New co-owners at home at Nell Thorn

New Nell Thorn co-owner and chef James Donahue has a simple ambition for greater success for the signature restaurant: make it known statewide, though he realizes that won’t happen overnight. The soon-to-be-30-years-old executive chef understands the opportunity in front of him. He and Albie Bjornberg are partners in Nell Thorn with Ted Furst, owner of Le Grand Bistro Américain in Kirkland. Furst is the majority partner, but Donahue and Bjornberg are at Nell’s full time. Furst comes up on Wednesdays.

Donahue has the same view as former owners Susan and Casey Schanen: “I like the idea of being in a county surrounded by food. Out here you can see where the food is coming from.” He is also interested in supporting area farmers.

He is in a quite different environment than New York City, where he spent five formative years training in a steakhouse and an Italian restaurant.

From there he came to Seattle and Furst’s Kirkland restaurant, where he worked for five years.

Albie Bjornberg, the third co-owner, was also with Furst in Kirkland. His roots are in The Skagit Valley: His mother’s family is from Mount Vernon and when he moved up from Seattle, he found out his grandmother’s house was for sale – he is not making a bid, though.

The 38-year old Bjornberg started in restaurants at 15 and has worked for Furst for about six years, starting on a July 4th. His career has been in front-of-the-house work, “pretty much everything that’s not cooking:” beer, wine, liquor, customer service.

He agrees with Donahue that the Skagit Valley is abundant. “The cornucopia of everything we get to play with here is amazing. I’ve got lavender going into a cocktail. I got local everything. It’s exactly what I am about,” Bjornberg said. Procuring product within a 30 mile radius is his goal.

In 2018 Furst asked Bjornberg how he felt about La Conner. The two came up for a dinner with Casey Schanen that July. Bjornberg calls this a life goal of his, that “this is my passion. This is what I I do,” he said.

Bjornberg and Donahue were interviewed separately, but they sing from the same playbook. Both are passionate about procuring food from area farmers and being part of the community. Their goal is to be collaborative on both sides of the restaurant’s doors, supporting their staff on the inside. “Being successful means that others understand your vision,” said Donahue. “It takes a village.”

Donahue is training his staff to make the food on the dinner plate an experience. “It’s the sauces, gravies, starches, the way it looks, its smells, that it is fresh,” he said. He aims to have customers eat with their eyes before they ever taste it.

Similarly, Bjornberg wants to be part of something bigger and will create that in the Skagit Valley. He says they are meeting more people in the community every day. He cites the artistic community as an example of believing in everything that’s happening in the Valley.

The two co-owners knew they were buying a quality operation and that would give them a foundation to grow their own concepts into reality. They are in the growing stages of their careers. “Just give me a chance to see what I can do,” Donahue says.

“We are putting our touches on the food,” said Bjornberg. It’ about creativity. It’s our amazing concept.”