The path to Executive Chef at Cottage Grove Place started in an unlikely place for Joshua Spalding: behind the line at a McDonald’s in San Antonio.
What began as a part-time job as a teen quickly turned into a passion for the fast pace and creativity of cooking. Encouraged by his sister, he stepped into country club kitchens and enrolled at the New England Culinary Institute in Vermont; that began a career that would take him everywhere from a family-owned bakery and deli to running the food operations for The Hotel at Kirkwood Center in Cedar Rapids.
Along the way, he picked up not just culinary expertise but a deep appreciation for what food means to people—whether that was through hotel banquets, seasonal menus, or scratch-made breads. Today, that journey has brought him to Cottage Grove Place, where he leads the culinary team in delivering on the community’s hospitality promise: fresh, from-scratch meals prepared with care and served with warmth.
We sat down with Chef Spalding before a recent dinner service to talk about his approach to food, leadership, and what makes dining at Cottage Grove Place so unique.
What brought you to Cottage Grove Place as executive chef?
My wife was the one that originally saw the advertisement for Cottage Grove Place, and said that I should check out the opportunity, so I did. It really wowed me when I walked in—it certainly wasn’t what I thought of when I thought of a retirement home. There were linens on the tables, real silverware… I was immediately interested. After talking to the executive director, I decided I wanted to join the team and never looked back.
How do you keep things “fresh” and exciting from a dining perspective?
We really try to focus on seasonality, with more stews and heavier sauces as it gets colder, and lighter fare when it warms up. We make sure to offer an assortment every night. That includes some sort of seafood option, something that’s a bit more upscale, something that’s more like home-cooking—we do our best to come up with dishes where there’s something for everyone to get excited about.
When it comes to our residents, we encourage them to request things as much as possible, whether that’s through the regular All Residents Meeting, via the comment cards we put out, or just stopping us in the hallways. If we get a request or learn about a favorite, we’ll definitely work to add that to our menu.
Are there other things you do to create the signature dining experience Cottage Grove Place has become known for?
It’s all about the care that goes into the dish. We make as much from scratch as we possibly can, and source seasonal ingredients from the region. Even when we make things that have to be batch cooked, we try to do it in very small batches. That helps keep the food and experience moving, and nothing is sitting long before it’s served.
We also focus a lot on the plating and presentation, not just the food itself. When you take it out to the table, we want you to see it, and your appetite to start working before you even taste it. That’s what we’re aiming for with every meal.
What are some of the favorites among residents?
The meatloaf is always very popular. We recently did a French onion pot roast where we cooked it in French onion soup and put it over mashed potatoes—that went over incredibly well. Anything with salmon is always a favorite, and we try to have it on the menu at least once a week.
We also offer four different desserts every week, which people really like. We actually just hired a new baker, and she is fantastic. She is doing all of our breads from scratch now, as well as a lot of our seasonal pastries and desserts. That’s been a big hit for us.
What do you enjoy most about leading the culinary team here?
What I really enjoy most about leading the culinary team here is the creativity that is allowed, and being able to focus on the food, not meetings and administration. The staff I here is also really great, and the driving force behind our hospitality promise. They make it fun to come to work, and I think that shows in the final product.
Learn more about the signature dining at Cottage Grove Place.