Chef in Miami Beach, Florida

I am a Korean-American immigrant who has lived in the U.S. since I was 3 years old. I grew up in and around Philadelphia, which is where my immediate family still resides and where I will always consider home. I always had a love for food, even as a child, but it wasn't until my college years while I was going to school for business, when I discovered a passion for cooking and the sense of community that permeates around food. Since then I have been working as a professional chef for about 20 years in almost every aspect of hospitality and everything culinary. Everything from delis, casual grab-and-go's, food halls, and take-out shops; to corporate chains, global hospitality/nightlife groups, hotels, catering, and events; to hyper seasonal fine dining and full-service restaurants; to now providing private and personalized chef experiences. I worked my way up from a prep cook in the suburbs of Philadelphia to eventually becoming a chef/partner in NYC, with many many other roles and venues in between. I lived and worked in NYC for almost 10 years but primarily due to Covid, have transitioned to being a personal chef and now reside in sunny Miami. I have been working as a private chef for nearly 3 years. In those short years I have learned to not only navigate my business through a pandemic but also how to utilize my decades of professional knowledge and skillset to provide an incredible at-home dining experience. Also, in that short span of time, even worked exclusively as the personal chef for a high net-worth family splitting my time between Miami and the Hamptons. I recognize the value of adaptability, impromptu implementation, resourcefulness, and operate with a very approachable but professional personality. I am able to provide a wide range of cuisine and can be flexible when creating menus to help in curating a special meal. I communicate openly and honestly with clients because I understand the value of their time and only ask you to do the same. Whether it's as simple as a grilled cheese sandwich or something elaborate and complex that you would find at Michelin star restaurants, as long as it is prepared with thought and love it can be amazing. Any chef can acquire quality ingredients and learn proper techniques. However, I believe that some of the best food that people want to eat every day are the foods that are attached to a memory, emotion, or experience. The type of dishes that your mother or grandmother made that filled you with joy knowing what you were having for dinner on that particular evening. The type of food that warms your soul on a frigid night, the type of food where you take a bite and pause with a grin just to savor the moment, and the type of food that makes you salivate from the mere scent of its preparation. This is also why food is the highlight for many people in their day to day routines. Food enables community, community creates sharing, sharing brings forth relationships, and relationships are absolutely fundamental for our lives. This is the true nature and power of food and why I became a chef.