A.BIT.ABOUT.ME
-
I spent many hours of my younger life in the kitchen with my family, cooking and observing every amazing dish my parents made for us.
-
My early cooking career began at the age of 14, where I started as a dishwasher at a local burger joint and was quickly pulled to the line to take on prep and line cook duties.
-
In high school I took another dishwasher, prep and line cook position at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort where I was able to snowboard to-and-from work every day.
-
Shortly after high school I had saved enough money to get myself back to Denver - where I was born - to pursue a culinary education and gain more diverse experience in restaurants.
-
I attended culinary school in Denver, and went on to take courses in Provence, France and Piedmont, Italy. This was my first experience outside of the country, so I traveled through northern Italy and then on to Switzerland after my classes came to an end.
-
Shortly after, I found myself back in Jackson, WY, working at one of the best restaurants in town, the Old Yellowstone Garage. I gained a solid foundation of line and prep skills, with a emphasis in Italian cuisine.
-
I headed back to Denver by the time I had reached the age of 22, where I held many different positions, including Head Chef of a small catering company, and line cook of the Four Seasons Hotel.
-
Realizing that still could not reach the itch of my culinary ambitions, I set out to do something drastic, and applied to be an intern at Noma in Copenhagen, Denmark.
-
I was accepted for a 15-week program and attended in September through the end of the year, 2013. I learned an immense amount, worked incredibly hard, cooked for some of the best chefs in the world, and met some of the most incredible people. It was an experience of a lifetime.
-
My first job in NYC was at ACME, where I joined a like-minded team to those I had worked with at Noma. Chef Mads Refslund led our kitchen, whom was one of the original chefs at Noma. It was the most enriching experience for me, post-Noma.
-
I moved on to start at two-Michelin star Blanca, in Brooklyn in 2014. Rising from cook to Chef de Cuisine within my first nine months there was eye-opening. Every day was like my R+D dream: experimenting with recipes, techniques, and ingredients I had always dreamed about cooking with. I continued to cook for (and with) so many of my idols and take part in the most amazing experiences with chefs from around the world. Running such a high-caliber kitchen, executing a 20+ course menu for 13 people, twice each night was an experience I will never forget.
-
My career had taken a different turn after I left Blanca, when I had decided to take the position of Chef de Cuisine of the Standard Hotel in East Village, Manhattan. I oversaw two restaurants, events, and finally the opening if a third restaurant within the hotel. This was a drastic change from my previous four years of experience, but I knew that it was what I needed.
-
In March of 2018 I participated in the Valencia Culinary Festival in Spain where I created a menu of 13 courses at one-Michelin starred restaurant Casa Manolo, in Daimuz, all from locally sourced ingredients.
-
From here I had taken shorter roles as Chef de Cuisine of one-Michelin starred Rebelle in Manhattan and Atrium Dumbo in Brooklyn and worked as a Personal Chef for a high-profile celebrity as I searched for my next great adventure.
-
In June of 2019 I said goodbye to life in NYC, and moved to Dallas, TX, where I could again be reunited with my family, who I love dearly. I had spent the majority of my career in places where I rarely had an opportunity to see them, so I knew it was time to find a new “home”.
-
Since my arrival in Dallas I've been working and traveling as a Private Chef doing events here in Dallas, L.A., Miami, NYC, and Jackson, Wyoming.
PHILOSOPHY
I approach my bookings on a truly personal basis: unlike a caterer, I don't keep a catalogue of menus to choose from. Instead, your experience is a combination of ingredient seasonality, my own creativity, and of course, your personal requests and preferences.
I pair well with clients looking for a unique experience with luxurious ingredients, whether it be the most amazing peach from Texas or the most sought-after uni from Hokkaido.
When cooking, I use the highest quality ingredients available and hand-pick everything involved. The ingredient should speak for itself without too much manipulation. I thrive with multiple-course menus, which allow me to showcase my creativity as well as provide you and your guests a clean and distinct spectrum of flavors.