I’m having a bit of a flashback to my days as a Producer & Director for the Food Network. While working on series there, I had the good fortune to collaborate with a host of talented, award-winning chefs, food stylists, and culinary experts, including the stellar Giada DeLaurentis, whom I always think of as “One Take Giada,” because she nailed nearly every on-camera on the first try. (A rarity, I assure you.)

I’m thinking too about the veritable library of @BonAppetitmag magazines and diverse cookbooks that my Mom amassed over the years. While running her own business, she always found joy in cooking and instilled the same in her kids.

Now that I’ve relocated to Southern California, I’m having a ball collaborating with accomplished folks here of every kind who bowl me over with their warmth and enthusiasm.

Executive Chef PrabeenPrathapan of the Balboa Bay Resort is one of those people. Balboa Bay was recently named the #1 Resort in Newport Beach by US News and World Report and is a Forbes Four Star and AAA Four Diamond property, and the resort and its guests couldn’t be happier that Chef Prathapan has brought his skills to this gorgeous spot along the sparkling shores of Southern California.

The Chef earned his stripes at the Montage Laguna Beach, the Mandarin Oriental in Las Vegas, the Pasea Hotel and Spa in Huntington Beach, and at the Taj Palace NewDelhi, India.

But it’s not just the cred that wins over visitors to Balboa Bay, it’s the Chef’s inventive food, his dynamic personality, and his grounded demeanor. We had a great time documenting one of his busy mornings at the Resort, and the photo essay and story about our time together appears in Bay Window, the Balboa Bay Club’s monthly magazine.

Many thanks to Chef P for his generosity, and to Francine Slosser, the genius Director of Marketing at The Balboa Bay Resort. We are a trio of dog loving, ocean adoring folks, and what a blast it is creating stories together!

© Kimberly M. Wang | eardog.com | @eardogfoto

Assist: Aedan J.