DJ CHEF Marc Weiss
Transcription
DJ CHEF Marc Weiss
DJ CHEF Marc Weiss “The Chef That Rocks” His recipe was simple. Spin the hottest music while mixing in some delectable gourmet dishes. Throw in some celebrity soirees along with a TV pilot and add some buzz. For nearly 10 years, the DJ Chef has been hitting up a scene that has never been tapped. DJ Chef is the only culinary entertainer who simultaneously cooks gourmet food and deejays at special events & private parties worldwide. While his experience and determination have guided him to the top of his game, Marc doesn’t lose his head amongst all the glitz and glam. His humble beginning keeps him grounded and influences him to work harder and longer to reach his goals. Raised by his grandparents, Marc recalls growing up in a different kind of Long Beach (NY). Long gone were the big name celebrities like Clara Bow and Marilyn Monroe and the fancy hotels. Marc’s humble start came from his great grandfather “Poppy,” who he describes as the most selfless and generous man. Marc’s great grandfather served in World War I and was an army cook. After the war, his great grandfather saved his money and bought a little push cart to sell fruits and vegetables in New York City. He worked long hours, opening the cart first thing in the morning and closing it down very late at night, recalls Marc. “My grandma says he gave away as much as he sold!” Marc laughed. During the 1920s, Marc’s great grandfather had bigger plans and opened a small store in Harlem. And in 1935, he moved to the City of Long Beach and opened up a green market called King Kohen—located where Waldbaum’s in Long Beach is today. Marc used to visit the fresh fruit and vegetable market everyday with his grandmother to pick him up from work after his long day. “I remember running around the store grabbing vegetables and fruit and he would tell me what it was and why it was so good,” Marc fondly recalled of his childhood. “He would always show me all of these vegetables and fruits just from him. All he cared about was doing a good job and making sure all of the kids on the block had a fresh banana or apple.” Marc’s great grandfather has been the inspiration for his motivation and the love of his career. And, Marc has truly learned a great lesson from “Poppy,” which has influenced his work today. Marc’s great grandfather worked at his market until he was 90-years-old. “Love what you do,” he says. “My grandma is so passionate when she speaks about him. He loved his work and loved his family.” While food and cooking has always been Marc’s forefront, as a teen he began making his hobby into a reality. Marc began deejaying at house parties when he was just 16. A couple years later he additionally took on a job as a prep cook. After high school, Marc attended the New York Restaurant School in New York City. After earning his toque, he went on to work with famed chefs Bobby Flay and Matthew Kenney and in fine kitchens throughout the city. Marc found his culinary groove and returned to Long Island to cook at some of the hottest restaurants around. His success as a noted chef was becoming a reality within local media outlets like News 12, Newsday, and The New York Times, and Marc began hosting and catering private parties during that time. More and more, people began socializing in the kitchen with him and asking him culinary questions. After the launch of Food Network, Marc saw food as an entertainment tool and set out to make his passion for music and food a combination for success. He began entertaining at parties and events where he deejayed while preparing a gourmet meal and from then on the DJ Chef was born. Marc’s unique talents became popular enough that he was beginning to receive invitations to major events. He has been hired to perform for a variety of celebrity events including Christie Brinkley & B.Smith's Blue Moon BBQ in the Hamptons, James Blunt's CD Release Party and has appeared on multiple television shows and segments including: the Food Network’s “What’s Hot!, What’s Cool!,” MTV’s Celebrity Spring Break Style special with Lindsay Lohan, MSNBC’s Entertainment Hot List, Discovery Channel’s Party Planner, FUSE TV’s One Year Anniversary live on IMX, What’s Hot in the Hamptons with Gina Glickman and in an NBC News feature on the hottest trends in entertainment at the Biz Bash Event Style Show. To mark and honor his success, Marc was recently honored by his Alma Mater, the New York Restaurant School, and will be inducted into their Hall of Fame for his achievement and innovation in the culinary field. Marc also actively supports charities and organizations. Marc served as Honorary Chairman for an event to help in the fight against AIDS with LIACC and as the honorary chef for the March of Dimes Star Chef’s Gala. He was also the emcee and judge for the Long Island Top Amateur Chef competition which raises funds for a scholarship to send a talented teen to culinary school. DJ CHEF has been hailed as a pioneer in the food/music/entertainment industry and has demonstrated & entertained packed houses with his beats and captivating culinary style at the Hamptons Home Show, Williams Sonoma, NYC Food & Festival, ICE Culinary, Bloomingdales, Macy’s Herald Square, Stew Leonard’s, New York Culinary Festival, Viking Culinary, W Hotel's Adventures in Wonderland, Fairway, East Bay Farms, Toronto Hot & Spicy Food Festival, Chicago Chef's Ball @ Bella Lounge, Atlantic City Food & Wine Festival, A Taste of Palisades at the Palisades Center, Texas Produce Association's Taste of Summer, Alameda County Fair, and multiple trade shows and public events.For additional information, video clips, photos and booking information, visit his website at www.DJCHEF.com. d e l l i h C Nig htlif e and Ente rtain men t Ma gaz ine CHILLED MAGAZINE Eat, Drin k an be Mer ry! SPRING ISSUE 2009 CHILLEDMAGAZINE.COM CRAFTY COCKTAILS