Chef Michael Demers’ extensive culinary background reaches all the way to his time studying culinary arts in Rhode Island and New York. Michael has worked under acclaimed Chef Daniel Boulud at Le Cirque, and traveled the country working with other top chefs at prestigious restaurants. In 2003, Thomas Keller asked Michael to train for Bouchon Restaurant. After working in wine …

Born to a restaurant family, Doug MacMillan was destined to follow in the family business. At a young age, he began rolling pastas in the kitchen of the family restaurant. “I remember fishing in Boston with my Mom, I caught a flounder. I remember thinking as I looked at this thing on my line, no way am I eating that! …

Some people are born to cook, and Richard Pelz is one of them. From learning to cook traditional French food with his mother, to working his family’s small vineyard in the Monterey Peninsula, food and wine have been coursing through Richard’s blood for most of his life. Richard remembers “enjoying clam and lobster bakes in the Hamptons while sitting by …

Marking his first foray into the L.A. dining scene at Baltaire, Travis Strickland has crafted a contemporary menu that redefines the traditional steakhouse. Upon graduating from the Culinary Institute of America, Strickland cooked at the legendary Blackberry Farm in Walland, TN, where he worked closely with products picked daily by hand, enabling him to foster an understanding of locally-grown food …

Erik Syhre is the Executive Chef at Culinary Dropout Farmer Arts District in Tempe, Arizona and brings extensive experience and knowledge to the team. Chef Syhre has worked for Fox Restaurant Concepts for seven years, contributing to the opening of new stores and breathing new life into existing concepts. Born in El Paso, Texas, Chef Syhre and his family moved …

Chef Jay Trubee opened restaurants in Boston, New York and Nantucket before he and his wife, June, opened Jillian’s in Palm Desert 22 years ago.   Jay’s Culinary Institute of America training and travels in Europe and the United States have inspired his love of the art of cooking. Not only does he prepare superb cuisine, he is responsible for the …

Born in Los Angeles, Executive Chef Ben Diaz has always had a fascination with cooking, which stemmed from watching his father (an accomplished chef himself) in the kitchen. “Watching my dad cook breakfast and seeing the passion he had for his craft really inspired me, ” says Chef Diaz. A graduate of France’s prestigious Le Cordon Bleu, he is also …

As a child, Executive Chef Matt Fresinski would go fishing with his grandfather in upstate New York visiting his “secret” fishing spots. Although they never caught as many as they would have liked, when they did, it was always extremely exciting. At the age of 13, Chef Fresinski knew that he wanted to become a chef when he grew up.  …

Chef Greg Frey Jr. has always loved to cook but says being a chef was never really something he thought about as a child. However, his family is quick to remind him that early on his world was already revolving around food.  “My family use to travel to Italy often when I was a kid and I couldn’t wait each …

Growing up in Austin, Texas, Executive Chef John A. Baez from Tommy Bahama of Las Vegas had quite a few early childhood memories where lakes and rivers were quite plentiful.  “I remember going swimming at some of the local river holes as a kid and being terrified of the aquatic life present. I recall being afraid to initially dive in as …