Select Projects
Kelly met with Ferrero’s executive chairman Giovanni Ferrero at the company’s Luxembourg headquarters for an hours-long tasting to present the concept and culinary direction for the first stand-alone Nutella Cafe in the U.S.
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Kelly was charged with creating a sweet-and-savory menu to appeal to American tastes while adhering to the brand’s heritage as a beloved all-day treat without being overly indulgent.
Exclusive items included grilled baguettes with Nutella, a freshly roasted hazelnut and blueberry granola with yogurt and Nutella, and a "panzanella" of artisanal pound cake, basil, and mixed berries drizzled with Nutella. Kelly also recommended salads and panini for those guests looking for items to accompany the Nutella offerings.
Given the small retail footprint of the Chicago location, Kelly worked with the design team to optimize the flow, seating, and food-preparation space. He recommended kitchen equipment, notably for crepes, waffles, and panini-press sandwiches, to deliver Nutella quality at a fast-casual pace. Kelly also assembled a team to train and assist in the opening of the eatery in 2017.
The result is an upscale coffee house concept that showcases the iconic hazelnut spread while inviting you to sit and linger in the spirit of European patisseries and cafes.
Kelly co-founded Bruxie in 2010, the gourmet waffle sandwich concept that started from a corner walk-up stand in Orange, Calif. Bruxie was an immediate hit. That 420-square-foot stand generated $3 million in sales in its first year.
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Kelly is the brand visionary and designed the menu featuring the original fried chicken and waffle sandwich with chili honey glaze and cider slaw. Bruxie’s chicken is always all-natural and hormone-free. Each piece is marinated, hand-breaded, and fried to order. Sauces and dressings are made from scratch in-house. Waffles are baked fresh throughout the day. Nothing at Bruxie arrives premade or in a giant vat.
Jay Leno mentioned Bruxie in his monologue on the "Tonight Show,” Food & Wine raved "Best New Sandwich Recipe in the U.S.” (2017), and USA Today called it one of the "Best Fried Chicken Places in America” (2019).
Investments from Bill Allen, Paul Fleming, Tommy Chua, Gordon Miles, and the private equity firm L Catterton led Bruxie to expand to new markets. In early 2020, Bruxie had seven locations in the U.S., two in South Korea, and one in India, but all were shuttered during the pandemic.
Today, TCGM Holding Company LLC owns Bruxie, and four locations are open with others in development. Kelly continues as the company’s culinary director, and owns and operates the Brea, Calif. location as a franchisee.
Kelly worked with businessman John Shanahan to transform an 18th-century Dublin townhouse into an American-style steakhouse.
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Kelly partnered with Irish farmers and the Irish Aberdeen-Angus Association to design a feeding, tracing, selection, and aging process to ensure optimum marbling, tenderness, and concentrated beef flavor for the highest quality meat offered to guests.
He worked with stainless steel fabricators in Ireland and equipment manufacturers in Italy to design the kitchen to fit the townhouse's historic space. Kelly built a wine cellar of more than 5,000 bottles and trained the staff to deliver world-class service.
Shanahan's on the Green opened on June 2, 2000.
The Irish Times would later report, "the maitre d' had come straight from Monte Carlo, and he conducted the dining room so that everything seemed to glide on gilded castors. The sommelier was a living encyclopedia of Californian wines. The waiting staff were as calmly and quietly professional as a surgical team. And the food was simple, flavoursome and detailed."
More than twenty years later, Shanahan's on the Green remains a superlative meal and a favorite of locals and visitors.
