Hello! My name is Kelley and I am the Fun-Sized Chef.

I am a graduate of Johnson and Wales University and have worked at restaurants including Hugh Acheson’s Five and Ten. It was great working in a high profile restaurant. Were the hours awful? Of course, the restaurant business always has terrible hours. Did I have a social life? Not really. The restaurant becomes your life. Your days off turn into workdays by noon because someone inevitably calls in “sick” or cuts some digit off their hand. The pay sucks so you don’t really have the option of turning down the extra hours. So why do it? Because it’s fun. It gives you a rush and, frankly, there is no better feeling than getting your ass kicked all night just to be told by one of the waiters at night’s end that a customer had the best *insert name of dish* in their life.

So how long did I last? Not very long, but yet long enough to have learned amazing new techniques and flavor combinations that I still crave to this day. A freshly shucked oyster with Terrapin beer mignonette? Still one of the most amazing bites of food I have ever put into my mouth. Corn and coconut. Steak and smoked tomatoes. Red onion and jalapeño…

I’ll never forget the experience. I hope to bring that experience as well as new experiences into this blog to share my world of food with you. No, I no longer work in restaurants. Yes, I have lost my way in the world of food, but hopefully this blog brings me back to the greatest love of many of our lives. The love of food.