Chef Dave Mau

Private Chef In Orange

My cuisine is a fusion all on its own; there is absolutely no pretense to my culinary style. I cook for the best of reasons: love for people, friendship, and the magic that happens over a few bottles of wine with just the right folks. I firmly stand by my mantra: “good company is the best ingredient and pretense make a lousy garnish

My kitchen experience is formed around being puro Californio, my indigenous ancestors go back before the Spaniards arrived and the European side sailed from France to settle Sonoma in the 1850s. Those roots run deep in ancestry and attitude. My palate reflects that and draws from Americana, Regional Mexican, Mediterranean, Moroccan, and even aspects of Vietnamese. The West Coast experience is in my blood and the purest expression of that for me is via the plate and pen. I also have a gritty, sentimental side that I pour onto each preparation. Every dish has a story and that story deserves to be told.

I pride myself on being super easy to work with. Food should be fun and I think good company makes for the very best of ingredients. As a writer I love to talk about cuisine and restaurant culture, it’s a passion of mine to create a narrative for my guests. Most of all I like to craft memories as well as dishes, let’s have a meal to remember!

For me, cooking is...

An act of profound skill and dedication to people and the culinary craft.

I learned to cook at...

Beside my Father as a child and onto my professional journey from the hip, urban spots to the California wilderness.

A cooking secret...

Good company is the best ingredient and pretense makes a lousy garnish

My menus

Chef Dave’s Holiday Family Favorites

STARTER

All inclusive

Grandma Lola’s Holiday Mix - The Holiday Classic from her original 1940’a index card recipe. Mixed nuts, pretzels and all the fixins’. Perfect for cocktail snacking

Olives San Leandro - Marinated Olives in my family tradition served with crudités

FIRST COURSE

All inclusive

Caesar Salad a la Minute - The real deal made to order from scratch, there’s nothing like it. The classic ingredients in the purest form

Green Bean Casserole West Coast - The traditional Midwest presentation with fresh herbs, olive oil and Romano cheese as well

Real Deal Whipped Taters and Chris’ Infamous Sausage Stuffing - Legendary

Pan Gravy From Scratch - Guest’s choice

MAIN COURSE

Choose 1 dish

Prime Rib O’Neill - A classic Central California presentation, garlic and olive oil Prime Beef rubbed with black pepper, mustard seed, garlic, olive oil and herbs. Pan dippings

Roast Turkey - My way, stuffed with apples, onions, rosemary and guajillo chiles. Baja table salt. A fine West Coast version of the classic holiday main dish

Pork Loin In Plum Sauce - Camp style in a dutch oven with fresh plums, garlic, Japanese chiles, and Fresno Onions. Shallot

DESSERT

All inclusive

Seasonal Dessert - Assorted Offerings, pies to ice cream, per client request. Let’s have some fun

Tales Of The Bay

STARTER

All inclusive

FIRST COURSE

All inclusive

Classic Caesar Salad - Made a la Minute with Organic Romaine Lettuce, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Homemade Croutons, Egg, Meyer Lemon Juice, Garlic, Shaved Romano Cheese and Anchovy

Cioppino Portugesa - A Portugese version of the classic seafood dish with Loganiza Sausage

MAIN COURSE

All inclusive

Pasta North Beach - Al Dente Linguine tossed lightly with Herb-Roasted Roma Tomatoes, Olive Oil and Garlic

Striped Sea Bass Nob Hill - Lightly poached with Red Onion, Japanese Mint, Citrus Essence

DESSERT

All inclusive

Ricotta and Meyer Lemon Poundcake with Thick Cream and Organic Blueberries

Tacos Estilo Alta Baja

STARTER

All inclusive

Fresh Chips and Guacamole from scratch

Three kinds of house made salsa made from scratch (legit) with fresh chips

FIRST COURSE

All inclusive

Authentic Frijoles Barrachos - Charro Beans with Beer Broth

Red Rice Classic Style - Cilatro, Chicken Stock, Cumin, Onion

MAIN COURSE

All inclusive

Grilled Carne Rancheria (Steak) with Cebollitas (Mexican Grilled Onions) and Pollo Adobado (Grilled Vegetables for Vegans)

