Youthful and earnest, executive chef Daniel Wilcox Stevens creates a little bit of magic in the Sterling restaurant Mokomandy. Not only is the presentation whimsical and appealing, but also the flavors he and his cooks create are memorable. Where else can you find a kitchen that puts out a range of dishes that are part Korean, part Cajun and wholly delectable? Why this gastronomic mix? The owner, Thaddeus Kim, is honoring his Korean heritage — hence, “Mo” for modern and “Ko” for Korean — and the Cajun heritage of his mother, Mandy. As unlikely as the melding is, the results are a credit to the culinary skills of Stevens, who interprets the flavors the family loves best. “This is what I do, this is my passion,” he noted.
This Maryland native and Culinary Institute of America graduate got his start in the kitchen early in life, thanks to family summers spent in Cape Cod, Mass. There the youngster picked mussels off rocks, emptied lobster pots and grilled blue fish in his grandfather’s yard. Added to that was the opportunity to pick and prepare garden-fresh veggies from his grandfather’s large garden.
