Today we’d like to introduce you to James Hurley.
Hi James, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Hi there! My name is James, or as many of my clients know me… Chef James. I am a professional chef of 28 plus years now. I’ve been in the Food & Beverage industry my entire adult life. With that, over the years I have “worn many hats” in the crazy world of professional cooking. Each one helping me to gain strength and knowledge to help form who I am today as a “seasoned” chef and true culinary professional.
I have been in and around food almost as long as I can remember. It started with a fairly common story with my Italian side of the family introducing me to FRESH natural homegrown and prepared food!
I remember my grandparent’s massive garden in New Jersey during the summers. They were always growing a multitude of fruits and veggies. There were the peach and the plum and the pear trees… the blueberry bushes on the edge of the woods and the Concord grape vines right next to the horseshoe pit. Then there were of course the classic Jersey tomatoes… the melons, the various squashes and those giant zucchini! The herbs… the pole beans… the eggplants, carrots and celery, spring onions… and all the other fresh fruit and veggies that would help peek my interest into the beautiful world of cooking!
Then there was the root cellar. My grandmother would teach me how to preserve and jar the summer harvest of fruits and veggies. Then we would store them in the cellar where it was cool and dark, and have them to eat during the entire winter. Oh, I can’t forget my grandfather’s chest freezer …full of deer meat! He hunted them right on his back property. So all in all, you could say my grandparents really knew how to “live off the land”, and way ahead of the trendy “farm to table” movement we all know now!
Then there were the great bbq’s on my grandfather’s hand built brick bbq… and my grandmother’s infamous blue crab boils, where we would lay out the newspaper, then crack and eat crab til our bellies were full! And of course those classic Italian Sunday dinners with the fresh garden veggies!
Growing up on the Jersey Shore, again it seemed I was always surrounded by good food! I remember those summer street fairs and carnivals when I was a kid with all the delectable munchies. Then the summer seafood festivals up and down the shore, with the fresh prepared seafood in every direction you looked! And then the classic Jersey shore pizza places right on the beach. I remember those hot summer days burning my bare feet on the boardwalk just to get a taste of that awesome boardwalk pizza. Oh…and those sausage and pepper rolls too! Then there were all those burger joints and beach cafes with the Conney Island hot dogs and fresh made kraut … and those famous jersey cheese fries! The famous Jewish delis with house cured meats and dill pickles. And all the other fast-paced restaurant in those busy jersey shore summers. And let’s not forget about best food city in the world… NYC, being right across the bay. So like I said, for me good food was literally everywhere!
In those (my teenage) years, I found myself hanging around back doors of restaurant kitchens. One restaurant in particular, that was owned by a good buddy of mine and his family. They had an icon classic Italian restaurant on the Jersey Shore. We spent a lot of time there as teenagers, with so many great memories of the place! The food was absolutely the best! But for me, I really loved it all… the smells, the action, the atmosphere and that high paced, high volume energy that seem to feed my soul. It was “the place to be” for sure and the customers knew it! It’s something that I will never forget. And another big spark that would propel me to becoming a professional chef!
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My parents separated when I was fairly young, so we bounced around a lot, living in a lot of different places. Looking back, I have always had this “nomadic normality” to my life, so when the time came traveling the world to cook, it seemed to be second nature to me.
So that’s what I did. At first, I traveled and live all over the US, mainly working in mountain ski towns throughout country during the winters and making my way back to the jersey shore for this bustling summer restaurant jobs. It wasn’t an easy life but at the same time, it was really good for me. I learned and cooked my way through each and every kitchen. Working long hours with crappy pay, but I was building my skill level with each new job.
Eventually, I would make my way to study Culinary Arts at a top level culinary school, The CIA (Culinary Institute of America) in Hyde Park, NY. I remember originally wanting to go for that “piece of paper” …those credentials… that would help me get to the next level in the beloved restaurant world. But I definitely got a hell of a lot more than I bargained for. The education, the opportunities, the experiences were all incredibly immense. I’d soon realize the power of what the two years of a CIA education would do for me in my culinary career.
