Starting out at a local pizza joint, he realized his passion for food. After high school, he moved to NY to hone his culinary skills. After he spent a year in the Catskills working at various restaurants and resorts he moved back to So. Cal. He started working with King’s Seafood Company and flourished working his way up from grill cook to Sr. Sous Chef at KSC prestigious steak house concept. After spending 5 years with KSC he was given the wonderful opportunity as the Executive Chef of the famous Roxbury Supper Club in Hollywood. After a few years at Roxbury he took over as the Executive Chef at Georgiarestaurant in Hollywood. At Georgia Dave received many accolades including the Robert Mondovi award of culinary excellence (naming him one of the country’s top rising star chefs at the time), best restaurant for 1993 in several magazines including Bon Appetit, Esquire, Travel & Leisure and best crab cakes in LA  two years in a row.
Having met his goals and challenges there he moved on and was the opening chef at Habana Restaurant in Costa Mesa, a Nuevo Latino restaurant with a Cuban flair. Within a few months Habana received best new restaurant in OC for 1995. Feeling he had “sowed his wild oats” with the independent restaurants, he was rehired at KSC and worked his way up to the company’s Executive Chef after having been the chef at their flagship restaurant, the Water Grill.

Dave has since “retired” from the kitchen and now gets his kicks making the “love connection” between employer and chef. Having been a chef for over half his life, Dave has been successful in creating a culture of creating the right fit between employer and management.