MOLECULAR MIXOLOGY VODKA EAT, DRINK & BE MERRY IN CHICAGO V2 I4 DJ CHEF THE CHEF THAT ROCKS! THE ISSUE THE AMAZING JOHNATHAN THE MARGARITA DJ PAUL OAKENFOLD - V2 ISSUE 4 2009 I U.S. and Canada $4.99 BEER PIONEER JIM KOCH THE THIRSTY TRAVELER FLAIRAHOLIKS NIGHTLIFE BARTENDERS BAR TRICKS COMEDY FOOD PARTY PICS ALL INSIDE! FEATURED ON “WHAT’S HOT! WHAT’S COOL!” LINDSAY LOHAN & DJ CHEF CO-HOSTS MTV CELEBRITY SPRING BREAK AVNET IRON CHEF BATTLE NAPA VALLEY, CA FOOD By BRADEN KEIL Call him “DJ CHEF.” Chef Marc Weiss makes a living out of a unique combination of his twin passions for music and food: He'll pump up the volume, while he sautés the squab at your next dinner party. He'll be featured on the Food Network's show "What's Hot! What's Cool!" on Monday. DJ CHEF HEADLINES THE TORONTO HOT & SPICY FOOD FESTIVAL 330 W. 34th Street I 17th Floor I New York, NY 10001 I P: 212.239.5555 I F: 212.239.2827 July 7, 2008 Dear DJ Chef, I wanted to drop you a quick note to thank you for performing at our corporate event and entertaining our guests. The music and food tastings were great and our guests were very impressed! We all had a great time. It was a pleasure working with you on this and I hope to work with you again in the near future. Best, Christine Sweeney Promotion Manager amNewYork OFFICIAL PAPER OF THE HAMPTONS “Usher’s Committed” It’s the event women across the tri-state area have been dreaming about for months, Super Saturday, the ultimate high-end designer garage sale. Donna Karan, Charla Lawhon, In Style and Kelly Ripa hosted this years 8th annual Super Saturday, benefiting the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund. Even the man who invented the phrase, “Shopping for a good cause,” former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and wife Judith Nathan couldn’t resist the upscale bargains. Other celebrity shopaholics included Cathy Moriarty, Christy Turlington, Petra Nemcova, Ines Rivero, Nicole Miller, TLC’s T-Boz just to name a few. Even Howard Stern showed up with his sweetheart, Beth Ostrosky. When I asked Howard why he came out to support the cause he motioned to Beth and laughed, “I do whatever she tells me.” There’s no real evidence yet, to the reports that Usher’s girlfriend, model Eishia Brightwell, is three months pregnant with his child, but it’s apparent Usher loves kids. This past Saturday evening at the 6th annual Art For Life Benefit, Usher attended the event for the first time ever with Eishia by his side. I managed to lure the superstar away from Eishia for a few minutes, by telling him we just happen to share the same birthday, October 14th. The mega star, whose original dance moves have been compared to Michael Jackson, revealed to me why he decided to attend AFL, “Anytime someone who is blessed makes an act that is from the heart as a philanthropist I want to be supportive. I really do respect the cause. Usher admitted he is interested in expanding his organization for children with the help of Russell Simmons and his Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation. Russell and Kimora Lee Simmons would be the perfect partners when it comes to raising money for kids. The couple has hosted the AFL benefit at their East Hampton estate since 2000 and this year raised more than $1.3 million to benefit art education in NYC Meanwhile in East Hampton, EECO Farm’s Blue Moon Ball Barbecue cochaired by Christie Brinkley & B. Smith featured several celebrity chefs’ cuisine including DJ CHEF Marc Weiss who was cookin’ up his specialty, eats and beats just before performing late night for the first time at Star Room, where he literally got the entire club up and moving. How can you get invited to one of the hottest celeb filled after parties on the East End? Get out and support Community Theater and donate money to Playwrights Kitchen East. Last week’s guest list included Steven Weber, Wendie Malick, and Jack Mulcahy. This Sunday, August 7th, Mercedes Ruehl stars in, “Women Who Steal” 8 p.m. at Guild Hall. For more information, go to www.playwrightskitchen.com. Photos: Usher, Kelly Ripa, Kimora Lee Simmons, Alicia Keys and DJ CHEF & Gina Glickman. Until next week-Life is short, you only live once, so party on! Director, Writer, Producer, Entertainment & Lifestyle Correspondent, Gina Glickman is currently creating shows for MTV and can be seen Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays starring on News 12 Long Island’s “What’s Hot in the Hamptons.” DJ CHEF Marc Weiss 534 East Park Ave Long Beach, NY 11561 Dear Marc, I wanted to let you know that our clients thoroughly enjoyed the DJ CHEF cooking events. Sometimes cooking can be intimidating if you are not used to working your way around a kitchen, but our guests felt the "DJ CHEF" event allowed them to participate in the "joy of cooking" without the weight of being an "Iron Chef." Thanks for the special music requests for our group too; it really did make the night! Cheers! Rebecca Rebecca Johnson WebMD Health Consumer Markets 111 Eighth Avenue | New York, New York 10011 [email protected] T: 212.624.3766 F: 646.674.5359 May 18, 2009 Dear Marc: Thanks so much for hosting our Chefs Uncorked: Kick-off Party this past weekend. Your “eats and beats” were enjoyed by all. As the event had several chef participants and the food service required several announcements during the evening, we all appreciated your willingness to step in an enthusiastically promote each of the evening’s star chefs as well as commanding the dance floor with your great choice of tunes. I now understand why DJ Chef is such a hot property on the party and special event circuit. You delivered beyond our expectations and set the tone for a fabulous weekend! Please feel free to add me to your client reference list. Best wishes, Stuart Racey Executive Producer Greater New York Wine & Food Festival 516-944-0026 phone [email protected]