As a food writer, I am embarrassed to say that I’m never the first person in the area to discover a new restaurant. My culinary bent and my low income lead me to eat at home most of the time. Nevertheless, I do eventually hear from people I know about new eateries.

In the months since it opened in May 2024, a number of friends have told me how much they enjoy the menu and the atmosphere at Hotfire Bar and Grill on Bridge Street in Shelburne Falls. I finally got there a couple of weeks ago with photographer Paul Franz.

Visiting the chef, Chad Flasinksi, was a reunion of sorts. I first interviewed Chad almost 20 years ago when he ran the kitchen at the West End Pub. Since then he has cooked at a variety of restaurants in our area, most recently at Zeke’s in Bernardston.

When the space that would become the Hotfire became available, he told me, he jumped at the chance.

He lives in Shelburne Falls with his girlfriend and her children and loves the community. The idea of cooking there in his own place appealed to him immensely.

“I felt like it was the right place for me because it was on the main strip. It was in my hometown,” he said. He added, “It’s mine, right off the bat. At the end of the day, it’s not 100 hours for someone else’s benefit. It’s 100 hours for me and my family.”

Indeed, his family works a lot at the Hotfire. His girlfriend and stepdaughter were busy taking orders when Paul and I stepped in. There are four other employees, but they are all locals, and the kitchen feels in many ways like a home kitchen … that is, a home kitchen that makes a variety of tasty meals.

The Hotfire is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day except Tuesdays, and it’s full much of that time. It serves a wide variety of sandwiches, salads, burgers, and nibbles.

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It’s mainly a lunch spot, but the açaí bowls Chad dishes up could be seen as a form of breakfast food … and many people stop by in the hour before closing to pick up dinner to go. “In the five to six hour, it’s all families, coming in to pick up a meal,” he told me.

The dining area at the Hotfire is limited so takeout is a big part of its business. Chad saves paying a dishwasher by serving everything in disposable containers. He lives up to his values by making sure all those containers are compostable.

The kitchen is small (although not, the chef reminded me, as small as the one he had at the West End Pub), but it is well organized. The staff works wonders. In no time at all, Chad whipped up a Cubano, the classic Cuban ham and port sandwich, and what he calls his Jazz-çai Bowl.

That bowl was based on açai, the purplish berries from South America that are being hailed everywhere these days as a superfood. Chad purchases frozen açai sorbet at a local warehouse store; he says he believes it is also available at some supermarkets.

It was named Jazz-çai after his daughter. The bowl was a lovely blend of flavors and textures: crunchy granola, soft fruit and sherbet, and in-between toasted coconut. Best of all, it was healthy.

To wash down our meal, Chad served Paul and me one of his signature fruit lemonades. Ours was blackberry; children at a nearby table were trying the strawberry version. Chad didn’t give me the recipe, but he counseled me just to try adding fruit to my favorite lemonade.

The addition of the fruit really worked, and it added natural sugar to the drink, which wasn’t too sweet. For those who want to drink something a little stronger, the Hotfire has a liquor license, serving high-quality beer and cocktails.

Chad Flasinski is proud of his restaurant, its collegiality, and the overall ambiance.

“The atmosphere is bright and fresh, and I would agree that it’s probably casual and fun and engaging … We have outgoing staff. We try to talk to people on every step of the meal,” he said.

He strongly believes in community. In fact, he has established a tradition of monthly giving both to his customers and to local institutions. He frequently gives away sizeable gift certificates to other local businesses in a lottery system for customers.

Sometimes the giveaways are a bit farther afield; the current contest is to win tickets to see Morgan Wallen later this month in Foxboro. (Since my own musical idols were all born before I was, I had to be informed that Morgan Wallen is an extremely popular country pop singer.)

Chad is gearing up to repeat a previous giveaway, to provide money for supplies to a class in the local elementary school. He lets his customers pick the class that will be honored with a sizeable gift of funds.

“We pride ourselves on giving to the community,” he told us. “We try to be creative in our promotions.”

In short, Chad Flasinski is a good cook with a good heart.

Ingredients:

5 ounces (about a cup) frozen açai

2 to 3 strawberries, sliced

1 small banana, sliced

1/3 cup granola

1 drizzle honey

1/4 cup toasted coconut flakes

a heavy drizzle of Nutella (Chad warms the Nutella to make it easier to drizzle)

Instructions:

Place the sorbet in the bottom of a bowl. Place the strawberry and banana pieces around the edges. Spread the granola on top of the sorbet, along with the honey and coconut; then finish the dish the Nutella. Serves 1 as a meal or 2 as a snack.

Ingredients:

a sandwich-sized piece of baguette, sliced horizontally

2 slices Gruyère cheese

a smear of spicy mustard

3 ounces thinly sliced cooked pork; Chad likes to marinate the pork in a citrus mixture before cooking it

3 ounces thinly sliced ham (do not use honey ham)

pickle slices to taste

Instructions:

Lightly toast the halves of bread on a griddle; then add the cheese to the non-crust sides and melt the mixture on the griddle.

Spread a little mustard on the cheese on one half of the bread; then add the meat and pickles. Press the halves of the bread together on the griddle to make sure all is warm and melted. Makes 1 sandwich.

Tinky Weisblat is an award-winning food writer and singer known as the Diva of Deliciousness. Visit her website, TinkyCooks.com.