I spent years in fine-dining kitchens across Colorado, Montana, and Michigan —long hours, fast pace, and a constant push for perfection. It taught me a lot, and I’m grateful for it, but after a while, I realized something was missing. I wanted cooking to feel personal again.

When I moved into private chef work, I finally had room to breathe and figure out what my food actually looked like. That’s when I found open-fire cooking. Something about slowing things down, cooking over real heat, and working directly with the ingredients just clicked. It felt honest.

Now I focus on small, intimate dining experiences built around fire. I still use everything fine dining taught me, but the food is more grounded, more alive. It brings people together in a way that reminds me why I started cooking in the first place.