Homeless plans for Thanksgiving On a warm autumn afternoon, a homeless man lies against a wall on First Avenue just south of Ash Street. He's sharing a bottle of cheap vodka with an older homeless …

The ideal hipster Thanksgiving As I’ve pointed out before, no holiday lacks the potential for a hipster makeover. Thanksgiving is no exception. Not only is it nestled comfortably between epic Halloween costumes and ugly-Christmas-sweater parties, …

Mark Sun opened Khan’s Cave after he realized he couldn’t stay out of the kitchen on a Friday night.

Stephanie O’Mary-Berwald’s halibut ceviche recipe speaks for itself.

Cucina Urbana pastry chef Jack Fisher used to work on the savory side.

Joe Burns of Waters Fine Foods offers up a red velvet cheesecake with chocolate ganache.

Chef Donald Lockhart’s recipe for caramelized pear salad.

Tony Su’s Chinese pancake recipe.

Interview with Chef Ryan Studebaker, at the intersection of Southern and French.

Chef James Clark hit it off with Ingrid Croce. His roasted chicken recipe is in their soon-to-be-published cookbook.

I have been cooking all my life since I lived in Italy. I cooked for a big restaurant there and we did a lot of weddings. I also served in the Army and was a …

I’ve always been a fan of really fresh food. I grew up in Ohio and went hunting and fishing with my dad. Nothing tastes fresher than catching a fish and cooking it over an open …

Chicken drumettes with chimichurri, from the kitchen of chef Reese Hay.

Katherine Humphus started as a restaurant hostess; now she gives you her almond-crusted Portobello mushroom recipe.

What I like to cook are the questions people can’t answer for me. For example, if I asked how to make mashed potatoes, there would be several answers. But when I asked how to make …

Recipe by Michael von Euw, Chef de Cuisine, Cavaillon I have always played around with food. It wasn’t so much that I wanted to create new things as much as I wanted to recreate dishes …

Growing up, I was always in the kitchen helping my dad and grandparents cook. Coming from a Greek and Italian background, food was a major part of our culture, and eating and preparing delicious food …

I got into cooking by accident. I was fresh out of high school when 9/11 happened. I wanted to do something for my country so I went down to my local recruiting station. I found …

When I was a student at the University of Hawaii and broke, a friend of mine had a nice job cooking and asked if I was any good in the kitchen, and I was, like, …

Recipe by Nick Shinton, Chef, Truluck’s I was introduced to the healing powers of food at an early age. My mom was a nurse and she got me a job in the hospital kitchen. There …

Recipe by Amy Simpson, Pastry chef, Bertrand at Mr. A’s I grew up in a pretty traditional Italian family. And my mom and grandmother happen to be the best cooks in the whole world. One …

Recipe by Mary Kay Waters, owner, Waters Fine Foods & Catering I definitely grew up thinking about food. My father planted apple and pear trees, and all winter we had apples and vegetables in our …

Recipe by Daniel Manrique, executive chef, the Red Door To tell you the truth, my mother wasn’t a good cook. I started to cook for my little sister by the time I was nine or …

Recipe by Bradrick “Coop” Cooper of Coop’s West Texas Barbecue I’ve always had this thing for cooking. I grew up in San Diego with my mom. She and my aunt owned a soul-food restaurant in …

Recipe by Ben Diaz, Executive Chef, McCormick & Schmicks at The Omni Hotel My father was a chef. When I was about 15, he used to bring me into his kitchen to peel potatoes. I …

Recipe by Colin Maclaggan, executive chef and owner, Avenue 5 Restaurant I’ve always enjoyed cooking. I grew up in Serra Mesa, and at family gatherings, the action was always in the kitchen. Even in college, …

Recipe by Rene Herbeck, executive chef, Au Revoir Bistro My dad was in the Foreign Legion and when he was in Vietnam, he met my mother. I was born there and lived in Vietnam until …

Recipe by Anthony Sinsay, executive chef, Harney Sushi, Old Town I come from an Asian and Filipino background. My dad was in the Navy for 17 years and was the cook in our house. He …

