Experience

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  The Chef Agency

  • Henderson, Nevada, United States

  • Regional Partner at the Chef Agency

    • Oct 2022 - Present
    • Henderson, Nevada, United States

    The Chef Agency is a leading executive search firm serving the Food + Beverage industry.Our Team helps identify talent for all corporate, and Front + Back of House positions.

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  Gen 3 Hospitality

  • Las Vegas, Nevada Area

  • Corporate Executive Pastry Chef

    • Dec 2011 - Dec 2021
    • Las Vegas, Nevada Area

    Locally owned and operated by hospitality entrepreneur Billy Richardson, Gen 3 Hospitality’s holdings include Las Vegas dining spots The Barrymore, Holsteins Shakes and Buns, Public House, Flour & Barley, and Haute Doggery.Responsible for all aspects of planning & development of dessert programs at all of Gen 3 properties. I reorganized the structure of the pastry department, including inventory sheets, ordering forms, recipe templates, pastry cost transfers, plating photos, training criteria, health code checklists, position descriptions, and SOPs.Recipe development & costing for seasonal menus: established a database of recipes that are costed to the gram. Recipes have to be written with clear & concise methods so that any cook (with or without pastry training) can execute them. This made training and delegating production very efficient. All menu items were made from scratch, including ice creams & sorbets. Hiring & training of pastry staff: Many pastry cooks were hired fresh out of culinary school. This enabled me to work with a “clean slate” and train cooks to Gen 3 standards without any pre-established bad habits as well as save on labor by offering entry-level wages. Wedding cakes: Custom cakes were made on a weekly basis, mostly for the Barrymore’s wedding receptions catering up to 120 people. Decor ranged from Japanese sumi style painting to hand made chocolate roses or art-deco geometric pastillage. Every guest received personalized consulting and a one-of-a-kind cake. Worked with front-of-the-house employees to educate them on dessert terms and techniques in order to improve their confidence with guests and subsequently increase dessert sales. Worked closely with bar manager to develop custom syrups, shrubs, & garnishes for specialty cocktails.

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  Wynn Resorts

  • Las Vegas, Nevada Area

  • Pastry Chef, Switch Restaurant

    • Sep 2008 - Dec 2011
    • Las Vegas, Nevada Area

    A New American Steak House. The décor of the restaurant literally “switches” roughly every twenty minutes, approximately five times throughout the evening. The ceiling tiles turn over, the walls retract and rotate, and 18-foot chandeliers reveal themselves. Dreamed up by Steve Wynn as a way to combine food and theater, Switch literally draws a crowd outside the restaurant as people line up to watch its complex décor transformations, which include three different walls and two ceiling changes.Created a seasonal dessert menu for an energetic, contemporary steakhouse in a 5 Star, 5 Diamond property. I focused on shared desserts because many guests tend to be full after a rich steak dinner. This allowed servers to still achieve a dessert sale at almost every table. Assisted Executive Chef Rene Lenger at the James Beard House dinner showcasing all of the Encore chefs. Created vegan desserts that satisfied Steve Wynn’s RAVE diet requirements (no refined flour/sugar/oil). Utilized alternative flours, nut milks, and egg replacements (flax and chia seed solutions).

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  Woo Restaurant

  • Las Vegas, Nevada

  • Pastry Chef

    • 2007 - 2008
    • Las Vegas, Nevada

    Progressive Asian cuisine.Created Asian-fusion desserts for seasonal menus, weekly specials, banquets, and off-site parties. Worked the pastry, pantry, and tempura stations during lunch & dinner service. Additionally acted as kitchen manager, assisting the executive chef/owner with purchasing, receiving, expediting, new-hire processing, and inventory.

