San Diego is a long way from a cow farm in Washington which is where Chef Chad White spent his summers until he was 16. Life is a little different in the northernmost state where hunting and fishing and vast lush scenery is the norm. This upbringing has grounded and strongly differentiated the incredibly creative chef, husband and father of two.
Chad White in the Beginning…
At the age of 19, a young Chad White enlisted in the Navy on 9/11/2001. His hope was to take the hospitality route but instead was put to KP duty (Kitchen Patrol) where he was peeling potatoes and washing dishes to his utter dismay. While questioning his destiny and in need of a sound board on the USS Benfold, Chad dialed home to talk to his mother. “I’m an artist,” Chad proclaimed. It was during this one phone call that the winds of change cleared the fog and directed Chad’s sails toward a new destination. The turning point was a single question from Chad’s mother Sonia Dilley, “What is so different between food and art?”
A 10 inch plate instantly looked like a blank canvas to the young chef and from this point forward he devoured the scores of cookbooks, specialty tools, magazines and anything else he could get his hands. Soon Chef Chad White was being asked to fulfill the officers’ requests from basic meals to elaborate feasts.
Read the entire article on the mid-November edition of Cur8eur ONLINE
UPDATE: Chad White’s North Park restaurant, Sea Rocket Bistro is officially closed but have no fear! Chad is in the works with opening 3 more concepts in the next few months including some shopping mall fixtures has since opened Craft Pizza, La Justina which is rocking on Ave. Revolucion in Tijuana… yes we said TJ, AND now COMUN KITCHEN AND TAVERN in East Village! Read the November DIGI-Issue to find out MORE. (Link above.)