Recipe by Roberto Gerbino, Executive Chef, Il Fornaio, Del Mar If you ask me what age I started cooking, I will tell you I was born in a restaurant. My father had a restaurant and …

Recipe by Mark Pelliccia, chef and co-owner, 25Forty Bistro & Bakehouse Many chefs cook the kind of food they like to eat. I am simple when it comes to the food I eat. Eggplant parmigiano …

Recipe by Craig Jimenez, executive chef, Craft & Commerce I never thought cooking would be a career. It wasn’t until I failed miserably at a T-shirt business when I was in my 20s did I …

Recipe by Chef Evan Cruz, executive chef, Pacifica Del Mar For me, it’s a funny story. I was going to become a chiropractor. But when I was going to chiropractic school, I got into a …

Recipe by Mike Liotta, chef de cuisine, Quarter Kitchen I spent my early years in the South. I know, an Italian family that grew up in the South, right? But I think it’s a really …

Recipe by Brent Calley, executive chef, Porto Vista Hotel I remember being at my grandfather’s house on vacation. I was about ten. Every night he would ask me what I wanted for dinner and then …

Recipe by José Sanchez, executive chef, Point Loma Café. I grew up in Mexico City and came to the U.S. in 1975. I came here looking for a better life and started working in a …

Recipe by Antonio Friscia, Executive Chef, Stingaree My dad was a wholesale seafood distributor in San Francisco. I grew up delivering fish to restaurants, and I liked the other side of the business. I was …

Recipe by Camron Woods, chef, Amaya I love the creativity of being a chef. I remember once when I was starting out, a sous chef in the kitchen made everyone a snack to eat and …

It all started last year, when I tried and failed to find a local turkey for Thanksgiving. I defined “local” as raised and processed entirely in San Diego County. This year, I decided to find …

Recipe by Carl Schroeder, executive chef, Market Restaurant I have a sports background. I played football and ran track in college. I liked the physical aspect of work, but I knew that being a personal …

Recipe by Gavin Schmidt, executive chef, Blanca I like eating. A lot. When I was in high school, I took a job as a dishwasher in a restaurant because it allowed me to eat all …

Recipe by Karen Krasne, executive chef, Extraordinary Desserts What’s unusual about me is that while I am a pastry chef, I lead a very healthy lifestyle. I do raw food sometimes and there are periods …

Recipe by Marc Liautard, executive chef, Barrel Room Why did I leave France? Well, I was curious. I grew up in Clermont Ferrand in Auvergne in the center of France. One day, I answered an …

Recipe by Eric Bauer, executive chef, Anthology. I have cooked ever since I was little with my mom and grandmother. They are both Swedish, so we had a lot of Swedish meatballs and pancakes for …

Recipe by Alex Thao, executive chef, Rama. My family has been in the restaurant business for so long that it kind of runs in the genes. My dad has owned restaurants for years. Growing up, …

Recipe by Mario Cassineri, executive chef, BICE I don’t cook when I am at home. If I am alone or have time off, I go out to restaurants to see what is going on in …

Recipe by Su-Mei Yu, executive chef, Saffron. I hardly ever go out to eat except when my daughter is in town and we go out to try new restaurants. I cook every single day and …

Recipe by Chef Hugo Arroyo, executive chef, Puerto la Boca (With Roberta Cotta & Carissa Sanchez) I have been a chef since 1981. A good friend of mine was a chef, and he opened a …

Recipe by Fabrice Hardel, executive chef, Westgate Hotel. I’ve been cooking since I was a teenager and have worked all over the world. I started cooking in France and then England and then worked in …

Recipe by Tim Johnson, executive chef, Zenbu Sushi Bar and Restaurant A lot of chefs don’t cook at home, but the nights I am home, I do actually like to cook. I have a wife …

Recipe by Jim Phillips, executive chef, Barona Casino I never went to culinary school, which is ironic because I run one now. At Barona’s Culinary Institute, we have a three-million-dollar demonstration kitchen with theater seating …