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The Best Recipe for Joy

By Nancy Dewar

Evan & Ellie

Evan is the chef/owner of Stages at One Washington in Dover which he founded in 2012. A Dover native, he fell into the restaurant industry as a dishwasher and prep cook at the age of 19 never imagining where it would lead. He attended the University of Kentucky for two years and did exceptionally well in fine art and math…and “really nothing else!” So, he headed home, got his first job in the industry at Newicks in Dover, spent time at other establishments including 3 ½ years at the Olive Garden and then attended the Le Cordon Bleu School at the Atlantic Culinary Institute (which was located in Dover at that time) where he graduated top of his class. “I started working at real restaurants after that,” Evan said with a chuckle.

Locally, he was the chef at 43 Degrees North and The Dunaway Restaurant and worked at the One Hundred Club, all in Portsmouth. Evan then went to New York City where he worked at a number of Michelin starred restaurants including Per Se, acclaimed restauranteur Thomas Keller’s New York

Although local restauranteur and chef Evan Hennessey has been creating award winning recipes for over 20 years, he discovered his own best recipe for joy in 2019 when he got his first rescue dog, Ellie. The restaurant business isn’t easy, and at age 42 Evan was experiencing the tolls of the industry plus struggling with alcohol abuse. At a low point Evan knew it was time to focus on himself instead of just his culinary success. He began journaling, confiding in good friends, rock climbing more, running a lot more…and found special Ellie, a two-year-old Australian Kelpie rescue from the South. “She is the sweetest girl in the world. By the nature of her breed, she loves and needs exercise. I wanted a dog that was active, could hike mountains with me and go on adventures with me. Well… everywhere with me. Ellie is that dog. She gives me what I give her; the best life possible.”

interpretation of Napa’s well known The French Laundry. After a stint at Trio with Chef Grant Achatz in Chicago, Evan returned home to start his own venture. He said, “I’m not a city boy at all. I love this area, and we have everything we need here.”

Evan’s goal was to create a small tasting restaurant, but he felt that since it was a new concept to the area, it would be best to do it over time in stages; hence the name. “We started with monthly themed dinners, for example ‘the Titanic’ and ‘Julia Child.’ We did this for 1 ½ years, changing the menu and décor monthly. It was exhausting! Stage two was serving a 4-course prix-fixe menu along with a long 12-course tasting menu, and then we eventually evolved into offering our current 8-10 course tasting menu.”

The restaurant offers two seatings (for six) a night at the Kitchen Table, as they refer to it, as you’re literally in the kitchen as Evan and his small crew cook and serve you. “By 18 seacoastbarkmagazine.com

doing the two small seatings, we removed the chaos from the restaurant and added closeness and intimacy to fine dining,” Evan explained. “As cooks and hospitality professionals, we want to enjoy our jobs and our guests. Stages is like going to a friend’s house for dinner. Fine food, excellent wine and lots of fun.” In June 2021 they added the Living Room. “What’s the room next to your kitchen? Again, developing in stages. The Living Rooms offers a small plate menu with great cocktails, mocktails and lots of fun board games.”

Stages serves “progressive New England Cuisine” with all ingredients coming from New England. Evan works with one farm that provides vegetables and dairy. Fish comes from a co-op in Portland and the meat is from a local farm that he established a breeding program with. They calculate the meat they’ll need for the coming year, determine the cost of raising and caring for the animals and then pay the farm monthly on a pro-rated basis so they’ll have the necessary cash flow.

Ellie, Huck & Isa Waiting for Dinner

“If it doesn’t grow in New England, we don’t use it. We do ongoing foraging; looking for little green plants, garlic mustard, you name it! Whatever grows wild that one can eat or cook with. We dry, pickle, make vinegars and on and on.” Much of Evan’s foraging is done right on his own property in South Berwick. He and his wife Michelle have four acres that are surrounded by invisible fencing so the dogs have full run of the property, complete with trails they carved out for them. Dogs…yes…plural!

After falling so in love with Ellie, Evan wanted another herding dog and got Huck (short for Huckleberry), a 7-week-old Blue Heeler rescue puppy, in 2020. He came from down South, as well, where the cattle ranches don’t spay & neuter so there’s always a slew of puppies in need of homes. Their newest addition to the family is Isa (short for Isabel), a Shepherd/Husky mix who looks a bit like a wolf. “When I saw her online, I told Michelle that we need that dog! We put in an application and totally shined with our large, fenced property and experience with our two other herding dogs. And they picked us, thankfully!”

The beauty of being in the restaurant business is that one’s days are often free, and Evan takes advantage of this freedom as often as he can. Days hiking with his dogs are a true gift. “Ellie is my hiking buddy and is exceptional on trails. She’s a machine and won’t stop. She’s hiked twenty-two 4,000-footers in the White Mountains and has hiked Mount Washington and Mount Jefferson two times each. She’s incredible; like a mountain goat and has run over 600 miles with me.” Evan introduced Huck to hiking last year, and he’s done five 4,000-footers so far. Isa does small hikes with her Dad, and next year she’ll start going with the rest of the pack.

Evan Hennessey has gone through several iterations both personally and professionally. He runs a very successful restaurant. He was a three-time winner of the national TV show Chopped, produced by the Food Network, and is a great Dad to his three children (ages 11, 14 and 24). “With over 26 years in the industry, burnout is to be expected at times. The key is to figure out where you want to go next, dust yourself off and come back up.” Ellie helped Evan dust himself off a few years ago and now his pack of three are major contributors of joy in his life. “What do I love most about my dogs? There isn’t just one best part,” Evan said with chuckle. “Friendship. They are my friends, and I love them. I love them following me in the house. I love our adventures. I love their smiles. They have three very different smiles. And snuggles…they all snuggle differently. Our dogs are the most gentle, loving and caring rescues.” (www.Stages-Dining.com)

“If it doesn’t grow in New England, we don’t use it. We do ongoing foraging; looking for little green plants, garlic mustard, you name it! Whatever grows wild that one can eat or cook with. We dry, pickle, make vinegars and on and on.”

Michelle & Evan with Huck, Ellie & Isa