Hello I’m Chef Vlad. I have been cooking professionally since i was 14. I fell in love with cooking on the food network watching Alton Brown and Guy Fieri - growing my interest in cooking from a young age. I was always messing around with different recipes and making a mess. Slowly, my passion has turned in to a career.
I went to college of lake county in the hospitality industry. This is where i got my start learning classical french cooking. I was drawn in by the way Chef Rob would approach the culinary world, his life experiences and stories brought me a lot of insight and inspiration.
After culinary school i got my foot in the door of a new opening restaurant in downtown chicago called GT Prime. Where i had the pleasure of working side by side with Giuseppe Tentori, John kirchner, and Sean Meyer. This three chefs have helped shape me to a professional Chef, i truly thank them for guiding me in the correct direction and still keep contact with them to this day.
After leaving GT Prime, I received an offer to open a poké shop in the heart of evanston. I helped develop standardized recipes and practices for the newly opened shop. At the age of 21 i was the head chef of a small poke shop, serving sustainably sourced fish and environmentally conscious brand. I spent my time learning how to manage a restaurant business from start to finish. After i had the grasp of running a restaurant, i felt like i still had so much to learn and this being a fast casual place. I began to miss the heat of the kitchen the adrenaline you get before the restaurant opens and you must have you mis en place ready to go. The feeling of being in the weeds, and getting yourself out. The cooled beer after saturday night shift. Most of all i missed being challenged everyday, constantly switching menus, and new seasonal produce i would get to learn.
I accepted a job yet again from GT himself at GT fish and oysters. I was the new Lead line cook. My Mission was to become a reconside Line cook, As my favorite chef once said a highly paid merchant. Learning the world of seafood from the legend himself, my time at GT Fish & Oysters was spent on the sauté station, my goal was to stand out with my level of attention to detail. This part of my life i spent to becoming the best line cook i could possibly be. I spent my time perfecting my searing techniques with skin on fish and scallops, making butter pan sauces and always having my station presentable at any giving time. This is where i become Friend With Chef Chris O’ Conner aka my asian grandmother. This chef showed me how to be a composed chef, a clean chef and a chef of his word. Chef Chris always had the best tools for the job. His bain held the true wisdom of an experienced chef. His knifes always the sharpest in the kitchen. His stories of the michelin world had sparked a new goal in my life. I packed my knifes and left to start a new chapter.
Roister was the next chapter of my culinary journey and the one that helped me validate my confidence in being able to make this passion in to a career. To keep this story short and sweet. I felt like i was a baby that was thrown in the deep end. I had to be extra clean, extra fast, and learn and memorize recipes and information at the speed of light. This was truly a cutthroat kitchen.
Chef Grant achatz, Chef Dan Perretta, Chef Tony Bingham. This chefs where rockstars the ora they gave off was addicting. The collective of chefs that worked their at my time, where all badass chefs that i would hire without a split thought. They where inspiring and self motivated. We held ourselves to the highest standards in the industry. We played loud unfiltered hip hop during service threw an amazing sound system. This was definitely one of the best environments i could have thrown myself at. I was able to gain some long life friends, chef evan, chef dennis, chef mike, and chef megan not mcoy.
This chapter began with waking up at 5 a.m to be at work at 6 a.m with a hefty preplist already waiting. I never worked as a prep cook before but i don’t think i can really call this a prep cook as it was truly a commis. This helped shape the way i look and receive produce where i buy and where i don’t buy Meat, Fish, Vegetables, Condiments, Canned Goods and dry produce and products. After several months of proving myself to the chefs that i was ready to play with fire. I was promoted to brunch and after a couple brunch shifts, i was able to showcase everything i have learned and be moved up to Chef de Partie of the hearth ( Grill Station ).
After several months on the hearth i wasn’t able to support myself and family on the low pay and had to look for something that would be financially appropriate. I had yet again call my favorite chef and mentor Giuseppe Tentori. we spoke briefly and he offered me to help with Boka catering as this was the only open position.
Open Schedule - I was set free from the 70 hr work week being able to think about my goals and plans for the future. I knew i had to hone a couple more skills and i could learn a couple more things from the catering side of the business. I was able to find another couple catering jobs to fill my week up.
Befor i talk about bgc. I want to mention Chef Boris, He was the most open to me about the business side of things, he was a self made man and chef. which multiple restaurants and banquets. He Catered to the wealthy russian community. His menus would blow away most of the michelin restaurants i have eaten in. He never chased the stars. He should me that you don’t need a michelin star to be successful. you don’t need a michelin star to cook amazing food and hold yourself to the highest standards. I thank him for helping me see that in its truest colors. we catered in the biggest mansions and banquet halls across the us. Boka Catering taught me what could be done and how to do it, to put it in its simplest form. I had already worked with many of the chefs that were leading the team.
Sous Chef - Was My ultimate goal i had set to myself back in college. But not just a sous chef at any restaurant. I wanted to be recognized for my talents and skills. I was able to get my first big time sous chef position at GT Prime Steakhouse. It took awhile to get used to the amount of responsibility i had on my shoulders. My focus had to switch from a line cook perspective to a manager ones. I had to learn how to lead people to greatness, how to create positive environment for my work staff, how to teach people standards and a sense of purpose in any task. I was able to learn all this things again to chef GT and Chef John. I was finally felt a sense of accomplishment at the age of 25 to be a sous chef was awesome.
After my time with Boka Restaurant Group as a sous chef, And the pandemic in the air, I wondered what life as a chef will look like now, trying to find a more work life balance. I found a traveling freelance gig with Levy Restaurants, Thats were i met Chef Tyler Brassil we traveled doing the biggest events in the country, Us Open, Kentucky Derby, Indian Wells, WWE Summerslam, 49Ers Football Games, Raiders in Las Vegas, Ravina.
Make sure to check out The New Season 21 of Hell’s Kitchen.
We grow a team of traveling chefs and now have decide to build a Meal Delivery Business in Orlando with the team we built. We will offer very healthy yet unique and approachable meals for the family to enjoy. We want to welcome everyone to try and will be shipping them very soon. We will also be available for Private events, Private dinners and Public Appereance and Brand Collabaration.