Pollin brings a taste of Paris

HUNTLEY – On this particular morning in July, Pierre Pollin has already put in two hours on the pickleball court. At age 75, he enjoys a busy life in Sun City: he serves as president of his bridge club, he enjoys cycling, and he comments that men even older than he keep him on his toes during pickleball matches (“There is one guy who is 97 or 98 and he runs for the ball,” says Pollin, incredulously.)

Pollin’s idyllic, slower-paced life now is in stark contrast to his long, successful career as chef and owner of a popular French restaurant for 30 years, followed by a dozen years of teaching at Kendall College at National Louis University in Chicago.

Pollin’s French accent alludes to the fact that he was born and raised in France, but he’s lived in the United States since 1974 when, upon completing his culinary training in Paris, he came to Palatine, Illinois to work as a chef for La Titi de Paris (translation: “the rascal of Paris.”) In just three short years, Pollin was able to buy the restaurant with his wife, Judith.

By 1987, he moved the restaurant to a much larger space in Arlington Heights. Even though this move followed shortly on the heels of the infamous “Black Monday” stock market crash, the restaurant remained busy. Pierre became known not only for his delicious cuisine with top-notch ingredients, but was also recognized for his generous sense of hospitality. 

“To run a restaurant, it’s not just being a chef,” explains Pollin. “You have to have a view of what you want to do. You have to be aware of what is going on in the dining room. We chefs have a tendency to think that the kitchen is the most important thing in the restaurant, but it’s not really. It’s the front of the restaurant.” Pollin took special care to make sure the maître d’ and waiters were doing the best job they could to serve the customers; in return, his staff stayed loyal to him, many remaining at the restaurant more than a decade.

Persistence Pays Off

Pollin remembers one particular time when a man approached him, asking him for a job as a waiter in the restaurant. Pollin told him he didn’t have a job opening, but the man wouldn’t give up.

“He told me, ‘I only want to work for you, and I want to start tomorrow.” Pollin did end up hiring him, admiring him for his persistence.

“He worked for me for two years, then went into the wine business,” says Pollin proudly. “Just a few months ago he bought a vineyard in California!”

Pollin began hosting monthly classes at the restaurant, and gained more attention by entering contests. 

“I told the people organizing [the event] that I don’t do contests,” says Pollin. “But they told me I had to, because I had been chosen!”

Pollin ended up earning top honors in the Great American Seafood Challenge with his trademark salmon with cider sauce. 

After that, Pollin’s attitude toward competitions changed. 

“Well, it’s kind of fun to win,” he said.

He entered more contests, including the Taste of Elegance Contest sponsored by the National Pork Producers Council. He took first place nationally.

In 2004, Pollin and his wife sold the restaurant. (Sadly, the restaurant closed its doors permanently in 2012.) His retirement was short-lived, since he took up teaching at Kendall College.

“I had a great time teaching,” he says. “I had wonderful students, and I still talk to some of them.” He says he enjoyed the challenge of teaching young adults in their 20s as well as older students, who were teachers, lawyers, food researchers, and even police officers and firefighters, taking culinary classes out of curiosity, or because they were looking to change professions.

What does Chef Pollin say to students looking to pursue a career in culinary arts?

“It’s a very difficult profession,” he says. “It’s something you must really love to do. You finish your schooling, then you go to work for about minimum wage. You must accept for a few years that you aren’t going to make money. Only if you are good and dedicated, you will succeed.”

Chef Pollin says he loved his 43 years of working as a chef. In a 2001 episode of WTTW’s weekly restaurant review series, Check, Please, Pollin tells the camera earnestly, “I want the plate to look good, but first, I want the food to taste good.”

Whether it was his dedication or luck, or a little of both, he says he was able to make a good living in a business he was passionate about. Pollin was filmed in his own restaurant’s kitchen for an appearance on the Great Chefs of Chicago series, which aired on WTTW Channel 11. He was inducted into the Chicago Culinary Museum and Chef’s Hall of Fame as “Legendary Chef” in 2017. Then-Mayor Rahm Emmanuel even declared March 3, 2017 as “Chef Pierre Pollin Day” in Chicago.

But now, Pollin enjoys his life in Sun City. The only kitchen he works in is at home, making meals beside Judith. Recently, he did a short cooking demo for the bridge club members at their annual picnic. (Tuna Poke, says Pollin. “You can do that in 15 minutes. People loved it.”)

“I’m retired, completely,” he says. “It feels very good.”

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