JASON NIEDERKORN Executive Chef

Jason Niederkorn fell in love with cooking as a child, specializing in crepes and pies by six years old. Raised in the resort town of Big Bear Lake, California, his passion for cooking became confirmed when, as a teenager, he secured his first kitchen job at Mozart's Bistro in Big Bear under Chef John Richardson.

Richardson recognized promise in his young protégé and encouraged Niederkorn to enroll at his alma mater, the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. Jason arrived in the city in 1996, somewhat green in experience and keen to explore the surrounding talent in the Bay area restaurants. He hadn't even begun classes at CCA when he dined at Stars, the renowned restaurant by Jeremiah Tower, and found himself enthralled by the scope and imagination of Tower's work. He introduced himself to the Chef de Cuisine who offered him a station on the cook's line as pantry chef. Working in the Stars kitchen for the next three years provided Niederkorn with an early break into the San Francisco culinary scene. Today, along with his admiration of Thomas Keller, Tower remains one the young chef's primary influences. "Working at Jeremiah's side taught me so much," says Niederkorn. "He really understood how best to work with the seasons when designing his menus. And he was always true to his own style."

Upon graduating in 1999, Niederkorn moved to Newport Beach in California to work at Aubergine, a new modern French restaurant, under one of Food and Wine magazine's "Best

New Chefs 2000," Tim Goodell. Within the year, Jason was promoted to Sous Chef; as was his good fortune with Tower, the alliance between Niederkorn and Goodell proved to be auspicious for both, launching a working partnership that would last the better of a decade.

At Aubergine, Niederkorn quickly rose through the ranks and found himself creating nine-course degustation menus that changed daily. His efforts earned him 3.5 stars from Los Angeles Times restaurant critic S. Irene Virbila, as well as a nearly perfect rating of 4.5 from restaurant critic Brad Johnson of Riviera magazine.

In 1994 Goodell and his wife, Liza established the Domaine Restaurant Group, where Niederkorn played a key role as Corporate Chef. In this new capacity, he became responsible for seven different restaurants with a diverse range of food styles - Red Pearl Kitchen, Dakota, Troquet, The Lodge, The Viceroy Hotel and the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.

After six years with the Goodells, Niederkorn decided to take a sabbatical and left his position to travel and seek out current culinary trends and products in Europe.

Upon his return to California in February 2007, Niederkorn was invited by the Tavistock Restaurant Group to join the company as the new Executive Chef of Cafe del Rey. With the complete support of Tavistock, Jason has taken the lead in creating an entirely new menu for the popular dockside destination. Drawing from his favorite culinary styles and a Mediterranean focal point - French cuisine for its tradition and Italian cuisine for its simplicity - Niederkorn is determined to run this high volume kitchen without sacrificing quality.

Niederkorn donates his time and talent to several charitable causes, including the Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Project by Project and the American Liver Foundation's "Flavors of L.A." Jason Niederkorn lives in Costa Mesa with his girlfriend, Yvonne, a flight attendant with United Airlines. Whenever they can arrange a quick getaway, they take off for spontaneous travel adventures, exploring new cultures and cuisines.

jasonniederkorn@cafedelreymarina.com