Seamus Platt and Scott Johnson
The Shambles | Seattle
march 2020
Born in Olympia, Washington, Seamus Platt loved to cook but did not have the money for culinary school—instead, he worked. By 2005, Platt was chef de partie of the Salish Lodge & Spa under Chef Roy Breiman. After three years, he moved to California to become the sous chef at L’Auberge Carmel, a luxe fine-dining destination. In 2009, Platt travelled to France and Germany to stage at The Romantik Hotel Spielweg and Restaurant Vendôme. He returned to California in 2010 to become sous chef of pioneering vegetarian restaurant Ubuntu, before taking his first executive chef role at the Doe Bay Resort on Orcas Island, back in Washington state. In 2013, Platt took a year off to study at the Culinary Institute of America, but returned to Seattle to cook at Girin, a high-end Korean steakhouse, followed by Mollusk Brewery and restaurant. At Mollusk, Platt built his first charcuterie program, granting a greater appreciation for the process of curing local meats, from raising it to serving it. In 2017, Platt became head chef of the Shambles, but with cooking, curing, and managing the kitchen on his plate, he needed an extra hand with the butchery.
Originally from Issaquah, Washington, Scott Johnson studied history at Bellevue Community College before attending the Culinary Institute of America in New York. During his studies, he externed at Fishtail by David Burke and worked at The Herb Farm back in Washington, as well as at Lincoln in New York City, where he gleaned a sense of urgency and a lust for perfection from Jonathan Benno. In 2014, Johnson became sous chef of April Bloomfield’s Salvation Taco. Following his passion for butchery, he landed the head butcher role at Brooklyn butcher shop Marlow & Daughters in 2016. Then, after spending time as a butcher for the The Brooklyn Kitchen, Johnson spent two years as head butcher for Foster Sundry. Returning to his home state in 2018, Johnson is now head butcher of The Shambles. He runs the whole animal butchery program and shop, and Platt transforms his cuts into beautiful charcuterie and dishes. With plans for further expansion into retail, the Shambles is a beacon for locally sourced meats.
