Ben Spungin (left) and Cal Stamenov worked together at Bernardus Lodge for a decade before teaming up in the Cella kitchen. “Cal and I are always going to be close,” Spungin says. (Photo: Patrick Tregenza)
April 14, 2026—It’s not goodbye, it’s bon voyage.
At least that’s the language-appropriate way Cella operating partner Ben Spungin is describing the departure of Cal Stamenov for France.
The specific translation of bon voyage, BTW, is “good wishes on a journey ahead,” not “so long sucker.”
“I’m super excited for him—how often do you get to have that type of experience?” Spungin says. “I look forward to hearing how he’s doing, and look forward to seeing him when he comes back.”
If Spungin doesn’t sound too broken up about seeing his longtime collaborator and pal set sail, there are two major reasons for that.
One, it is quite the adventure Stamenov’s undertaking. Call it an Vietnamese crash course in Burgundy, France.
Two, Spungin’s got an ace already in place to fill the substantial chef clogs.
Stamenov in the Cella garden. His own expansive Carmel Valley orchard and growing beds also fed the kitchen, and will now be tended by friends and helpers while he’s away. (Photo: Patrick Tregenza)
When Charles Phan died suddenly Jan. 20, 2025, at age 62, the impact was felt throughout the culinary world. (Reminder: He’s the trailblazing San Francisco chef and owner of The Slanted Door credited with transforming contemporary modern Vietnamese cuisine.)
That includes Beaune, France, where Phan was collaborating with longtime Carmel restauranteur David Fink on a Slanted Door across the pond, one tucked within new Relais & Châteaux property Maison 1896.
Fink now turns to his friend and way-back wingman Stamenov for support—the two once partnered on making Highlands Inn a epicurean eyeopener, and in legitimizing the region’s chef cred.
So Stamenov’s packing for Europe and seizing upon a challenge to honor Phan, rather far afield from Stamenov’s comfort zone.
“In many ways I’ll be doing the opposite of French cooking,” he says. “Not as much flame, a lot more wok, a lot more mint, cilantro and basil, a lot of different fish, shrimp, sauces, and a lot of lime juice.
“Very fresh and fragrant.”
New Cella Executive Chef Tyler Eaves made hand-ground falafel made with his own garden blend of beans and botanicals an early signature.
Some eaters, locals included, are still just discovering the rare interplay of history, talent and execution that’s vivid at Cella (and sister spot Alta Bakery), as Edible reports with “Refusing to Sit Still,” out in print now.
They’ll have added fresh-and-fragrant reasons to do so as meteoric chef Tyler Eaves takes the reins, and has already started dishing his own takes on the local ingredients that are a Cella signature.
His resume shouts for itself.
Note a Walkersville, Maryland, childhood spent with two generations of family helping cultivate his love for cooking; training at Culinary Institute of America’s New York campus at Hyde Park; and extended time at two of the restaurants which earned Michelin stars fastest in the last half century, Pineapple & Pearls in Washington, DC, and then Chez Noir in Carmel-by-the-Sea. (He also earned a star as exec chef with Pineapple sister Little Pearl.)
Two of those Michelin stops involved a close partnership with colleague and decorated chef Jonny Black (as did Eaves’ original Golden State stint at Sierra Mar in Big Sur).
“He’s a great friend who talked me into coming to California the first time and can’t thank him enough…” Eaves says. “The reason I gravitated toward Jonny is he’s one of hardest working chefs I’ve ever seen, and it was a ton of fun to work with him.
“We share a lot of the same mindset, and that was always the connection: We’re able to come up with dishes together easily because they’re focused on ingredients we have here.”
That gets at something else that shouts for itself: Eaves’ obsession with partner growers and producers like Big Guy Organics, Schoch Family Farmstead and Borba Farms.
“At the end of the day, these farmers are doing such an amazing job that my job should be to show them off,” he says.
He’s got two seasoned master chefs confident he will accomplish just that in Stamenov—who helped on board him over recent weeks in the kitchen—and Spungin.
“He’s so committed, he’s a humble chef, he’s got so much positive energy, and people love working with him,” Spungin says. “He’s rarin’ to go.”
More tasting notes and background on Tyler Eaves later this month via the Edible Monterey Bay free newsletter.
Mark C. Anderson thinks jump ropes and frisbee are underrated as multi-use travel items. He also serves as EMB’s managing editor. Message him via [email protected].
Dining and Cooking