That was 22 years ago, and I haven’t looked back. My profession as a chef has allowed me to see and experience things that most only read about. I have traveled and cooked in many different styles of eateries in various parts of the world. From the bustling, high-paced restaurants to hotel kitchens and resorts to mega yachts to private estates and many in-betweens, all molding me into whom I am today as a highly experienced and talented chef!
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In 2013 after a few year stint cooking on a mega yachts, I landed back in Miami working as a freelance chef all through the Caribbean and World. While working at one of my favorite venues of all time (DK’s property on Parrot Cay, Turks and Caicos), I met the client that would eventually take me to Los Ángeles.
The CEO of a top-level movie and multimedia company. I started working freelance for him and his family flying to various locations around the country. Then after a couple unsuccessful attempts, he had finally persuaded me to move to LA. He definitely raised “the ante” for what I had experienced as private chef work and it was hard for me resist. It was a truly unique opportunity and I just had to just go for it!
And now here in LA for almost 9 years, I have found great success with both a Private Chef Events company of my own and now my newest venture of a company producing….Premium Chef Made Dog Food!
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In 2015, after just being here a few months, we decided to get a dog. An adorable little guy that we named Massimo. But he was much more than your average pooch. This creature, this ball of fur …taught me a lot about who I am in this world as a person and chef! He has helped reconnect me to those levels of the natural world that I hold dear. Those levels that I had first experienced as a kid in my grandparent’s garden. That natural essence of life, which many of us seem to lose over time.
But Massimo was a sick dog. He was born with a congenital gastrointestinal disease, so dog food very quickly became a serious issue. He was a growing pup and a hungry one at that, but the dog food that the majority of us know… the kibble, wasn’t working for him.
After spending nearly $23,000 on medical bills in only the first 2 years of his life, with nothing seeming to help, it was truly evident that the dog food on the market nor “Western medicine” were going to help him. And that’s where my discovery of what dog food really was …and it was truly scary! After having done a lot of research, I started to realize it was actually much worse than I had originally thought. So I was determined to find the answers i needed and I set out to formulate what canines should actually be eating.
As in any venture there was a lot of “trial and error”, with consulting a bunch of veterinarians (as well as several holistic vets). And then studying what real pet nutrition should be and what canines should be eating. Then formulating recipes, perfecting cooking processes to optimize nutrition, finally after many hours of hard work and dedication ….MASSiMO’S Chef Made Dog Food was born!
The company has been in business for a little over a year now finding great success with each new day. A truly PREMIUM FRESH dog food, engineered and geared to optimize canine health. And with all the new dog food companies popping up, there is still nothing like MASSiMO’s on the market today!
Our customer base continues to grow, as the education of what real dog food should be is definitely starting to “dig in” with dog owners a everywhere!
My company is driven with an ethical nature, giving back to the canine community. We want to see canine health flourish, not just focusing on “bottom line”!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Starting a business is never an easy road! …but that’s the beauty in it as well.
There will always be challenges in a journey like this, but with every step in conquering those obstacles comes great reward!
I would say my greatest challenge has been the education to dog owners of what real dog food is and what pet nutrition should be.
There are two hash tags I have used for years …as a chef for both humans and dogs alike…
#knowyourfood & #freshisbest
I always say to my customers, tho I am not a vet, I will always default to the natural world. Canines have been eating the same way for over 40,000 years and this planet has 4.5 billion years of knowledge to be had. Sometimes we just need to listen!
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
Luck is what you make of it… good or bad! Nothing is constant, including luck… so always try to capitalize on both the positive or negative aspects of your situation!
Pricing:
- Premium Jerky prices vary from $12.50 to $16.
- Premium Bowl come in several sizes and prices vary from $11 to $18.50.
- Premium Topper prices are $11.25.
Contact Info:
- Website: massimoschefmadedogfo
od.com - Instagram: https://www.
instagram.com/massimos_chef_ made_dog_food/?hl=en
Image Credits
Massimo’s Chef Made Dog Food
