Danae McLaughlin, CEC

Chef Danae McLaughlin’s deep appreciation for a variety of cuisines was developed at a young age growing up in San Francisco California in a mixed heritage family of Filipino, German, Italian and Hawaiian, where she was exposed to a variety of dishes and flavors that would fuel her passion for cooking. Her global travels to Italy, Spain, France, Greece, Africa and Peru are infused in the flavors of her food.

She graduated culinary school at the top of her class earning the Burt Cutino Award for Outstanding Culinary Student and immediately began working in the industry. Beginning as the manager of a neighborhood restaurant, she expanded her role in the culinary community as a competition chef winning numerous medals including a Gold Medal at the San Diego Fancy Food Competition.  She joined the Harker School as the Executive Sous Chef where she was responsible for the overall operation and management of six kitchens on four campuses serving a total of 3000 meals a day. She is now a Certified Executive Chef with the American Culinary Federation and owns and operates her own catering company, Affaire Culinaire, where she caters to a variety of clientele. She is also the House Chef for the San Francisco Wine School where she specializes in lunches, dinners, events and workshops that pair food with wine.