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  Chef Rubber

  • Las Vegas, Nevada Area

  • General Manager

    • 2004 - 2007
    • Las Vegas, Nevada Area

    Manufacturer and supplier of products for artisan chefs, cake decorators, confectioners, & mixologists. Hired, trained and supervised employees in areas of customer service, shipping, and product production (colorants, silk-screening of transfer sheets, blending of pastry additives, molds). Responsible for purchasing stock items and adding new products. Coordinated all shipping & receiving for products (national & international). Developed relationships with suppliers in Spain, Italy, France, Turkey, Switzerland, Mexico, and Canada in order to acquire unique, exclusive products. Performed research & development of pastry additives such as gums and pectins for molecular gastronomy applications (recipes and suggested usage). Maintained product database on website: photographed all products, determined retail pricing, organized product categories, and wrote product descriptions. Wrote educational and how-to articles published in professional pastry magazines that promoted Chef Rubber products. Produced custom silicone molds for World Pastry Team Championship competitors, MOF competitors, pastry chefs and chocolatiers. Some of these molds also required using materials such as 2-part resins, plaster, and fiberglass. Set up and managed Chef Rubber booth at industry trade shows. Assisted local culinary students in amateur competitions with donations of products/tools as well as professional guidance/mentoring.

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  Nobu Restaurant

  • Las Vegas, Nevada Area

  • Pastry Chef

    • 2003 - 2004
    • Las Vegas, Nevada Area

    Nobu Las Vegas brings the critically acclaimed signature fare from its flagship Nobu New York restaurant to the Nevada desert. Classically trained in Tokyo, world renowned chef Nobu Matsuhisa has taken traditional Japanese cuisine and infused bold South American and Western flavors to create a style that continues to captivate audiences world wide.Created seasonal and daily omakase menus for an innovative, hip Japanese restaurant with Peruvian influences. Many desserts had to be made with less sugar to appeal to the palate of Nobu clientele. The menu items were presented with the beauty of Japanese simplicity in the family-style format while being quickly executed as dinner service would serve 600-800 guests a night. Worked with celebrity guests to customize menus and design unique special occasion cakes. Collaborated with bar manager to create unique cocktails that incorporated items from the dessert menu.

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  Lutece Restaurant

  • Las Vegas, Nevada Area

  • Pastry Chef

    • 2000 - 2003
    • Las Vegas, Nevada Area

    The Las Vegas location of Lutece was the satellite restaurant for the original location in Manhattan which operated for more than 40 years before closing in 2004. Julia Child proclaimed Lutèce the best restaurant in the United States, a rank it held in the Zagat's survey for six consecutive years in the 1980s.Created traditional French desserts for seasonal menus, daily specials, banquets, and off-site parties. Developed and produced desserts for other restaurants owned by Ark Restaurant Corporation. Assisted Executive Chef in purchasing, receiving, inventory and payroll.

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  Patisserie Grandin

  • Saint-Germain-en-Laye

  • Apprentice

    • 1999 - 2000
    • Saint-Germain-en-Laye

    La Pâtisserie Grandin a été fondée en 1822 à Saint-Germain-en-Laye, dans le département des Yvelines.Michel Pottier, Maître Pâtissier de France, vous fait découvrir un large choix de desserts, de chocolats et de glaces à la carte ou sur-mesure selon votre demande.Trained in production of entremets, wedding cakes, croquembouches, confections, breads, and savory items at a Relais Desserts patisserie. This was an un-paid position. When my long-stay visa expired, I had to return to the U.S.

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  Rover's Restaurant

  • Greater Seattle Area

  • Pastry Chef

    • 1998 - 1999
    • Greater Seattle Area

    Cuisine of the Pacific Northwest refined by a French accent. Traditional French techniques are used to tease out the many flavors of the region’s best ingredients.Produced desserts for 3 daily tasting menus in an intimate restaurant offering Pacific Northwest cuisine with a French twist. Worked directly with local farmers to obtain fresh, unique produce. Sometimes menus would change right before opening in order to incorporate products that became available at the last minute. Maintained and utilized product from the restaurant’s private garden.

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  Fran's Chocolates

  • Greater Seattle Area

  • Sales Associate & Baker

    • 1997 - 1999
    • Greater Seattle Area

    Founded by artist and master chocolatier, Fran Bigelow. She has been credited for sparking the artisan chocolate renaissance in the United States, and is considered one of the best chocolatiers in the nation. Her pursuit of maintaining the purity of chocolate and pairing it with only the finest ingredients has been an inspiration to both chocolate artisans, and aficionados alike.I worked in the retail shop displaying and packaging the chocolates. I also produced some of the baked goods such as European tortes and Gold Bar Brownies in the bakery .