Maria Perry was in her third year as a line cook at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in 2018 when Don McCradic, now the resort’s Director of Culinary Operations, offered her the opportunity to apply for the first-ever Keiser Scholarship for Culinary Excellence. The scholarship allowed Perry to complete her externship and earn her degree from Oregon Coast Culinary Institute, located on the campus of Southwestern Oregon Community College, 24 miles north of the resort in Coos Bay.
“That scholarship changed my life,” Perry said. “I wasn’t expecting to be able to finish school so soon for financial reasons. Getting that scholarship, being able to finish my degree and continue to move on at Bandon Dunes was huge personally.”
The scholarship reflects Bandon Dunes founder Mike Keiser’s commitment to supporting education, environmental causes and local businesses along the southwest Oregon coastline. But it also addresses a practical consideration: Bandon Dunes has never had any problem attracting golfers; its 103 golf holes and 210 rooms are booked solid through 2022. But the resort faces a constant challenge hiring enough staff to keep pace with expansion, particularly in its fast-growing culinary division.
“There is potential we’ll have a new project every year for the next few years,” said McCradic, who has been at the resort for 20 years, including 16 as executive chef.
Those projects include a 40-seat patio expansion that’s nearly complete at the main clubhouse, followed next year by the opening of Ghost Tree Grill located just south of Old Macdonald’s 18th green. There is also potential for a David McLay Kidd public course called New River Dunes south of the resort, a beachfront hotel in the town of Bandon and a second par-3 course on property designed by Tom Doak.
McCradic estimated that over the next year alone, he’ll need to add 40 employees to his 70-person culinary staff to keep pace with growth. That’s a big ask for a remote resort located near a tiny coastal village with limited employee housing.
A longstanding externship program with the Oregon Coast Culinary Institute – which is accredited by the American Culinary Federation, the premier professional chefs organization in North America – has served as a feeder program for the resort, which also recruits nationally and internationally. Perry and Shane Wilder, another Keiser Scholarship recipient, credited McCradic and his staff with creating a nurturing environment that has allowed them to advance quickly. The externship also provides funding for the last two terms of the student’s education, as well as an hourly wage and full-time benefits at the resort.
“Hearing about Chef Don and (Executive) Chef Rory (Butts), my expectation was that they would guide me, and that expectation has been met,” Wilder said. “I feel like I’ve been learning and growing and advancing at a fast rate. Part of that is my desire to grow, but it would be foolish not to recognize that part of that is the guidance I’ve received from the chefs there.”
At first blush, a large golf resort in a rural setting might not seem like a natural career move for a young chef with big dreams. But Bandon Dunes has at least two distinct selling points for young talent: variety and opportunity.
“They make sure every restaurant has its own flair, which is really smart. Guests have different options every day,” said Wilder, who has worked on everything from Asian fusion cuisine at Trails End to grilled and cold items at The Forge steakhouse.
“Our young culinarians get a good foundation and an opportunity to learn different styles of foods, from the production of the turn stands, where we serve sandwiches, hot dogs and brats, to the high-end steakhouse where we’re serving A5 Wagyu from Japan,” McCradic said.
The new restaurants that are in the pipeline will have distinct concepts, creating even more options for guests. That’s a necessity given the emergence of more buddies and couples trips, as well as becoming an international destination. Guest’s palates and the food industry have continued to evolve since 1999, leading to the introduction of more gluten-free, vegetarian and vegan options. While the chefs still prepare the meatloaf that anchored the resort’s menus in the early days, they’re now much more adventurous in their culinary offerings to meet the demands of their clientele.
“We have guests from all over the world, and to me, that is the best part of working there,” Perry said. “I’ve always cooked for the people I loved, and being able to create that experience for the people who travel from everywhere to enjoy our resort – it’s just really cool to be a part of that.”
