Classically trained in French cuisine, Chef Jesse Barber is as sophisticated as he is unpretentious in the kitchen. He has an incredible attention to detail while keeping his ingredients true, honest and far from overworked. It’s his impressively simple approach to cooking, that manufactures a sense of excitement, familiarity and satisfaction into each of his dishes, whether it be for a private event, popular restaurant or dinner at a friend’s house. In 2009 Jesse moved from Portland, OR to Los Angeles and challenged himself with the opening of The Tasting Kitchen in Venice. As the opening Chef de Cuisine he led a cast of friends and talented, young professionals on a journey that involved late nights, early mornings and loads of commitment to their culinary craft. They transformed and cultivated the restaurant into what became one of GQ Magazine's “Top 10 Restaurants in America” and nominee for three James Beard Awards.

Jesse gave The Tasting Kitchen two years of his time until his ambitions and hunger for independence lead him around the country curating fundraiser dinners, private parties and corporate events. Among his loyal followers are the lovely people at Architecture for Humanity, Summit Series, Kitchit and Trefethen Winery to name a few. In the last 20 years Jesse has most notably worked for Thomas Keller at Bouchon Bistro and The French Laundry and Daniel Mattern while at Clark Lewis in Portland. Although his background reads mostly French and Italian, he has also spent time behind the lines cooking Japanese - one of his favorite cuisines.

Jesse stays true to a farm-to-table approach and knows that sourcing locally not only gives you the freshest possible ingredients, but also ties the community together - which is where great relationships and great food form. Most comfortable creating cuisine from it’s rawest form, Jesse controls every minute detail from butchery to presentation (all the while sweating over an open fire and musing the perfect wine pairings).