Growing up, I had the privilege of being introduced to the restaurant industry at a young age. My dad grew up in a rough area of Oakland and got his first gig out of high school as a dishwasher at one of the top restaurants in San Francisco. He found himself far more interested in the food going out of the kitchen than the dirty plates coming in, so he decided to save every penny he could to put himself through culinary school. He hustled and worked hard to do culinary school full-time while working part-time as a line cook. After graduating, he moved from restaurant to restaurant honing his skills and eventually became the executive chef at one of the Bay Area’s most prestigious restaurants. When he wasn’t at the restaurant, he whipped up delicacies for me. My favorite was his after-school treat: a grilled cheese oozing with gruyere and herbs (not what most 7-year-olds snacked on).
Over the years, dad instilled in me a love of and appreciation for food. Inspired by him, I started blogging about food during college and then on the weekends when I had time off work. Thanks to great readership and some handsome sponsorships, I turned my part-time hobby into a full-time gig. Recently, I moved from the West Coast to New York City, the food capital of the U.S. This blog is dedicated to bringing you the best of the NYC food scene!