A Culinary Journey Begins

Entering culinary school, I was filled with excitement. The love of the food. Of carefully preparing it. And of bringing people joy. It was so simple. So straightforward. And so pure.

Climbing the Culinary Ladder

After graduation, I entered the real world and began climbing the ladder. Ten years of grinding—prepping, peeling, and cutting—before advancing to sous chef. I was so excited to be more involved in the process. But I soon realized that I didn’t have much say in what went on the menu or how it was prepared. I was responsible for executing someone else’s vision—the executive chef’s vision. So, I decided, that’s where I needed to be. So I could craft the vision and call the shots.

Becoming the Executive Chef

Four years later, the day came. I got the call: Executive chef. Me. Now, I set the menu, and others executed. I had creative freedom—so much more than before. But I still needed to operate within the confines of our restaurant’s concept. And I was responsible for overseeing the entire kitchen, from dishwasher to pastry chef, and all the good, the bad, and the ugly that came with it.

The Realization

After years of coaching, investing heavily in my team, consistently working 14-hour days, playing by the concept’s rules to ensure we continued to appeal to our desired customer base, and managing the excitement and dysfunction that came with a large kitchen, I began to realize I wasn’t happy. I’d “made it,” but the thing that had once brought me so much joy—my love of food, preparing it, and then serving it—was gone. I’d achieved so much but had gotten too far away from what I loved the most. And it was time to get back to basics.

A Bold Decision: Opening a Food Truck

I didn’t want to start my own brick-and-mortar restaurant. I’d be even further removed from what made me happy. I wanted to create. I wanted to touch the food, select it, prepare it, and serve it. I wanted to focus on what brought me, and others, so much joy. So, after much consideration and soul-searching, I decided to open a food truck.

Embracing the Food Truck Life

It sounded crazy to so many—a far cry from being an executive chef in a well-known fine dining restaurant. But to me, it wasn’t crazy at all. I knew that my food truck would afford me the ability to do all the things I wanted to do. To be creative. To decide what I served and where I served it. To have the end-client interaction. And to see the joy.

A Year of Transformation

It’s been a year. And it’s been an incredible adjustment. Gone is my prep team. Gone is the cleaning crew. And gone is the expediter and wait staff. It’s a small operation, with the finest ingredients and the customers that appreciate it the most. And I couldn’t love it more.

Culinary Career Path Comparison:

Prep Chef: Accountant, Senior Accountant, Senior FP&A (10 Years)
Sous Chef: Controller, Director of Finance & Accounting (4 Years)
Executive Chef: CFO (5 Years)