LOCAL FLAVORS
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Getting a Grip PHOTOS: JUSTIN GREAT, COURTESY CHEF DUY PHAM
Curiosity and calluses drove a Denver chef to become a master artisan of EXTRAORDINARY KNIFE HANDLES. By John Lehndorff
DUY PHAM IS an artist whose identity changes depending on the universe in which you encounter him. As one of Denver’s best-known chefs, he captivates diners’ taste buds at Foraged restaurant. His kitchen environment is pristine and uber-organized. The small cottage behind his Denver home, however, isn’t quite as tidy. He apologizes for the sawdust generated by a pile of wood chunks and his drill press, belt sander, grinder and table saw. It’s in this studio that Pham grinds out the one-of-a-kind knife handles that chefs, collectors and fans across the globe revere. How in demand are his creations? If you want to taste the chef’s French-meets-Japan fare, you need to make a reservation at least a week in advance. But if you want Pham to fashion you a knife handle that fits perfectly in your hand, you will probably not be served for a few months. “I’m a little backed up. I’ve got 14 handles to work on,” Pham says. For his clients in the U.S., Malaysia, the Philippines, Japan, Australia and Vietnam, it’s well worth the wait. “I made a knife handle for one of the Broncos that changes from blue to orange as you move it,” he says. “I have some that I made from glowin-the-dark material.” Pham has used woolly mammoth teeth, elk and antelope antlers, whale and camel bones, as well as pieces of meteorites and high-tech carbon fiber material … sometimes in the same knife handle.
CHEF DUY PHAM
To him, fitting a knife handle is personal. “Everything’s about improving performance,” he explains. “The idea is to fit the tool to the chef’s hand, not the chef to the knife.” 26
august 2022 // AvidLifestyle
