Chef JP grew up in Tennessee feeling drawn to the kitchen, where his mom ingrained in him a great appreciation for good food and time spent with loved ones around the table.  His first specialty was chocolate chip cookies, then hot cocoa, and from there he couldn’t get enough.  He was voted “Most Likely to Become a Chef” in high school because he would host a privileged few for marinated chicken cooked on the George Foreman at lunch time.  In college, he studied Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism and worked in kitchens to pay the bills, starting out as a dish washer and quickly working his way to line cook.  

After graduation he continued his culinary pursuit by moving to the American mecca for food and wine, The Napa Valley.  There he attended The Culinary Institute of America and fell in love with the bounty of fresh ingredients that thrive in the perfect weather of California.  After 5 years in Napa, learning from some of the best chefs in the country, he moved to Southern California for his wife to go to nursing school. 

In SoCal, after working as Chef de Cuisine for Noe Restaurant at the Omni Hotel, he became jaded with corporate kitchens and shifted his focus back to the home.  He took a job as a Private Chef for a high profile family with refined taste and enjoyed his role in facilitating memorable moments at the family dinner table.  He continues to enjoy working as a Private Chef, but has felt called to create something special that he can share with a wider audience. By bringing the omakase experience to the home table, he hopes to do just that.