Unique Experiences

Item Description

Have Chef Jeff Cook in the Privacy of your own home for an evening. Enjoy a Hands on cooking demonstration for you and 5 friends Followed by a sit-down gourmet dinner.

Jeffrey McInnis was born in 1978 in Niceville, Florida (yes, that is a real city in the Florida Panhandle). He grew up fishing and surfing with his brother and by age 14,was working on local boats and cleaning the catches of the day. By 16, McInnis was peeling shrimp, cleaning squid and cutting fish for The Marina Café, where he got his start cooking on the line. After graduating from high school, he moved to Charleston, South Carolina to attend Johnson and Wales University.  While in school, he worked at Atlanticville Restaurant outside of Charleston. 

McInnis traveled and worked at various restaurants after graduating from culinary school. He began as Sous Chef at Asolare in St. John in the Virgin Islands, a Caribbean-Asian restaurant.  Next, in San Francisco, Chef McInnis worked at the fine dining Asian-French restaurant, Azie.  There, he earned a promotion to Sous Chef and learned Japanese cuisine from the sushi chefs while polishing his French techniques.  When he moved to rural Virginia, he worked at Keswick Hall, an exclusive 5-star hotel owned by The Orient Express. McInnis moved back to Florida in 2004 where he worked with the famed Chef Norman Van Aken at Norman’s.  

In 2006 he became Chef de Cuisine of The DiLido Beach Club at the Ritz-Carlton South Beach. Since joining the Ritz-Carlton, Chef McInnis has traveled to North Africa and Europe where he studied other cultures’ food and techniques, history, family values, and religion. Chef McInnis applies this gathered knowledge by creating innovative, interesting dishes influenced by his experiences. 

At DiLido he uses local ingredients to create Southern Mediterranean and North African-inspired cuisine and, best of all, it’s all served right on the beach. McInnis’ dishes are light and fun: melon-cucumber salad is topped with heirloom tomato gelee and a yogurt sorbet that slowly melts into a dressing; while a lemon and apricot roast chicken with Sardinian couscous explodes with bright flavors and lively spice. McInnis’ favorite tool is his liquid nitrogen tank, which provide a burst of cool to the dishes served in his beachside dining area.

Chef McInnis is committed to giving back to the Miami Community. He leads the Ritz Carlton’s sponsorship of culinary fundraising events for organizations like The March of Dimes, Children’s Homes Society, and Taste of the Nation. He also supports FIU, a local university, every year at the South Beach Food and Wine Festival.

Item Special Note

Valid for one year (Through February 2011) Must be within Miami Dade/ Ft. Lauderdale and nearby surounding area. Black out dates apply and include Weekends and Holidays and 3/3/10 - 3/6/10, 4/11, 5/2/10 - 5/6/10, 4/15/10 - 4/19/10, 6/10/10-6/22/10 and 6/21/10-6/26/10 - Must be scheduled on an agreed upon date