Family and fine fare at Chef Luke’s Fresh Start

WINDHAM―A ribbon cutting at Chef Luke’s New Start food truck got off to a late start the pleasantest of reasons.

Customers were lined up several rows deep prior to the Windham Chamber of Commerce’s recent ceremonial snipping.

Hungry visitors have been a familiar sight along Route 296 between Windham and Hensonville, on the grounds of Albergo Allegria Hotel.

What they come for is no typical roadside menu with what proprietor and head chef Luke Schildhorn calls “artisan food.”

The bill of fare features a Healthy Start, a six-ounce risotto cake served atop a bed of arugula with a fried egg and homemade balsamic vinaigrette.

Perhaps you prefer an Average Joe, a thick cut applewood smoked bacon, scrambled eggs and tater tots with chipotle mayo in a wrap.

Or do you fancy the Dirty Birdy? It’s blackened chicken, roasted red peppers, arugula and Old Bay mayo on a hard roll with a side of fries?

There are also the Ziggy Piggy and Happy Pig, both with smoked pulled pork butt and Luke’s homemade BBQ sauce.

Smoked wings are also on tap so it was nothing new for the newest place in town to be busy, fulfilling two dreams of Schildhorn.

First, is being home weekends and evenings with his wife Kelly and their three sons, Rainer, Lochlan and Cillian―not behind a workplace stove.

Schildhorn could be preparing fine fare virtually anywhere in the world, having graduated in 2004 from The Culinary Institute of America.

He serendipitously met Kelly while helping her father set up a steak house in Ireland, pursuing what he always thought was dream number one.

Schildhorn wore the cap and gown with the Windham-Ashland-Jewett Class of 2002, and being a small town, common sense kind of guy, he opted not to choose one dream over another when blessed with fatherhood.

“Today is about more than opening a new business. It’s about celebrating a member of our community who has chosen to invest in the place he calls home,” Chamber of Commerce President Lisa Jaeger said.

Jaeger hosted the event, noting, “Luke was born and raised right here in our area and now, like so many of us, he's raising his own family here and putting down roots for the next generation.”

“That commitment to community is something we value deeply. It takes courage, hard work and determination to start a business, and we're excited to see Luke bring his passion for food, creativity and hospitality to the mountaintop,” she said.

“What makes Chef Luke's Fresh Start especially exciting is his focus on serving unique and delicious food while supporting local products and producers whenever possible,” Jaeger said. “That connection between local businesses helping local businesses is what strengthens our community and helps it thrive.”

“Luke often says he's simply trying to make great food with love, and I think that's something we can all appreciate and get behind,” she added.

Chef Luke’s Fresh Start has its entrepreneurial roots at Albergo Allegria, where Schildhorn learned his craft as assistant chef to Marianna Leman.

“Everything on the menu is Luke’s making,” Leman said. “We are happy to support him in this endeavor that gives him a chance to follow his dream and tuck the kids in bed at night.”

Chef Luke’s Fresh Start is open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday thru Friday, along Route 296 between Windham and Hensonville.