After more than four decades shaping the culinary identity of New Glarus, Chef Mike Nevil is preparing to hang up his apron — at least in the day-to-day sense. The longtime chef, restaurateur, entrepreneur, volunteer, and community fixture will retire from the Chalet Landhaus Restaurant at the end of January after a career that began when he was barely old enough to drive. His influence in our community stretches from the kitchens of the New Glarus Hotel to the annual New Glarus Fire Department Kalberwurst Dinner fundraiser, and even to the creation of beloved community traditions.

Nevil’s story begins in the most local way possible: as a New Glarus High School student captivated by cooking shows on public television. “As a child, I used to watch The Galloping Gourmet on PBS,” he said. At 15, Nevil applied to wash dishes at the New Glarus Hotel, eventually becoming a “buffet boy” and working his way through the kitchen ranks. By May 1979, at just seventeen years old, he was promoted to Chef — long before most other teenagers even know what career they want.