David Adjey

David Adjey inspires and says he is inspired by culinary students. He will be their "#1 fan" at WorldSkills Calgary 2009, cheering on Team Canada with the same vigor he puts into his food preparations. He says engaging students to find their passion at WorldSkills Calgary 2009 makes his work immensely gratifying.

Adjey finds inspiration in many different and sometimes surprising sources...an architectural detail, a shimmer of evening sky, a whiff of perfume...or a pile of stones on the beach. An idea can start with a scrap and lead to a stellar new dish.

Today Adjey is best known for his tough and direct approach as the passionate chef on Restaurant Makeover, but it all started in Toronto, ON. When Adjey worked as an apprentice to Dante Rota of Toronto's once-legendary Noodles, it launched his trajectory to the ranks of the top masters. Next, he worked under the tutelage of Richard Krause, who opened the doors of his restaurants, Melrose and Rose Café, to Adjey's creativity.

Adjey was subsequently honoured with an invitation to assist the famous chef and cookbook author Guiliano Bugialli in Florence, Italy, where he further developed his love of cooking, artful style and inventive presentations. This is where Adjey fell in love with the open-air markets. He is now famous for cooking whatever is available that same day to create the dinner menu for the restaurant.

The new toast of the town from New York to L.A., Adjey appeared on the Food Network's Ready, Set, Cook, was acclaimed as the "Best New Chef in California " by the celebrated Frommer's guide and lavished his talent on celebrities in the role of personal chef (to Dan Aykroyd).