Fresh from the oven with Geoff Rudaw

In the world of food and hospitality, Geoff Rudaw seems to have done it all.  He spent the last three years at  Conrad Hotel in lower Manhattan where he was executive chef; prior to that he ran his own catering business, the Westchester Culinary Society;  and he has a two-decade history of running kitchen operations at prestigious hotels and restaurant groups.

The one thing he hasn’t done until now is run his own little retail place, a cafe that serves fresh baked goods, exotic sandwiches and high-end take-home meals for parents who are too busy to cook dinner, but don’t want to order take-out.

That place is Skylight Kitchen, which he launched last month in the space formerly occupied by Provisions Bakery.

Skylight Kitchen offers a range of items,  from signature sandwiches like the Thanksgiving turkey sandwich to exotic items like the churro croissant.

Skylight Kitchen opened in November, but “Chef Geoff,” as he’s known, had been drafting a concept for it more than a year. He imagined creating a working environment close to home after working in the city for most of his career.

“I was traveling with my family, and I came across a similar concept… a local bakery/coffee spot that also had a focus on healthy food,” Rudaw explained.

”I really want to be a trusted place for culinary,” he said. “From planning events, to a place you can talk about food, to a place you can get fresh food.”

Moving into the Provisions space wasn’t as easy at it sounded.  Signing the lease to take over the space ended up taking much more time than he forecast, pushing his opening date into November instead of September, when schools opened.  Rudaw displayed a zen-like attitude about his experience, conceding that even when you’re trying to start a business, some things are just beyond your control.

“Trying to get everyone on my schedule is a challenge,” he said. “I’ve got my own goals, but so does everybody else.”

Now that he’s in business, Rudaw hopes to attract high school students by offering discounts on lunches. In addition to selling sandwiches, baked goods and and high-end coffee, Rudaw said he wants to provide in-home meals on a subscription model.

“I am not ready to take that leap… just until I’m really happy that the team is trained with the coffee program and the bakery program, but the next step involved is home meals. Soup, salad, entrees that people can eat up easily in their own kitchen. ”

Rudaw, who grew up in Rockland County, loves Pelham.  He moved here just over a decade ago and his two daughters are in high school here. He likes being able to work close to home after so many years of commuting into the city.

“It’s fun serving people I know, rather than transient strangers in a hotel,” he said.

Rudaw said he’s extremely grateful for the support he’s received just in the first few weeks of business.  “I don’t think there’s a more supportive community out there,” he said.