Executive Chef of Miel Restaurant

Not just at work and in your career, but having a diverse team makes life better. Hearing different laughs, tasting different foods, learning about places I have never been and may never go... that's as real as it gets. These are the ingredients people spend their whole lives searching for.

Cooking for Outstanding in the Field just a week after being released from the hospital was amazing and a proud, emotional moment, but it would never have happened had my team or my sous chef not risen to the occasion.

Some people need x-y-z structure or their whole world comes apart. In our kitchen, we joke that the only thing you can plan on is things not going as planned. It's as chaotic as it sounds, but it takes the sting out of it when things go sideways. How do you adapt if an oven craps out in the middle of service, or a cooler is running hot, or an eight top shows up unannounced because they got their reservation confused for the wrong date, restaurant, or whatever? You need to be fluid.

A rock solid sous chef is essential to do my job well. Period. I have been lucky to have some killers... looking at you Chris, Michelle, and Dublin!

I keep learning through books, documentaries, and even the bright side of social media (there is one). But something that is huge is leaning on the networks we build in real life. Calling on chefs and cooks of our pasts and having those conversations.

My cooks motivate me to keep growing. Hands down. I felt defeated so many times and ready to walk away. But when the next generation shows up, literally and figuratively, I want to show up for them in return. It's the best part of the job for me: having the privilege of seeing someone grow right in front of me.

I had been laid off in my mid-twenties when the hotel I was working at began renovations on its dining room. I was blindsided and lost. While looking for a new kitchen in the interim, I spent that down time making pasta at home, or rather making bad pasta repeatedly until it wasn't.

I decided to not just set but also stick to some newfound boundaries for myself. That helped land me here and honestly has kept me here. I tried something I never tried before: being truthful and transparent about what I was needing. If that was not doable, or even worth a conversation, then I needed to be completely fine with not being the right chef for the job. In the past, I always wanted to throw myself into the fire, give everything and every moment to the kitchen, if that was what was needed or asked of me. This role was different. Seema, the owner and heart behind Miel Restaurant, and I discussed this. I found myself asking for fewer days and less hours. As crazy as this seems on the surface for industry veterans like her and me, the truth is that I could be a much stronger chef for her restaurant, as well as a more focused and present lead for her staff.

There were two jobs that had incredible impacts on my trajectory, on complete opposite ends of the spectrum. After my first chef's position, I took on a consulting role for an acquaintance opening a pub who needed a menu for his new concept. I was the only one in the kitchen besides a part-time barback. This solitude forced me into a corner of accountability. No one to blame but myself. No one to pass things off onto and share the workload. No one to help clean. This pushed me to completely adjust my attack with prep and execution. The second was moving to Nashville and joining the team at TomKats Restaurant Group. Working under the leadership of Tom Morales and Chef Matt Farley revolutionized, for me, what it meant to be a chef and how to conduct yourself. A masterclass in authenticity and sincerity. From our first conversation over the phone, hundreds of miles away, Matt and I clicked and I could just be myself. I didn't have to worry about embarrassing myself either, maybe for the first time in a job setting. I literally lost my keys during my stage/tasting. Something like that would normally send me spiraling, however, he just patiently helped me look for them. I would have gotten in my head thinking I biffed the interview and looked like a fool. Needless to say, they still hired me. Working with TomKats was my introduction to incorporating eco-friendly practices into the kitchen: composting, waste mitigation, and building meaningful relationships with grassroots purveyors and artisans, many of whom I still partner with to this day.

Like every chef and cook, I always felt drawn to the kitchen at home growing up. More than anything I love to eat (my dad says every time we visit, "I've never seen someone enjoy food so much"). My love for eating always directed me toward Home Ec and Food Science classes in high school, not even thinking about becoming a chef, simply more appealing than shop class. Something that stuck with me like scalding hot roux was the need for physical strength and mental fortitude. The combination of the two was exciting and felt right for my energy level and personality. Also, when the hours were aligned with my natural cycle, I didn't have to force myself into a square peg.

Slow down to speed up. Urgency and hurrying are not the same thing. This covers everything from conducting yourself in meetings, performing during prep leading up to service, executing dishes and events, to training people. If you are walking too fast you can't stop to pick something off the floor.

Relax. Everything will come with time. There is no deadline on your learning. If you are not jiving in your current kitchen, find one that is your flavor.

If you are not okay, there is help out there.

People have to want to work with you. Your skills and cooking aren't enough if you are a mess. Get some good sleep.

With our menu changing every day, motivation is part of the screening process during hiring. Engagement has to be something my crew is excited about intrinsically. My role in that is involving them in decisions every day concerning menus, how dishes could be better, what "better" means to each of us, the restaurant, and our guests, plus discussion of chef documentaries, cookbooks, inspiring meals and ingredients, trips to the weekly farmers market, and a daily reading from The Food Lover's Companion during family meal.

For business, I listen to Modern Wisdom (development), Jocko Podcast (leadership development), Up First NPR (daily news update). For fun: Fly on the Wall, How Did This Get Made?, The Handsome Podcast. And for trivia: Everything Professor.

For self-care, I regulate my breathing as much as possible, guard my sleep, eat at least one meal every day, drink water, be social (even messaging an old friend or chef), and be conscious of the signs of isolation. I educate myself on the signals my body is desperately trying to tell me.

i get inspired through art: museums, music, paintings, theater, walks.

Being able to communicate on other people's individual frequencies is important for my job. You also need to be comfortable with a lot of math in your head and thriving in uncomfortable environments while juggling multiple time sensitive tasks.

When hiring, I look for candidates with great communication, the desire to do well, and a healthy ability to hear criticism.

"Never ask someone to do something you're not willing to do yourself." -Ron Keen