Hand made de harina o maiz (corn or flour)

DESSERT

All inclusive

Chambones (Mexican seasonal muffins) with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream, Candied Tajin Pecans and Mint

West Coast Brunch

STARTER

All inclusive

Mixed Fruit Jalisco Style with Tajin and Mint

Assorted Breakfast Pastries with Local Honey and House Preserves

Ebelskevers - A Solvang tradition, Danish Pancake balls with Organic Syrup and Butter

FIRST COURSE

All inclusive

Homemade Hash Browns with Crispy Scallion

Thick cut bacon and grilled sausages

Baked Greek Frittata with Feta, Rice, Fresh Herbs and Leeks

Eggs Made To Order

Avocado Toast on thick cut Brioche with Olive Oil, Green Onions, Heirloom Tomato and Herbs

Real Deal Campfire Style Corned Beef Hash - The Denitive Version From Scratch

MAIN COURSE

All inclusive

DESSERT

All inclusive

The Calabrain Table

STARTER

All inclusive

FIRST COURSE

All inclusive

Grilled asparagus salad with mignonette and gruyere

Fresh Baked Bread Variety with Compound Butter and Herbed Olive Oil

MAIN COURSE

All inclusive

Pappardelle Pasta with Fresh Herbs, Olive Oil, Garlic, Proscuitto and Romano Cheese

Stracotto de Manzo-Braised Prime Chuck Roast in Tomato with Garlic and Herbs

DESSERT

All inclusive

Cannoli with House Preserves and Heavy Cream

The Tokyo Street Kitchen

STARTER

All inclusive

Compressed Watermelon Salad with arugula, Japanese mint leaf, rice vinegar and lemon zest

FIRST COURSE

All inclusive

Soba Noodles with Home Made Broth, Veggies and Bonito

MAIN COURSE

All inclusive

Yakitori Skewers with Ponzu and Organic Brown Rice

DESSERT

All inclusive

Assorted Mochi with Lemon Curd and Korean Pastry Crumbles

Up From The Valle - A Taste Of Baja

STARTER

All inclusive

Warm salad of grilled local vegtables, organic olive oil, fresh herbs, farm cheese

FIRST COURSE

All inclusive

Classic Green Rice - Saffron rice with cilantro, homemade stock, onions and cumin

Fresh Baked Bread Variety with Compound Butter and Herbed Olive Oil

MAIN COURSE

All inclusive

Grilled sustainable Sea Bass with salsa verde, pickled vegetables and citrus essence

Salsa Cruda with avocado, red onion, chiles and olive oil

DESSERT

All inclusive

Assorted Mexican Pastries with Local Honey

From The West Coast Grill

STARTER

All inclusive

Salad Corte Madera - Avocado, Tomato, Cured Olives, grilled Cebollitas, Napa Cabbage and Baby Kale with Lemon/Egg Dressing

FIRST COURSE

All inclusive

Authentic Black Beans Sofrito Style with Jasmine Rice and Scallion

MAIN COURSE

All inclusive

Citrus/Herb Marinated Whole Free Range Chicken

Slow Grilled Tri Tip - The Real Deal, marinated in Beer, Spices, Tapatio and Olive Oil with house made Salsa Cruda

Grilled Cebollitas with Mexican Squash, Sweet Peppers and Pascilla Chiles

DESSERT

All inclusive

Bananas Foster Bread Pudding - Flambe Bananas, Egg, Bread, Brown Sugar and Vanilla Bean with Piloncillo Cremoso

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Chef Dave's reviews

4.98

•

45 services

We had a fantastic experience with Chef Dave! He was super responsive before our event, which made it easy to put together the perfect menu. He was on time and everything he cooked was beyond our expectations. Would recommend!!! *ask him to take a picture! He is a great photo taker. We ended up with a beautiful shot of the family.

