The Chef's Wife: What Is It?

Okay, many of you have received Facebook messages from me suggesting that you "like" The Chef's Wife page. A few of you have asked me, and I am sure others are wondering exactly what TCW is...

In a nutshell, it is a TV Show that is based in Charlotte. No, it is not mine. I was selected as one of the chefs to participate in the first season. The star of the show is a young lady (Bonnie) who's husband is a chef, but she knows nothing about cooking. Chef Phil, her husband, calls on his chef buddies to share some of their favorite dishes as well as sit down and talk about their careers and who they are as a person - not just as a chef. I would like to share with you how I came to be on the show and my experiences that led to the final, "Cut. That's a wrap!".

As a member of the American Culinary Foundation, I receive communication on upcoming events and advertisements on food related events. On one particular day, I read that there was an audition for a show at the ACF's National Meeting that was coming up. I sent me email stating that I was interested, but didn't really expect to hear anything back - just being honest. Surprisingly, I heard back from one of the producers, Bonnie Jones, stating that they were interested in my trying out. Cool right? There was one problem though. Auditions are held at the ACF Meeting in Vegas and I was not signed up for the conference as I could not take the time off of work.

After talking with my wife, I decided that I would fly to Vegas on the day of the audition, try out, and fly back home that night. I relayed this to Bonnie and she thought I was nuts! She then instructed me to send in a tape, bio, and any other info I wanted so that they could review it. At that point, I figured I had no shot as I had no tape of me cooking anything ---- except for this:


Chef Dez

The Official MySpace of Chef Desmond | Myspace Video

I figured I would send this video that I made one day while I was playing around, along with my bio and the link to my MySpace page. Again, I didn't think this would go anywhere, especially since the video didn't show my face or me talking! After sending the info off, it was on to Orlando for a business trip to Disney World (I know right?). On my final day in Orlando, I was sitting having lunch and checking my voice mail when I hear a message from some guy name Phil. He was a producer for The Chef's Wife and also Bonnie's husband! He stated that they reviewed my info and wanted me to take part in the show! The next step was for Bonnie to fly from Charlotte to Atlanta to meet me and film me at work.

Bonnie flew down and filmed me at my job. I was Executive Chef of the Federal Reserve Bank at that time and the folks there were so kind to allow her to come in and get the footage that she needed. It was a great experience. The next step was for me to come to Charlotte and tape the show! They treated my like royalty. They flew me in and offered to either rent me a car or send a driver to pick me up. I chose the latter. I arrived the day before my taping so that I could see another chef's taping to get a feel for everything. Filming that day was the ACF Chef of the Year who happens to be a Certified Master Chef. And I'm taping after this guy? They put me up in Charlotte's South Park District and took care of my dinner at The Palm.

The next day we had a ball on the set, although I was as nervous as all get out! We filmed in their home and I got to meet Bonnie's mom as well. I have to admit that whole makeup thing was not so bad.

When it was all said and done, I had 28 minutes of footage to show the world. After wrapping, a driver picked me up, took me to the airport, and I was on my way back to the A! It was a great experience for me. One that I will remember forever.

The show has landed a spot on PBS in Charlotte and Virginia. Please support Bonnie & Phil and The Chef's Wife Show. They can also be found on Facebook.

This photo below is a link to my full episode as well as others:

So what is The Chef's Wife? Now you know...