Turn a Busy Brain Into a Creative Advantage with Chef Will Gilson

Plus his recipe for Chicken Shawarma

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In 2007, my now husband, Artie and I moved to Somerville, Massachusetts, to go to grad school, and our date spot was this perfect subterranean space between Central and Harvard Square called Garden at the Cellar. It was helmed by Will Gilson, a chef about our age, who was basically single-handedly running a farm-to-table pop-up out of a small bar.

These days, he’s the chef and owner of several successful restaurants under his Cambridge Street Hospitality Group, including Puritan, which was the first restaurant — like, actually going in and sitting down and having a meal restaurant — that my family and I went to after things opened back up after the pandemic. He also owns Geppetto, which is where I spent my 40th birthday.

I’ve interviewed Will a handful of times over the years about business and restaurants, but this time, we’re spending a good amount of the conversation on our busy brains. The good, the challenging, the chaotic. We’re elder millennials (and New Englanders, remember?), so this kind of public, personal dissection doesn’t always come easily.

But I hope the conversation brings you some fresh perspective, and maybe it resonates with your own experience of throwing yourself into a lot of things and learning some important lessons while keeping the plate spinning. And don’t forget to grab Will’s recipe for chicken shawarma below!

Will Gilson owns a slew of restaurants in Cambridge. Photo: Huge Galdones

Check out Will’s recipe for Chicken Shawarma below!

Chicken Shawarma

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 2 chicken thighs

• Shawarma spice (recipe follows)

• 1 garlic clove grated

• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

• 2 tablespoons tomato paste

• ½ cup hummus

• ½ a red red cabbage, sliced thinly and salted

• Farmers Salad (diced cucumber, tomato, red onion, pickles)

• ¼ cup pickled pepperoncini peppers

• ¼ cup Shawarma sauce (recipe follows)

• ¼ cup mixed herbs such as dill, mint, parsley, roughly chopped

• 4 Pitas

Directions:

• Marinate the chicken thighs with the spice mix, garlic, lemon juice and tomato paste for at least 2 hours or ideally overnight

• Grill the thighs on a hot grill until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees

• Once they have rested for about 10 minutes slice the thighs and reserve

• Open the pitas ¾ of the way so that the inside is visible on the top and bottom of the pita

• Spread hummus on one side of each pita

• Top the hummus side with shredded cabbage, then farmers salad, then chicken, then herbs then pepperoncini and finally herbs and shawarma sauce

• Fold the other half of the pita back over and serve

Shawarma Spice:

• 1 tablespoon ground coriander

• 1 tablespoon ground cumin

• 1 tablespoon ground cardamom

• 2 tablespoons smoked paprika

• 1 teaspoon ground cayenne or chili powder

• 2 teaspoons salt

• 2 teaspoons ground black pepper

Mix all ingredients in a bowl until well combined

Shawarma Sauce:
Makes 1 quart

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sour cream

• 1 cup mayo

• 1 cup greek yogurt

• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

• 1 medium clove garlic raw

• 4 medium garlic cloves confit

• 2 tablespoons banana pepper liquid

• ¼ cup banana peppers

• 1 tablespoon fresh dill (diced)

• 1 bunch scallions

• 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt (depending on taste preference)

Puree in blender

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Not From Concentrate team:

Catherine Smart, Host/Executive Producer

Kevin O’Connell, Audio and Video Production

Allie Miller, Associate Producer