Inverness tabs chef of Findlay's Revolver

Chef Michael Bulkowski sautes green beans and cherry tomatoes for his halibut dish at his restaurant, Revolver.

Michael Bulkowski, one of the area's best-known and most renowned chefs, is packing his knives and changing venues.

On March 10, he will leave the Revolver restaurant in Findlay and take over the kitchen at the Inverness Club in Toledo. Mr. Bulkowski posted the news on the restaurant's Facebook page.

Mr. Bulkowski and his wife, Debi, founded Revolver in his native Findlay five years ago. It opened to instant acclaim both regionally and nationally, scoring a rave review in the Wall Street Journal, among other publications, including The Blade. Although he has been the restaurant's face as well as its co-owner, he wrote that his leaving "does not necessarily mean the end for [R]evolver, but the first chapter is coming to a close."

Efforts to reach Mr. Bulkowski for comment were unsuccessful.

Before working at Revolver, the chef learned his skills at restaurants in Findlay, followed by stints at three of the highest regarded restaurants in the nation: Spago in Beverly Hills, Calif., and Chicago's Trio Restaurant and Green Zebra.

Eric J. Rhodes, chief operating officer at the members-only Inverness Club, said, "He has a reputation that precedes him."

For his tryout, Mr. Bulkowski cooked a nine-course meal for the search committee. "I expected him to blow their socks off, and he did," Mr. Rhodes said.

The chef will begin working at Inverness at an undetermined date in March.

According to Mr. Rhodes, "I've got a world-class golf facility. He gives us the opportunity to take the food service to a world-class level."