Popular Elderslie Farm in Kechi lures well-known chef from his Wichita restaurant job
A Wichita chef who’s been at the helm of a high-end local restaurant for the past five years is making a big move.
Josh Rathbun, who in the summer of 2016 took over as executive chef at Siena Tuscan Steakhouse inside The Ambassador Hotel, 104 S. Broadway, will work his last day there on Thursday. He’s accepted a new job: executive chef at Elderslie Farm, the popular Kechi destination at 3501 E. 101st St. North where owners Katharine and George Elder run a fine-dining restaurant, a goat dairy and creamery, a blackberry bramble and a casual cafe as well as a sawmill and fine woodworking shop.
Rathbun’s new job will have him overseeing the daily operations of the Elderslie Farm restaurants, collaborating with Elder and the existing staff to “reinvigorate and expand” the menus, and working with local growers who stock the restaurant’s kitchen, said Katharine Elder, who has been serving as the executive chef at Elderslie since it opened its first cafe in the summer of 2012. Elder will move on to the role of creative director.
Katharine Elder said that she’s known and respected Rathbun for years. The two have a shared passion for sustainable cooking and sourcing food from local growers, and their outlooks mesh.
As the Elderslie operation continues to grow, the owners are considering what’s next for them, she said. And though she wasn’t ready to share exactly what that might be, she said Rathbun fit into the plan.
“As we pursue growth at Elderslie, he’s a natural fit,” she said. “We don’t have to vet Josh Rathbun. We share all of the same growers and have a very similar starting point for how we treat food, the ‘why’ behind it, and the aim of authentic hospitality. Josh is a great fit to equip ourselves for further growth.”
Chef Travis Joy, who has been at Elderslie Farm for the past three years, will remain on staff and will lead its dinner service, Katharine Elder said.
I’ve reached out to Siena Tuscan Steakhouse about its plans to replace Rathbun but have not yet heard back. I’ll let you know when I do.
Rathbun made a name for himself in Denver restaurant kitchens. He grew up in Wichita and started working in local restaurants at age 15, taking jobs over the years at places like Watermark Cafe, Cibola and Lakeside Club. He also worked in restaurants in Australia.
He took over the head chef job at Siena Tuscan Steakhouse when Chef Jeremy Wade left, and during Rathbun’s tenure there, he’s been a vocal advocate for the “eat local” movement. In 2019, he organized a Farm-to-Table Summit that brought restaurant owners and local growers together. Katharine Elder was in attendance.
Local food sourcing has also always been a passion of Katharine Elder’s. She and her husband, George, first got into food in 2010, when George and his sister Alexis planted blackberries on the land around the home where they grew up, hoping to turn it into an operational farm. In 2012, George and Katharine opened their tiny Bramble Days Cafe overlooking the bramble and sold a weekend-morning breakfast menu that included blackberry lemon scones and other dishes made with vegetables grown on the farm.
As their popularity grew, so did their business. In 2014, the couple converted the first floor of George’s parents’ farm house into a dreamy restaurant and began serving upscale, multi-course meals. The restaurant was inspired by the occasional seasonal dinners they’d already been offering that showcased produce grown on the farm. Those dinners would often sell out within minutes.
They added a creamery focused on goat cheese production that also has a gelato counter in 2019. And this year, when they reopened the cafe after a long COVID shutdown, they added a more casual, cheese-focused evening dining option on their outdoor terrace.
The Bramble Cafe will remain open through the end of October, serving from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays. The casual terrace dining is offered from 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, and reservations aren’t required. The farm-to-table dinners are served from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Reservations for those are available at eldersliefarm.com/restaurant.
This story was originally published September 29, 2021 at 12:39 PM.
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