Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2022 i Mesa & Bar Magazine

As an adolescent residing in Yountville, where most of the finest restaurants in the world are located, Jeffrey’s parents encouraged him to get a summer job. Domain Chandon, the pioneering French winery, had recently opened its doors which compelled Jeffrey to apply for a dishwasher position. Little did Jeffrey know that Udo Nechutneys, the renowned chef who hired him, would play an instrumental role in his life. “On my first day, I was sent to work in the pastry kitchen with eminent chefs Gunther Schworer and Dan Skivington. I was immediately enamored with the excitement and romance of the kitchen and felt drawn to be part of it and the food culture that was emerging in the Bay Area,” he shares. What started as a summer stint manifested into a…

With a clear, concise goal, and unwavering faith, Joseph traversed the road he truly desired, without looking sideways or backward, and this led him to manifest his ultimate dream. “It has been my childhood dream to be an Executive Chef where I would eventually have my own restaurant. I must have been 16 years old when my dad and I were driving down the highway in St. Louis, and I told him I needed to get a job. He asked me what I wanted to do, and I said I think I want to cook. My dad bought and sold food his entire life and was well connected with some chefs. The next thing I knew, I had a job in a kitchen at a local hotel—Millennium Hotel, and as…

Butchoy and Bing are founders of Hexat Mining Corporation, nestled in Davao-de-Oro in the Mindanao region in the Philippines. During the 80s, the gold rush compelled Butchoy to start his quest for gold which cascaded from the river in Compostela Valley. Starting from humble beginnings, Hexat Mining Corporation has evolved into two flourishing milling plants that have been operating for 27 years now. The couple has four children who are actively involved in their mining business. “Mining has always been our life—the proverbial goose that lays the golden egg.” Butchoy and Bing are partners in everything, ranging from business to love. The power couple are proud grandparents and spends their quality time trotting the globe. Their wanderlust has taken them to Bordeaux in the Southwest of France, Spain, Tuscany, and…

Kathy’s childhood dream was to become a pediatrician, yet the universe had other plans for her—to follow her father’s footsteps so she can spread her wings and diversify. As the daughter of Peter Fang, renowned chef and founder of the iconic House of Nanking restaurant, Kathy spent most of her childhood at the kitchen of her father’s restaurant Honk and tasted first-hand what the life of a chef entails. Honk served home-style Cantonese cuisine at North Beach San Francisco where Kathy learned to use pots and pans instead of playing with dolls. “I loved it, especially since I got to do a lot of things most kids didn’t get to experience at my age. I created sauces, learned how to produce soy milk from scratch before I turned ten, and…

Lifting the veil behind the world of a chef has become an interesting shift in the industry. The kitchen, which was once a place of guarded recipes and techniques, has now opened its doors to the world. Chefs are on social media talking about their favorite produce farmers or on TV shows showcasing the recipes for their signature dishes. We could thank technology and the changes in media consumption and self-branding, or we could also credit it to creatives and craftspeople simply finding their voice to proudly share their inner workings and thought processes to the world. The latter is how you would describe Chef Victoriano López’s YouTube Channel, La Cocina de Victoriano. At the height of the global pandemic in 2020, Chef Victoriano and his two daughters began posting…

What was supposed to be the first day of a part-time job turned into a life-changing experience for Chef Rogelio Garcia. He was fifteen years old when he stepped into a Napa Valley restaurant to work as a dishwasher; however, the theatrics, the process, and the craft that goes into serving a plate of haute cuisine were more than enough to draw him into the world of food. Like every self-made chef, Chef Rogelio began his career with determination and elbow grease. From washing dishes to learning the ropes (with the help of experience, mentors along the way, and a few cookbooks and YouTube videos), he slowly climbed the ranks to become a celebrated and Michelin Star-awarded chef. From a spot at Cyrus to a Chef de Partie role at…

As a child, Brian Sepulveda developed a fondness for contemporary Mexican cuisine which has been his favorite ever since. “My favorite childhood memory was watching my grandmother prepare meals for the family. Her fresh hand-made tortillas were deliciously out of this world. She was a significant part of my life and I’ve kept the toys and blanket she gave me,” he shares. Brian wears multiple hats, from getting his hands dirty in the kitchen, overseeing the entire operations of Top of the Mark—the famed penthouse lounge of the hotel, presiding over the farm-to-table restaurant, Nob Hill Club, to handling the banquets and catering which includes producing the menus for holidays and events. “I am also in charge of training, developing, and managing a wide range of staff comprised of 51…

After more than two years, one of the Bay Area’s most-anticipated annual social events of the year returned in person on Thursday, March 24, 2022. San Francisco Ballet’s La Grande Fête, the 89th Season Gala, featured the world premieres of ballets by Alexei Ratmansky, Yuri Possokhov, and Myles Thatcher, plus the stage premiere of a pas de deux from Danielle Rowe’s Wooden Dimes, one of the ballet films created during the pandemic. The celebratory evening, sponsored in part by Presenting Sponsor Osterweis Capital Management, supported the nonprofit San Francisco Ballet’s renowned artistic, educational, and training programs. The one-night-only program, curated by Artistic Director and Principal Choreographer Helgi Tomasson in his 37th and final season leading the company, celebrated the longstanding relationships the company has held with choreographers and dancers at…