What were your favorite foods growing up?
Bolognese pasta, chicken cordon bleu, duck breast, artichokes, asparagus and anything from a pig.

When did you decide you wanted to be a chef?
I wrote in my 6th grade yearbook that I wanted to be a chef in twenty years.

Where and when did your career in food begin?
At the Harbor Restaurant in Santa Barbara to pay for a new transmission in my first car.

If you didn't become a chef, what would you be?
A golf teacher for juniors.

Who/what has shaped your cooking the most over the years?
Bryan Voltaggio, Matt Hill, Amar Santana, Chris Bradley, Julian Shapiro.

What are your favorite culinary weapons in the kitchen?
Chef's knife, immersion blender, cryo-vac machine.

What influences your cooking style and particularly the menu at your restaurant?
Different dishes I've seen other chefs make throughout the years. I try to take classical flavor combinations and present them in the most aesthetically pleasing way possible, and I always try to add a little twist that's representative of me.

What is your favorite secret ingredient?
Pomegranate Molasses.

What is the one rule or value you try to instill in all of your staff?
Would you serve this to your mother? If not, then make it again.

If I am trying to watch my weight and I'm eating at your restaurant, what am I ordering to eat?
Fava bean salad with watermelon and ricotta salata or a
Bibb salad with roasted beets, asparagus, radishes, and lemon dill vinaigrette. Also, try the Hirimasa crudo with English peas, carrots, lemon oil and pea shoots,
Alaskan Halibut with green grape marcona almond gazpacho, or the Mullard duck breast with rhubarb faro risotto and dandelion greens.

What was the most challenging meal you had to make? Why?
A Share Our Strength event that I managed while at Charlie Palmer Steak three years ago. My chef had just had a baby and I was responsible for receiving all of the rentals and food from the different chefs, as well as organizing the kitchen for service that evening. It was a lot of pressure with a lot of very famous chefs coming to cook, but while it was difficult to juggle all the responsibilities, it was a very rewarding and inspirational experience.

What was your worst restaurant disaster?
I have no idea how, but somebody found a screw in the chard underneath a piece of chicken that I had sent off of my station. Pretty embarrassing.

What is your least favorite food?
Calf's liver.

What are some recent dining and culinary trends you have been observing?
It seems as if smaller portions at a more affordable price point is the direction most restaurants are taking these days. It becomes more approachable for the average consumer, and allows them to go out and try different things more often.

When you are not eating at your own restaurant, where are you eating?
Dukem for injera and Five Guys for a burger. I really like Kushi, the new Japanese izakaya near the D.C. Convention Center. Proof and Poste Brasserie are two more of my favorites.

What was the most spectacular meal you have ever had?
An abalone appetizer at Michel Richard's Citronelle-- I had it about 4 years ago. It was sous vide abalone over wilted spinach with house made tri-color pasta nibs, beurre fondue and a heaping spoonful of Osetra caviar. The flavors were in perfect harmony and I had never ever tasted anything like it.

What is your best cooking tip for a home enthusiast?
If you make a mistake or over season something, simply analyze why the mistake was made and don't do it again. Cooking is all about experimenting until you get it just right for your own palate. Cooking is a trial by error process. Be patient and learn from your mistakes.

What do you eat when you are home?
Cheese, bread, injera, fruit, pizza, and anything Thai.