Nik Mastalerz
Oleana | Cambridge, MA
JULY 2024
Nik Mastalerz got his first industry gig at a golf club diner in Rehoboth, Massachusetts, slinging fish and chips to a hungry country club crowd. His aunt ran the kitchen, and it was there working the line where his interest in cooking blossomed. Mastalerz attended Johnson & Wales University while working at the campus bakery at the Rhode Island School of Design, learning the tricks to large-scale production. Over the next two years there, he grew into a leadership role while helping with the bakery’s production schedule. After graduating, he applied for a pastry chef position at the Harbor View Hotel on Martha’s Vineyard under Rising Stars alum Nathan Gould. Mastalerz took full advantage of the island’s seasonal bounty and fresh, quality produce. After two seasons at the hotel, Mastalerz moved across the country to California and picked up bakery jobs across the Bay Area, leaning into European-style baking techniques and naturally leavened bread.
He joined the team at Feel Good Bakery, commuting between Alameda and Oakland to work pastry at the Italian restaurant, Parlour. He then joined the team at Lazy Bear under Rising Stars alum Maya Erickson before moving to Bix, a jazz supper club, one year later. Missing his family, Mastalerz returned to the East Coast and accepted a consulting position at Gould’s O Ya. He then moved to Bianca, the group’s wood fire-driven spot in Chestnut Hill, working on the savory side and making pizzas. In 2022, after a friend let him know the Oleana team was hiring, Mastalerz eagerly applied, ready to transition back to pastry—and he got the job. As pastry chef, he brings his years of baking and production knowledge to the beloved Cambridge institution, making breads and overseeing desserts for Oleana’s catering arm. Mastalerz also shares his own interpretations of classic Mediterranean desserts, like his pistachio baklava with frangipane, smoked black cardamom syrup, and satsuma-labneh ice cream.
