialties) into the menu without disrupting the core identity of Catch & Cut?

It all comes down to the customer base and knowing our clientele and their expectations. They’re the ones I need to satisfy. We look at the age of our clientele and their expectations for brunch and wine dinners. While we want to showcase our food and beverage talent, we want to satisfy our customers and give them a reason to come back for more. 

How do you ensure that the elevated, “old-school hospitality” ethos, where guests feel like family, is consistently delivered across team members and services, from main dining to brunch to the rooftop lounge?

I observed old school restaurants here in Fort Lauderdale, and I worked at one in Miami for 26 years. I ask myself what makes a successful restaurant. It’s not just the food and beverage; it’s the overall experience for customers. Giving customers a place where they feel welcome and an opportunity to get to know the staff, so they want to come back two to three times a week. When you ask someone, “What is your favorite restaurant?” Nine times out of 10, it’s affiliated with someone they know. We get to know our customers, and they get to know our staff. Dining out at a restaurant is more than eating; it’s an elite social gathering place. You can have good food and drinks, but guests want to walk away having a really good experience. If we can deliver the whole package, food and beverage and old school hospitality, we’ll win the customers over, so they’ll want to come back over and over again. 

What strategies do you employ during high volume or special event nights, such as sushi summer nights or Dine Out Lauderdale, to maintain exceptional service, staff coordination, and guest satisfaction?

Our goal on the nights we do promotions and special events is to capture new clientele. It’s an opportunity for us to get to know clients and for them to get to know us. Our 25% Sushi Summer Nights promotion did very well, so we’re adding it to our year-round happy hour menu. Our wine dinner series will elevate us to a whole new level. It’s an opportunity to give customers something different from time to time, and it keeps them excited to come back for new things repeatedly. 

With a finely curated wine list and active roles in pairing, especially in events like “Taste of Europe.” What’s your philosophy when matching wines with complex, multi-course menus?

For me, it’s an opportunity to have a good conversation with our sommeliers to fully understand what our visions are. We’re still learning what visions are together. By understanding our joint vision, we can work together to create unique opportunities for our regulars and new customers. We can elevate their experience and really show what Catch & Cut is all about. Hopefully, what we put on the menu translates to a nice evening for our clientele. 

When designing a cohesive beverage experience, such as for “Taste of Europe,” Sunday brunch, or Sushi Summer Nights, how do your roles intersect and what’s your collaborative workflow from concept to execution? 
 
Working with our sommeliers to get their vision from a beverage perspective, and how well the customers receive it. Then we translate it into a food experience. We try and fail at a lot of things. But we’ve been extremely successful in giving customers experiences from a food and beverage perspective. A lot of it comes with experience and age. It would have been different 20-30 years ago. We determine what our customers are looking for and how we can exceed their expectations and get them to come back. We’ve got to work to win them to come back and understand what they are looking for. As you get older, you appreciate what dining is all about. It’s a great social environment. Food and beverage are just a small piece of a puzzle. Guests are the big piece of the puzzle.

Catch & Cut is located at 1309 E. Las Olas Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301. For more information and to make a reservation, visit https://catchandcut.com.