Who We Arghhh...

Cooking With John is geared towards people who require food to live.

Chef-at-Large John Skaggs cooks with and against two line cooks and a wanna-be librarian – John Croke, Mark Stursa, and Kevin Bauer – as well as a guest personality that changes each week. John and his friends tackle everything from local organics to greasy-spoon diner recipes in a format that is more dinner party than cooking show. John's connections with local farmers and the food community of Columbus ensure nothing but the finest ingredients; whether the topic be filet mingot or filet-o-fish. If you're looking for current news on local organics and are interested in recipes from guys who think gourmet means using a fork, then Cooking with John is for you.

Cooking with John began – unwittingly – a few years ago, when we all ended up working at the same restaurant in Columbus. Since then we have collaborated on a few projects, including a five episode Sit-Com filmed live in a local -- now defunct -- theatre. We all like to cook and enjoy cooking together. Soon, we were recording these sessions and called it “Cooking with John.” We meet weekly to create food and comedy, with and without recipes, that would make Rachel Ray rue the day and force Alton Brown to leave town. Emeril Lagasse would probably join our posse.

We all enjoy cooking; some of us are even paid to do so. None of us are paid to eat, but we like that too. Though the cooking show is a new medium for all of us, we do have performance experience including: cooking demonstrations/competitions, theatre, spontaneous street miming and musical performance.

The idea for our show is simple. Each week we will highlight different foods prepared with an emphasis on fresh, local ingredients. The goal is to promote this type of cooking, and cooking in general. We have not attended culinary school; all of our training is either in restaurants or at home. We will visit with others in the community who share the same passion and discover how they are keeping it fresh and local.


John - John understands food. He has cooked a lot of eggs, planted a few potatoes, harvested tons of tomatoes and can start a fire pretty much anywhere. John is no stranger to a knife either; turning raw ingredients into special occasions right before your taste buds. His first kitchen job: dish washer at Lil' Abner's in Tucson, AZ. He combines deep roots in the organic community and an expertise in cross ethnic food preparation with dedication to our community's health and food supply. Chef John is an award winning chef, radio and TV guest with several published recipes. His product consulting and development has led to changes within the local organic food industry.

Croke - John Croke is one of those surly line cooks you see scowling from the back of your favorite restaurant. His hobbies include diner hopping, thinking about the word "organic", staring into his fridge, and harnessing the awesome power of bacon fat.

Mark - Of the many creative outlets that Mark Stursa has latched onto over the years, cooking is the only one that has kept him alive. As a line cook for many years and a hungry person for even longer, cooking is both an occupation and a passion. While being kept alive by food, Mark has ventured into sculpture, writing, film and theatre.

Kevin – With a grand total of two weeks spent in a professional kitchen, Kevin has followed his mother’s mantra of “if you can read, you can cook.” Currently, he enjoys preparing Korean dishes like Kimchi Jjigae (Kimchi stew), baking baguettes on a pizza stone, and any dishes he can sneak some hot sauce into. Kevin wants to be a librarian when he grows up, but would prefer to accomplish this without growing up.