Local by Nature

Chef Ian Wingate has worked in many kitchens, but in 2022, he opened his dream one in Spokane — at Outsider, a bright, cozy eatery where diners can sit at counters circling the kitchen, located in the center of the restaurant, and watch their food be prepared.

“I built the kitchen around how I wanted it,” says Wingate, “to invite guests into my home.”

And while the kitchen is the heart of Wingate’s restaurant, the fresh, local ingredients he uses are definitely the heart of his cooking. Wingate says he lets those ingredients decide what is on the menu, not the other way around.

“I don't really have a game plan of what I’m going to make or what dish I'm going to do, but when I see something that inspires me, then it goes from there,” he says.

Diners also appreciate Wingate’s focus on fresh, local produce, with one person calling him a “Spokane legend.”

“It’s fresh, real, authentic food,” says a customer sitting at one of the tables in the perimeter of the restaurant. “It’s as if somebody just picked the ingredients from the garden and brought it over to me.”

That’s not far from the truth. For example, Wingate says he loves featuring the tomatoes from Jackson Farm in Spokane Valley, where owner Dan Jackson grows the best of the best. Wingate gestures to a plate of beautiful heirloom tomatoes.

“He grows the best tomatoes literally in the United States,” says Wingate. “And his little cherry tomatoes? People that don’t like tomatoes eat one of those, and it’s like eating candy.”

Another customer praises Wingate’s specific cooking style, which he described as being fresh and high quality “without being too pretentious.”

“It has everything I want in a dish,” the customer says. “It feels healthy and delicious and interesting and balanced.”

But while Wingate’s dishes are innovative, he also wants to make sure the ingredients take center stage.

“People are working hard to grow stuff,” he says. “It’s like, let’s just let it taste like how it’s supposed to taste.”

The focus on fresh, local produce even extends to Outsider’s cocktails. When Washington Grown visited the restaurant in Season 12, host Kristi Gorenson learned how to make a special cocktail featuring local cherry fruit puree, a simple syrup infused with lilac flowers, and brandy from DW Distillers in Walla Walla. The resulting cocktail was a lovely pink color, topped with a ruby-red cherry. Gorenson took a sip and declared it delicious.

Then Wingate sweeps her into the kitchen, where she learns to make a dish of Columbia River steelhead served with local lentils, fresh spring peas, and asparagus. Wingate explains that steelhead is a really mild fish that isn’t fatty like salmon, which allows the vegetables to really shine.

“I love how you’re using so many fresh ingredients,” says Gorenson. “I think that makes such a huge difference in how things taste.”

“Absolutely,” said Wingate. “That’s our philosophy here. We let what’s grown dictate what we’re going to make for our menu.”