Interview: Blue Star Group’s Whitney Symington at Sushi Rakkyo

Baking cakes led Whitney Symington into the hospitality industry and brought her to the Colorado Springs food scene. Here she talks about her love for baking, her experience with the Blue Star Group and the best kept sushi secret in town.

The Blue Star Group's Whitney Symington serves food at an outdoor event. — Whitney Symington's work with the Blue Star Group is mostly behind the scenes, but you might catch her at a special event. Photo courtesy of Whitney Symington.

Whitney Symington is the operations specialist for Blue Star Group, helping with everything from staffing and budgets for the company’s collection of restaurants to recipes for its Gold Star bakery. But where she really shines is baking something with love. It was that love for helping others that pushed her into the hospitality industry.

When it came time to talk about her and the Colorado Springs dining scene, she had an easy favorite: Sushi Rakkyo in Briargate. So we caught up over the all-you-can-eat sushi special, one of the best kept sushi secrets in town. “Listen in” as we discuss Symington’s experience in Colorado Springs restaurants from the Broadmoor and the Cliff House to the Blue Star Group — plus her love for baking cakes.

Tuna and salmon nigiri at Sushi Rakkyo in Colorado Springs — Sushi Rakkyo has one of the best-kept sushi secrets in Colorado Springs. Photo by Meagan Thomas.

Springsmag: Tell us how you found Sushi Rakkyo.

Symington: My best friend used to live down the street, and this was his go-to restaurant. So he invited me one day back in 2013.

When do you usually come to eat here?

Usually on Mondays. Always for lunch. I do the all-you-can-eat because it’s a lot cheaper than ordering off the menu even though I don’t eat a whole bunch. I always get the same thing: tuna, salmon, spicy scallop and a New York Roll.

Do you usually come alone or do you bring a friend with you?

Always alone. I think other than my best friend, you are maybe the third person I’ve brought here. I come in and either bring a book or read a book on my Kindle. Or I just come in and have alone time and have food. I love the consistency of the sushi and the people here.

Soup at Sushi Rakkyo in Colorado Springs — Soup at Sushi Rakkyo. Photo by Meagan Thomas.

So what do you do for work?

I work for Blue Star Group as an operations specialist, and I help with all the shops. I help with scheduling, labor control, purchase control, making sure the shops make the best food that they can and that they do things within our standards.

What’s your background? How did you get into this position?

I went to culinary school back in 2010 because I had always baked at home. I started baking really involved cakes and decided that I wanted to get into the pastry world, so I went to culinary school. When I finished, I got my internship at the Broadmoor, which moved me from Oregon to here, and I interned in their pastry kitchen. Then I stayed on for three years. I ended up moving back to Oregon, and I stayed in the industry at various places because I loved baking and loved the reactions that people had to my creations. A delicious baked good is just so comforting.

How did you end up back in Colorado Springs after returning to Oregon?

My ex-husband got a job and got the chance to transfer from Oregon to Utah, and I said, “Take it.” They have a hotel there, the Grand America, which is similar to the Broadmoor as far as size and standards. So I worked there and became the wedding cake decorator. When he got a chance again to transfer here, I said, “I don’t care what the job is, you’re going to do it because I want to move back to Colorado.” So we did! I started working at the Cliff House for one of my old chefs from the Broadmoor.

What did you do at the Cliff House?

I was the pastry chef. So I did all the wedding cakes, the dessert menu and banquets. It was a smaller venue than the Grand America. The opportunity to move on from the Cliff House presented itself through a former coworker who was working for the Blue Star Group. I got hired on as a cook at Decent Pizza and quickly moved into leadership for Decent, given my kitchen and bakery experience. Shortly after that I was brought onto the Blue Star leadership team. I have been there for two years helping the shops with everything from scheduling and purchasing to making sure everything leaving the kitchens is up to the Blue Star standard.

A three-tier wedding cake baked by Whitney Symington — A wedding cake by Whitney Symington. Photo courtesy of Whitney Symington.

Let’s rewind to the cakes you were making before you went to culinary school. What made you decide you wanted to start baking?

I wanted to see if I could do it. In the beginning, I was baking with my mom — cookies and brownies, simple things. My dad and I used to watch Alton Brown’s Good Eats show all the time. I love the science behind cooking and how he explained everything. I was in love with Duff Goldman’s show, Ace of Cakes, and their big, intricate cakes that seemed impossible. I had my heart set on interning with them but it ultimately didn’t work out.

When my best friend’s little sister was turning 3, I asked if I could make her birthday cake. That first cake out of the gate was a two-tiered, two-flavored, fondant cake — a whole nine yards situation. Looking back, it looked terrible. But I wanted to see if I can do it, and I did.

From there, I made every cake for her birthday. I made anniversary cakes for my ex-husband. There were different themes. Some were just frosted. Some were fondant. I tried different techniques just to see if I could. When I decided on culinary school, I took photos to the counselor at Le Cordon Bleu, and he asked, “Why aren’t you doing this professionally already?” I didn’t know I could just walk into a bakery ask to apply for a job. I didn’t know that was a thing.

What is your favorite cake you’ve ever made?

I don’t think I have one, but I have multiple favorites for different reasons. One of the cakes I made had polka dots. I baked spheres that you would use for cake pops and baked them in a second cake. So when you cut into it, there were polka dots inside the cake. Another year I made two of the same cake with the spheres, just different color palettes. And I tried a technique where you pipe flowers in buttercream and feather the edges with a paintbrush, so it gives added depth to the flowers.

Do you miss getting to bake things like that with your current role?

I do. I got burned out with the job and industry. As great as it is, baking and cooking can be hard when you don’t get the appreciation from the people actually eating it. I was at a point where I was thinking, Why am I doing this and why am I still in this industry? And there was one guy who ordered a cake for his daughter’s birthday. When he walked in and saw the cake, his reaction was, “Oh my gosh. This is the greatest thing I’ve ever seen! She’s going to love it!” It was just like, That’s why I do it. It reignited my passion for baking.

What do you love about the hospitality industry?

Making people good food and getting to be a part of their experience. There’s something special in talking with guests and having those small moments that make the guests’ dining experience meaningful.

Find Whitney Symington’s skills from behind the scenes at the Blue Star Group restaurants, including:

Learn more about that all-you-can-eat sushi deal at sushirakkyocoloradosprings.com.

You can also get hot takes on the Colorado Springs restaurant scene by Springs Native’s Meagan Thomas in other stories like Where to Find the Best Wings in Colorado Springs and Trivia Night in the Springs.

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