We had a wonderful experience working with Chef Dave Mau, who prepared a memorable Mediterranean tasting menu for a 7-guest dinner party for our directors. The food was incredible, with an amazing presentation and a perfectly paced service. Everything about the process was convenient and enjoyable because of his pleasant, joyful nature, from developing the menu to the food prep and cleanup. Punctual, professional, and a truly talented chef, highly recommended and we look forward to working with him in the future!

Chef Dave was awesome, accommodating, entertaining and the food was incredible

Great experience for a Mother’s Day brunch

We had an amazing evening with Chef Dave. Thank you for the experience. Definitely a highlight of our trip. It is something we will always remember!

Chef Dave is funny, kind, and you can feel the love of his craft in every bite!

Chef Dave was amazing front start to finish! He was able to whip up the most perfect courses for our friends and guests. Everything was fresh and tasted amazing. Aside from the delicious food, Chef Dave provided great conversations and had intriguing stories to share. The entire thing was a complete experience that entertained and satisfied! Highly recommend!

I really enjoyed the experience with Chef Dave. The food was delicious and he was so much fun! I'm a vegetarian so I was VERY impressed with his selections. He made an amazing fish dish for my boyfriend. It was the start of my bday weekend and he made it really special. The food has a lot of flavor and the dishes were unique. I highly recommend this experience with Chef Dave. He shared some great stories with us and cleaned up afterwards which was great!

Dave is hands down the best chef in the area! Not only is the food superb but the storytelling that he shares of his family roots being from Sonoma is amazing! I felt like I was a part of history! He’s a ton of fun, we laughed all night long, ate incredible food and sipped on some fabulous Sonoma wine! Five Stars +++ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Chef Dave prepared a delicious tri-tip served with tasty veggies and sides. Perfection! Dave’s colorful stories about his adventures in the High Sierra’s made it an awesome night.

Our experience with Chef Dave was amazing from start to finish. Not only is he a complete professional, he was super personable, funny and very engaging with our family. The food was incredible and Chef Dave has good stories and background that go along with his dishes, making them more memorable. Afterwards he cleaned up nicely and we were left with some awesome leftovers. I can’t recommend Chef Dave enough - treat yourself don’t cheat yourself!

Chef Dave was entertaining without being intrusive while cooking our meal. Our dinner was delicious, with a wonderful homemade taste, full of flavors!! . We were very happy to have him at our place

Chef Dave went above and beyond to provide a phenomenal brunch for our group. He was very professional, personable, and accommodating, and the menu he cooked for us was incredibly delicious! Would highly recommend Chef Dave for anyone looking for an outstanding meal!

Highly recommend! Chef Dave was perfect for our group. The food was delicious and he helped make my Mom’s birthday a special day to remember. Would definitely book him again!

Chef Dave was an absolute highlight of my girls trip. It’s not an easy feat to have 10 people sitting at a table and LOVE every course of a meal. He puts so much thought into each dish and it shows. We had to make a few accommodations for some restrictions on our end, and he was more than happy to pivot. On top of the incredible food, it was an overall incredible experience. He is a lovely storyteller and includes many personal touches that blew us away. It was truly dinner and a show. I would recommend Chef Dave to anyone who enjoys a fabulous meal AND overall culinary experience experience.

Dave is much more than a chef, he's a brilliant host. From the second the night started Dave's energy and storytelling kept our group captivated and laughing while eating some of the best comfort food any of us had ever experienced. His knowledge of California's hidden gems is second to none and his ability to command a room puts him into an entirely different category of culinary experts. Thank you so much Dave. Cannot wait to book you again soon.

Chef Dave is the man!

Great experience! Would highly recommend. Chef Dave was engaging and entertaining. Food was amazing and he made it seem so effortless! So fun!

Wonderful person, great stories and excellent food.

Chef Dave cooked us an amazing array of brunch foods. The food was absolutely delicious and his passion for food definitely came through his cooking and storytelling!