My name is David Laudicina, 29, and I love to cook. I was raised in southern California, and from a young age, I discovered a passion for art and creativity that I believe was unique amongst my peers; from oil paintings to pastels, polymer clays and model cars, I reveled in anything I could get my hands on, but didn't stumble upon my passion for cooking until I moved to Los Angeles for college. The plethora of culinary adventures native to Los Angeles sparked a passion in me for various types of Asian cuisine from Korean to Thai; I found myself managing a local restaurant in Westwood, LA, and after I moved to the valley, I started working at a local sushi restaurant; here it was as if art and food came together to create something special, unique, beautiful, something I didn't realize existed but knew I had been searching for my whole life. I worked there for two years, co-started an omakase tasting menu with my manager, and later started a fine dining Japanese restaurant with a local Fresno restauranteur. As head chef, I helped develop the menu, design dishes, hire staff, train employees, operate and lead the kitchen. I decided to leave the restaurant industry and begin my own career as a private chef because I desired more meaning and purpose in my culinary endeavors, and I believe EPC will help greatly in that respect.
All prices are an estimation and vary based on guest count, event location, and menu. You will get a better estimate during the booking process.
I'm Chef David, 29, and I'm originally from San Diego currently living in Clovis, CA. My heritage and ancestry consists of much ethnic diversity and multiculturalism, my mother being of Dominican descent and my father Sicilian. So... you guessed it: growing up, food was important. Sundays were religious: church, pastina for lunch, and spaghetti for dinner, however Latin and Cuban influences roamed the halls of our Solana Beach residence as well, spanning from arroz con pollo to traditional Dominican party foods like pastelitos and empanadas. Nevertheless, the coastal melting pot of southern California lent itself to a vast array of asian fusion cuisine, ranging from traditional japanese to hawaiian european fusion, which I would experience in its rawest form when I was nine years old. Sushi was its name. My father's business partner hailed from New York in the early 2000's with testimonials of this mysterious, tantalizing food-stuff, the coolest, edgiest fad to reach the state coasts. Raw fish? Such a thing had never even been mentioned in our household, and whose exposure was still in infant stages in America, authentic, unadulterated Japanese cuisine was rare and eccentric. My brother would opt for the chicken teriyaki; I felt inclined to follow my father's business partner's adventurous culinary tendencies and order the..Tekka maki? Wait...what? What is that? A tuna roll, the menu says? Not only can I not pronounce it, I don't even KNOW WHAT IT MEANS and they're telling me it's RAW FISH!? Well, I'll tell you one thing...To this day, the tekka maki is one of my favorite dishes to make and to eat; from the fatty tuna balanced with the gentle punch and breath-like sweetness of fresh wasabi, to the soy sauce's robust umami and acidulated short-grain rice; I realized that my enjoyment of this dish was not derived solely from its simple yet elegant perfection, sublimely balanced flavor structure, textural appeal, or eccentric allure, but that it was the catalyst, the kindling that would spark my culinary journey, and cultivate a passion that stands therein to this day.
My favorite restaurant is Roy's Hawaiian Fusion in San Diego. Chef Roy Yamaguchi started experimenting with Hawaiian, Japanese, and Chinese flavors utilizing French technique and plating style in the 1980's and opened his first restaurant in Hawaii in 1988. He would later open a few in southern California, and my family and I would frequent the restaurant every Mother's Day. I still remember the first time I had their Szechuan Baby Back Ribs; easily the best dish I've ever had, and coupled with amazing service and great ambience, it quickly became a place I'll never forget.
My favorite thing to cook for myself would have to be a perfectly seared, oven-roasted rack of lamb, spaghetti di mare, or traditional sushi and sashimi. I enjoy simplicity, and have warred endlessly with the insecurities that lurk beneath the surface of modest restraint. There's a place for modesty and a place for lavishness, but what I've come to find is 1.) it takes an incredibly mature person and chef to, not only, advance his/her skill level to the point of mastering certain techniques and cooking all types of food well, but after that, to humble oneself and actually get out of the way so that 2.) the natural beauty and flavors of the ingredients can shine brighter than the chef's limelight or desire thereof. I feel these dishes, indeed, require technique and knowledge, awareness of quality, timing, excellence, but also display a beauty that only simplicity can provide. And... well..they taste awesome.
Healthy, seasonal, organic, animal-based diets are my forte, from steak to sushi, to organic seasonal fruits and vegetables. Ever since I started studying food as if it were a science, I began to realize that almost all of the food that is advertised to us here in America is not really food at all. Full of processed grains, seed oils, additives, pesticides and chemicals, the effect of what we consume has on our bodies is grossly understated, and as much as I love cooking, knowing that what I'm feeding people is actually good for them I love all the more.
This is hard to describe. I don't believe I chose cooking, but rather cooking chose me. Chefdom was never something I aspired to or even really knew existed, but I felt a constant urge from God to start a business, and I really couldn't think of anything else I would want do to besides cooking. I had always excelled in restaurants as a dishwasher or prep cook, worked hard everywhere I went, but when I got hired as a saute chef at a high-end French restaurant in Los Angeles when I was twenty years old, I quickly realized two things: 1.) I didn't know how to cook AT ALL, and 2.) I definitely didn't want to work for somebody else for the rest of my life. Essentially enslaving yourself to the demands of the nine to five, to your boss, and to the lifestyle was the last thing I wanted for myself. I enjoy freedom. I enjoy art and creativity. I enjoy coloring outside the lines, and what I quickly noticed is that the industry sucks all of those things out of cooking. So, long story short, I got a few cook books, studied some online courses, and worked relentlessly at home practicing everything from bread making to sous vide. Doors started to open for me in the restaurant industry and I found myself designing menus, training line cooks, managing kitchens, and now partnering with Elite Private Chefs to, not only provide amazing food to amazing people, but revitalize an industry that has been greyed and disheartened.
My number one passion is Jesus Christ. From reading the Bible to praying, it's what I do no matter where I'm at. I'm also a musician; I play drums and piano, so practicing, rehearsing for events, listening to new music is my jam alongside cooking. Lastly, I always like to stay active; whether it be calisthenics, golfing, or just relaxing outdoors, staying healthy and fit is a foundational joy of mine as well.
Elite Personal Chefs is a literal godsend. When I first spoke with Chef Austin about what his vision was behind EPC, it was as if I was listening to a carbon copy of myself rant about the absurd discombobulation of the restaurant industry. From the long hours, underpayment, and moral grievances, he experienced it all, but what impressed me the most is he's actually doing something about it. EPC focuses on prioritizing the chef, attributing ownership to these individuals, allowing hard-working men and women to have the freedom to choose their culinary journey rather than be shackled by the endless, grinding monotony of the kitchen, and giving back to a community that has long suffered injustice in a ruthless, cut-throat industry. Most people have slept on this stark reality; EPC is starting to wake people up.
The private chef lifestyle is fantastic for so many reasons. One being it allots a chef the freedom to be creative, set their own schedule, and manage their own business in a way they see fit. But secondly, and more importantly, it allows people to build relationships and fellowship over one of the most important things in our society: FOOD! So often do our gatherings concerning food have only one thing in common: eating. The consumer mentality, especially here in America, has eradicated the life, joy, fellowship, passion, and meaning out of food and cooking, but the private chef lifestyle changes everything. Relationships are built; time and effort can be given to each and every person, each and every meal, each and every ingredient, with dedication and heart; I've always wanted food to mean something more than just silencing hunger, and being a private chef allows me to do exactly that.
