By Bill Walsh

Times-Democrat Staff Writer

The acorn doesn't fall far from the tree, they say. In the case of Tommy Adrian, the adage is more figurative than literal.

Adrian donned the toque and chef's jacket at Napoleon's in Warrenton about seven weeks ago, and while 67 Waterloo St., is a long way from any of Gordon Ramsey's restaurants in the U.S., Europe, Asia and the Middle East, the tart-tongued Brit's influence exerts a strong pull here.

Adrian was already an accomplished chef when he went to work under the BBC and Fox Network star at one of the many London establishments that help comprise Ramsey's culinary empire.

When the 41-year-old native of Indonesia talks about Napoleon's, it is almost as though he is channeling Ramsey.

Ramsey "taught me the philosophy of cooking," Adrian said during a mid-afternoon lull at the venerable and long-established Napoleon's last week. (The structure was built in the 1830s, first opened as a restaurant in 1978) .

"It's not about the job or about the money," he said. "It is about the love that your mom put in the food she cooked when you were a kid."

Almost as if orchestrating an episode of Ramsey's "Kitchen Nightmares," Adrian chucked out the overly long, overly elaborate menu when he arrived in Warrenton in August. Then he recruited everyone associated with the restaurant to show up on a Sunday off, rubber-booted and rubber-gloved for a top-to-bottom cleaning. Canceling orders with corporate food-distribution outfits in favor of dealing with local farmers came next, then Adrian set about redefining and refocusing what a Napoleon's dining experience is supposed to be about.

"Fresh ingredients, value on the plate," Adrian said of the new, old restaurant. "Lots of chefs make a great presentation on the plate, but there is no value, there is no taste." Emphasis has somehow been switched from the palate to the presentation, Adrian said

"When I first arrived here and saw the menu, it was not good, not fresh," Adrian said. "I told [owner Birj Singh] that this menu is what you would serve yourself, but it is not what the neighborhood wants. Give the neighborhood what it wants."

That meant that Indian and other exotic food was mostly out, steaks and chops were in. The best-seller since he has come aboard, Adrian said, is the filet mignon — an eye-popping 13 ounces of it.

The menu will change with the seasons, at least as far as the accompanying dishes are concerned, with fresh, local fruits and vegetables playing a critical role. And when the dust settles on the still-new kitchen regime, Adrian anticipates offering a menu that is more of a suggestion than a compilation of offerings set in stone.

Down the road, guests will simply tell their server what they want, what sauce they'd prefer on it, and what side dishes seem appealing. There will be fewer constraints on what the kitchen is prepared to serve, he said.

Adrian started cooking at 18, running a stand selling chicken satay and rice on the Indonesian streets. The executive chef at the nearby Hilton Hotel was taken with the preparation of the ubiquitous dish, and offered Adrian a job.

Adrian followed his mentor to Australia, then switched allegiances with him to the Mandarin Oriental chain for stints in Singapore, Switzerland, Tokyo and, finally, London, where he took a second job with Ramsey.

Ramsey eventually convinced Adrian to come to the U.S., to help the Washington, D.C., Four Seasons in its quest for a fifth star and a fifth diamond in the ratings.

From there, he went to the Park Hyatt, then to the Sheridan Hotel, both of which were struggling at the cash register.

Turning cash register woes around is contingent on changing employee — and management — attitudes, Adrian said, on getting the menu right — fresh food, simply but tastefully prepared — and on having a spotlessly clean work environment.

"When we bought this place, the economy was doing better," owner Singh said of Napoleon's, which he purchased in May 2006. "Now, we have to hustle for each guest. People still eat out, and our job is to impress on them that we have a value and quality that they can't get somewhere else. We just have to struggle a little harder. Before, it was on remote control; you didn't have to hustle so much. Now we do, and we have to make sure that everything is right, all the i's are dotted and the t's are crossed."

"This is not a bistro," his chef agreed. "This is fine dining. Running a fine-dining restaurant is really hard."

It is made easier, he reiterated, by the right philosophy: fresh food, simply prepared, properly priced.

Napoleon's is open Mondays through Saturdays, from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. The bar opens at 4 p.m. daily.

Live music is featured after hours on Fridays, starting at 9 p.m.

Napoleon's is on the Web at www.napoleonsrestaurant.com, and can be reached at (540) 347-4300.