Madison Hospital has its own Top Chief
Thaddeus Gerrell has worked in most kitchens in town at some point or another, “meat and threes”, catering, hotels, fine dining, country club, you name it.
Gerrell
Before Gerrell started at Madison Hospital, he was the F&B director and executive chef at Redstone Village he was even voted one of the top 10 chefs in the valley.
Gerrell would definitely say being named the Chef of Madison Hospital is his greatest accomplishment to date.
Gerrell is responsible for the overall quality and appearance of the food. He ensures that every patient and customer is pleased with their overall dining experience.
“I started off as a part time cold prep cook and have worked my way up from there,” he said. “Since recently transferring from Huntsville Main to our new Madison campus, I’m trying to learn as much along the way as possible.
The community has waited such a long time for this and I have to remind myself and my amazing staff what a great and once in a lifetime opportunity this is for us.”
One of the most exciting things for Gerrell stepping into his role as a chef is getting the chance to change the way the community and people in general view the food in health care.
“People just hear hospital and assume the food has no flavor or seasoning and don’t want to even try it,” he said.
Gerrell added Madison Hospital is nothing like what you expect when you think of a typical hospital, and neither is the food his staff serves.
The hospital has tons of options including signature sandwiches on fresh baked breads, vegetarian friendly pizza featuring local goat cheese, and of course all the favorites on the hot bar that provides you with the comfort of grandma’s kitchen – macaroni and cheese, collared greens, fried catfish, squash casserole, and bread budding – all of which are made fresh from scratch daily.
Gerrell said he can remember growing up, his grandmother would take him to Huntsville Hospital just to eat.
“It was good food at a great price, and they really gave you a big portion for some reason that has always stuck with me and now I have a chance to make sure we provide that for new generations.”
Gerrell has lived in the Huntsville and Madison area most of his life. He grew up in the Blossomwood district and then moved to Madison where he graduated from Bob Jones in ’97, he later attended Jacksonville State University.
Food has always been a passion for Gerrell he said he loves the feeling he gets when someone smiles because of a great dish he prepared.
“I can smile knowing I have helped make someone’s day, that is why it was so easy for me to choose to continue my career at the hospital.”
When families are at the hospital, Gerrell strongly feels that food is a great way to help provide a sense of comfort and normalcy.
Family is important to Gerrell- he would not be where he is today without his personal support team including his grand mother, mom and father. When he’s not in the kitchen at the hospital he likes to try new recipes or pay homage to family favorites passed down from generation to generation.
“I also would not be where i am without the support and understanding of my amazing wife ,Marella, she is the one that pushed me to settle for nothing less.”
Gerrell said he is anxious to have members of the community come dine with them even if they are not there to see loved ones.
“We hope they will eventually come just to enjoy the food.”
