As a child visiting Vail, Chef Will and his family would always celebrate his dad’s birthday with dinner at Sweet Basil. At the time he was unaware that one day he would be working here; actually, he didn’t even have a clue that he would be a sous chef anywhere. Although he had a passion for food early in life, trading trips to the museum for “dirty water” hotdogs from street vendors in NYC, he didn’t step into a kitchen to cook until college; and then it was just an excuse to get out of engineering classes. Will’s first restaurant job was for TV celebrity chef, David Burke, at Fishtail working the raw bar. He proved to be a good hire and was promoted to getting paid three months after he started working.
Chef Will earned a culinary degree going to night school at the French Culinary Institute while working in restaurants during the day and butchering overnight. Every restaurant where Will has cooked has contributed to who he is today as a chef. He has drawn inspiration from other chefs, line cooks, and dishwashers from learning the importance of saying, “behind” to writing menus to promoting work ethic and dedication.
Chef Will is an avid NY sports fan, foster father to many dogs, self-proclaimed master parallel parker, loves everything hibachi, Shania Twain, and Taylor Swift, and collects cookbooks. He moved to Vail from NYC for a change of environment and a focus on the outdoors. He is excited to be a part of the Sweet Basil team and is looking forward to enjoying the mountain lifestyle, becoming a better skier and competent snowboarder, hiking some 14ers, and kayaking the rivers as often as possible.
