Oklahoma Magazine June 2022

TA S T E | CHEF CHAT

Redefining Fine Dining

At the Tulsa Zoo and the Gathering Place, chef Cameron Werry is all about bringing people together.

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OKLAHOMA MAGAZINE | JUNE 2022

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here are two restaurants, two cafés, twelve concession stands and three event centers at the Tulsa Zoo. Each day, Cameron Werry is responsible for every meal served at each of these venues, and there’s thousands of them. Not to mention the event centers ... which sometimes host parties for as many as twelve thousand guests. “But,” he says, “I’m very hands-on, so on any given day you’ll probably find me somewhere flipping burgers or frying potatoes.” Today, a bright afternoon in spring, you can find him in the tiny kitchen behind the Komodo Canteen, a food stand right near a facade that evokes a thousand year old Southeast Asian ruin, behind which you can see tigers cavort. (Don’t worry, they’re fenced in.) There Cameron is, dredging chicken tenders in flour mixed with his own spice blend, then throwing it in the bubbling fryer. The chicken is then slathered in your choice of sauces. The Asian blend features savory Korean gochujiang sauce, as well as pickled carrots, onions and cucumbers. Those go on the plate with Chef Cameron Werry a mound offers a bevy of different of potato dishes at the Tulsa Zoo – from pizzas to melts and chips, also even banana cream pie. made in Photo by Stephanie that tiny Phillips kitchen. ONLINE “Ooh, what SEE RECIPES is that?” asks an FOR BREAD excited customer. PUDDING AND A “That’s the good BLACKBERRY BRIE stuff,” Cameron MELT AT OKMAG. replies. And it is. COM/WERRY Not fine dining, you might say. “But what is fine dining?” Cameron

asks. After all, Cameron and his crew use the finest fresh local ingredients, make things from scratch, and put in time and care. What is fine dining if not that? And he should know. “My dad owned restaurants, and I’ve been washing dishes and making pizza since the age of seven. I grew up in the hospitality business. I’ve worked in upscale restaurants [Chalkboard], country clubs [Hillcrest] and boutique hotels. I grew up in Banff, but I’m proud to be a Tulsan. I’ve been here 13 years, I’m a family man, father of two. My roots are in California and Canada, but I never found a home ‘til I got to Tulsa.” Every dining spot at the zoo has a different concept, and you can have a fantastic day trying every one of them. But unless your doctor has told you gorge, you probably don’t exactly need Werry as your tour guide ... the food is just too tempting. At Rajan’s, you can feast on such delights as the grilled cheese pizza melt sandwich, featuring sourdough bread from Farrell’s Bakery, homemade pizza sauce and a 12 cheese blend including mozzarella, Provolone, Gouda and Parmesan. “What’s a trip to the Zoo without funnel fries?” asks Cameron, bringing over a huge plate of sugary goodness. Lion’s Lookout has waffles made to order (with homemade waffle batter). That banana cream pie waffle is irresistible, and just as you’re halfway through, here comes Cameron with a huge pizza. Yes, the main café bakes pizzas. And everything they serve is made where possible from Oklahoma products. Cameron sources from Farrell, Neff Brewery and Scissortail, to name a few. “And,” he says, “we have a 16-year-old kid I met at a wedding show baking our cookies and brownies.” Cameron also oversees the food at the Gathering Place. There, the restaurants were closed for two years and his first goal was simply to get them open. The Patio now features sandwiches such as pulled pork with mac and cheese. “There’s a huge smoker there,” he says. Now that that’s done, he can improve them. “When I first heard about the Gathering Place being built,” says Cameron, “I knew I had to be a part of it. That park is what Tulsa is all about, what food is all about: to bring people together. It is about ceremony and moments. You sit at a table with friends or family, you enjoy the meal. You have conversation, you enjoy the day. That’s what it’s all about.” BRIAN SCHWARTZ