EXECUTIVE CHEF Jim Stump breaks the mold of typical brewpub fare at the Los Gatos Brewing Co. Stump has created a diverse menu of upscale comfort food that goes well beyond burgers and grilled-chicken sandwiches. The handsome wood-accented interior and open kitchen with its wood-fired pizza oven and rotisserie grill add to the restaurant's appeal.

Stump has plenty of culinary experience to draw on. After graduating from the California Culinary Academy, Stump worked as a chef's assistant for Hubert Keller at San Francisco's Fleur de Lys and then went to become saucier at the Blue Fox. He moved south to Silicon Valley in 1989 to join Don Durante at Birk's Restaurant in Santa Clara, where he rose from sous-chef to executive chef. From there he became executive chef at Saratoga's Le Mouton Noir. He opened the Los Gatos Brewing Co. in 1991 with Andy Pavicich Jr. in 1991. While still involved with the restaurant, he opened A.P. Stump's in downtown San Jose in 1997, which enjoyed a 12-year run as one of downtown's most celebrated restaurants.

Chef Spotlight is a regularly occurring feature leading up to Silicon Valley Restaurant Week, Oct. 14–21. Each week, I will profile a chef involved in SVRW. For more information about the event, please go to www.siliconvalleyrestaurantweek.com.

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