“It sells out as fast as minutes, or hours,” says Executive Chef Timothy Recher, adding that the brunch typically serves up to 800 for a special buffet, and 300 more in the club’s other restaurants over two seatings. “We’re open every day,” he adds. “But, holidays are very important to us. They’re part of our culture here.”

Although Sunday brunch is a weekly event at the Arlington, Virginia club, Chef Tim said he and his 75-member culinary team pull out all the stops for Mother’s Day. “It’s a chance to celebrate with people we love,” he says. “Dinner at home together is really no longer a normal part of life, so days like this are that much more special. No one has to cook or clean. Everyone has a chance to enjoy the meal. Plus, everyone loves Mom!”
 
But it’s not just holidays that draw people to brunch. Chef Tim says the mid-morning hybrid is always special at the Army Navy club. “It’s very different from any other meal period,” he shares. “No one has a quick brunch or a business brunch. It’s all about being with people, relaxing, enjoying a great meal. We all have to eat, but no one has to eat brunch. It’s truly a choice.”
 
Chef Tim says brunch at the Army Navy Country Club is definitely not typical. Rather than long lines at one huge buffet lined with chafing dishes, he chooses small tasting plates on unique serving vessels, and arranges the offerings between specific stations such as a raw bar, a customizable Eggs Benedict station, house-made mac and cheese and cured salmon stations, along with more traditional Sunday brunch fare like made-to-order omelets, French toast and Belgian waffles. And, he says, “really great coffee and a couple brunch cocktails, of course!”

For his go-to Chef’s Garden selections, Chef Tim shares how “the baby vegetables are an absolute must. The flavor is so clean they just taste like they were always meant to taste.” He incorporates an assortment of edible flowers, petals and blossoms into his salads, and has a particular affinity with micro herbs. “That pop of intense flavor elevates a simple salad to something special.”

 

Chef Tim gave a nod to his product specialist Jill Schmidt for keeping his order surprising and exciting. “One of my favorite things as a chef is when I am talking with Jill and just let her fill a box for me,” he says. “She’ll give me recommendations. I say, ‘Send me a box of stuff.’ The next day is like opening a great present. I get an awesome variety of things that are at their best. When we open it, it’s like spring exploded on my table!”

Those boxes are also an opportunity to use his kitchen as a classroom. “I use it a teaching tool for my staff to think outside the norm and use products that maybe they’ve never even seen before, like garlic roots or micros,” he says. “I educate my team with that and create the menu based on the product rather than the other way around.”

But back to brunch. Above all, Chef Tim wants his brunch guests to leave feeling happy. “Happy, satisfied, relaxed, feeling like it was time well spent,” he says. “Also, I want them to be proud of what we do for them in the kitchen each and every meal.”

Chef Timothy Recher is Executive Chef at the prestigious Army Navy Country Club in Arlington, VA where he leads the culinary efforts at The Sun Room Restaurant and The Grille, plus multiple cafes and banquet rooms. During his tenure at the club, Chef Tim’s culinary brigade has been recognized as a Platinum Club of America (ranked in the top 3 ½ percent of all clubs in the country), nominated for Platinum Club of the World, and earned the American Culinary Federation’s Achievement of Excellence Award. Most recently he held the position of Executive Chef of the historic and iconic Madison Hotel in Washington, DC, leading the culinary team through a multiple million dollar renovation, launching two acclaimed restaurants, and cooking at the prestigious James Beard House in New York City.