Kitchenique: Everything and the Kitchen Sink
By Bruce Collier November 28, 2002 Issue

The shops in The Market at Sandestin are getting their Christmas makeover. The sidewalks and storefronts are swarming with somewhat burly-looking elves hanging lights, greenery and tinsel. Tucked away in a back corner is Kitchenique, to some, a kitchenware store, to others, a wonderland of toys and treats.

Kitchenique founder/owner Vicki McCain comes by her love of food and cooking naturally: “I grew up in New Orleans, in the Irish Channel, and food was a part of my lifestyle and upbringing.” McCain’s childhood centered around the markets and small restaurants of New Orleans, including one old-time seafood establishment that paid children 25 cents to boil crabs.

McCain continued her working association with food through high school, but turned to psychology and sociology in college at the University of New Orleans. After a stint working with abused and neglected children in Tangipahoa Parish, she returned to her first love, establishing herself as a caterer for corporate events. All the while, she vacationed and visited in the Fort Walton/Destin area, finally moving here for a catering job in 1982. She soon picked up on a major difference between here and New Orleans.

“Retail then was limited,” she says, “and I noticed that the people who had second homes here had to bring cookware and supplies from home to furnish their kitchens and entertain.” With the help and advice of Joel McLendon, a pioneer in the setup of retail gourmet cookware departments, she opened the original Kitchenique store in the Shoreline Village mall in 1985. The
Sandestin store followed in 1996. The Shoreline store closed in 1999, when McCain doubled the size of her present location to accommodate a cooking school.

“When I started the classes, we had only a very small counter for the chefs to work on.” The present setup occupies about a quarter of the store, with a long counter, stools and a fully-equipped kitchen at the disposal of the
instructors and students. “These are very hands-on classes, very labor-intense,” says McCain. “The students are on their feet a lot.”

The instructors are for the most part local chefs, featuring, among others, Tim Creehan, Johnny Earles, John Jacob, Brian Shaw, Jared Ward, and Derek Flores. Class subjects cover a wide range: New Orleans home cooking (taught by McCain), organic Cuban cooking, Jamaican cuisine, dinner party class, and most popular of all, basic hands-on sushi.

“Our classes are about 60/40 men to women, which may surprise some people.” Classes are two hours in length, private cooking lessons are available, and kitchen assistants are regularly sought. “The assistants work with the chefs, and learn as they work.” A seasonal class schedule is available at the store, and classes are held year round.

Even if you aren’t looking for instruction, there are other reasons to come to Kitchenique. The store is crowded with displays of cookbooks and cookware in all its forms, from traditional stockpots and kitchen knives to the latest high tech labor saving gadgets. Also available are edibles such as preserves, relishes, sauces, flavored vinegars and oils, crackers, bread mixes, dessert
toppings, and flavored coffees. Samples are always out for casual nibbling while you shop.

“If we don’t have it in stock, we can find it and special order it.” Kitchenique sells by phone, mail, and over the Internet. McCain works diligently to keep up with the gourmet food business, which, thanks to the Food Network and the increasing celebrity of professional chefs, is big business.

“I attend two international food shows a year, as well as shows in Atlanta,” she says. “This industry is pretty well insulated from economic shifts. When things are tight, people simply cook and eat at home.” As does McCain, who cooks every night, even those nights she stays late for a class. “I enjoy it. Cooking is a way to show your love.”

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