He’s manned the stoves in some of New York City’s hottest kitchens, but as a kid growing up in Korea and then Dallas, Chef David Kim never imagined himself cooking for a living. As the executive chef at Milea Estate Vineyard in Staatsburg, he draws on the flavors and spices he was raised on, paired with the classical French technique he learned at the Culinary Institute of America and the farm-fresh goodness of the surrounding area. Chef Kim is a founding member of our newly assembled Chefs Table network, which will serve as a source of culinary news and information; we sat down with him to talk about his journey from salesman to chef, what he loves about cooking in the Hudson Valley, and why there’s no CIA diploma on his wall.
Hudson Valley magazine: You started out in the business world—how did you transition to chef?
Chef David Kim: I was never interested in cooking, and when I was younger, I was in sales. When I interviewed for one of the big corporations I worked for, we went to Bouley in Tribeca. When I got my meal, I was just amazed. I forgot all about the interview and could only think about the food. Somehow, I got the job.
HV: Then what happened?
DK: For about a year, all I could think was, wow, I want to do something like that. How can I cook at that level? Then one day, I quit my job, and I went to the kitchen [at Bouley]. The sous chef told me they were only hiring culinary students to cook. I decided to go to the CIA.
HV: Tell us about your CIA experience.
DK: It was challenging. And I was in a hurry—I wanted to get back to that restaurant [Bouley]. I enrolled in January of 2009, started my externship in September, and went to the city on weekends. Back then, no one was paying the weekend/part time [employees], so I worked for free for nine months before I started full time.
“Being able to create a menu [based] on seasonality is a dream come true for a chef.”
HV: So, you landed a kitchen job before you graduated?
DK: I was at CIA for only the first year. I never had the intention to graduate. I learned a lot, and the CIA provides a good education for aspiring chefs. But my experience in other industries prepared me to become a good manager and [to be] very diligent.
HV: How did you wind up in the Hudson Valley?
DK: My wife and I were talking about getting out of New York City for a few years. It’s a big decision and a challenge to just drop everything and move. Then the pandemic happened. It was a hard time, but we saw it as an opportunity to go somewhere else and have a fresh start.
HV: What made you decide to stay in the region?
DK: There are a lot of changes coming to the Hudson Valley. It’s a lot of young talent, such as myself. I love spending my time in the kitchen and cooking. I have access to all the seasonal ingredients, and we keep a good relationship with local producers, farmers, and purveyors. Being able to create a menu [based] on seasonality and market availability is a dream come true for a chef.
HV: Any major challenges in your day-to-day kitchen life?
DK: Milea is not a restaurant; we are a winery. So, I kind of have to work backwards. At a regular restaurant, the chefs create a menu and somebody in the front of house pairs wine to your food. But I have to pair my food to the wine that we serve. Everything that I cook in the tasting room is to support the wine and elevate the experience.
HV: What flavor profiles influence your cooking?
DK: Growing up in Korea [until age 14], I was always exposed to a variety of spices, kimchi, and a lot of chili soy sauce. When I started cooking, I kind of forgot all about that because of where I worked; I wanted to learn French cooking. As I get older, I like to bring in where I’m from and put a little bit of that heritage into my food.
HV: What do you whip up at home after a busy day?
DK: Simple things; I don’t cook at home like I do at a restaurant. Something I grew up eating often is kimchi jjigae. It’s basically kimchi stew. I like to put a lot of pork in there and just eat it with rice. That’s comfort food for me.
HV: Do you have any advice for aspiring chefs?
DK: Work hard and stay humble. Your time will come.
Related: The Purple Spoon Crafts the Prettiest Custom Sweets in Orange County
