Centered Chef

I had signed up for a butchering class last Saturday and when i got to the location the doors were locked and the phone went straight to message. I have been trying to call ever since to determine what happened and still no one is answering. Lucky i didn’t have to pay prior to the class but still i received a confirmation email the day before to remind me and then no one was there. I have checked the date and time many times and I was right on time. It was very disappointing to get all the way to not have been told that the class was canceled.

I attended a charity event for Children’s Home and Aid at Centered Chef. The location is a little off the beaten path, with most of the nearby buildings a mix of warehouses/​industrial spaces. The venue itself is reminiscent of a loft, with its exposed brick walls, although it was a little bit dark, which made the silent auction portion tricky (thank heavens for light-​emitting smartphones) and occasionally hard to see the passed appetizers. All of the event staff were professional and the bar was never overcrowded, leading me to believe that the bar staff were pros. The music was good, too, although I think the band was not affiliated with the venue. I had just a couple of the appetizers — the shrimp on a skewer and one of the mini sandwiches on a brioche bun. The sandwich had some sort of sundried tomato and maybe bacon (or turkey bacon). I preferred the shrimp skewer appetizer. There were enough places to sit, and tables to stand and perch a drink without feeling overcrowded or claustrophobic. Barring any sort of scheduled event I probably won’t have another opportunity to visit this space. I sincerely appreciate organizations that support charity and must give props to to Centered Chef for hosting the 2014 Toast to Hope event.

What an amazing venue! We just had our wedding here a week ago and can’t stop talking about how special it was. We had 80 people and it worked out perfectly for our group. We got endless compliments on the space and the food. It really looks spectacular when everything is set up and the aesthetic is just what we were looking for, urban Chicago lofty and elegant at the same time. Chef Ryan and Christine, the event coordinator, are just an absolute pleasure to work with and having the food prepared by an excellent chef on site makes planning so easy. Everything before and during the event was seemless. This place will exceed your expectations.

Book your wedding here!
I cannot say enough great things about our experience with the Centered Chef! From our initial meeting with Sam, to working through all the wedding details with Christine, and finally our amazing dinner, everything so truly amazing! Everyone who works at the Centered Chef was so great to work with and so helpful through a very stressful time! I loved that they allowed us to make the wedding «ours» and we were given so much space and freedom to make our day so special.
Everyone who attended the wedding commented on how amazing the food was as well (which is very rare for a wedding)! Our guests all went home full and happy and so did we!
I highly recommend having your wedding (or any event) here!

We recently got married here on ¹⁰⁄₅. Honestly, our wedding exceeded our expectations and we have the staff at Centered Chef to thank for that. Christine was amazing to work with. She answered all of our questions and was kind and supportive and timely in her responses. They executed our vision for the wedding better than we’d envisioned it. The day of staff was super attentive and polite. The food was AMAZING. It was perfectly cooked and still warm and the courses were timed well. We really felt well cared for and special. The space is a warm and inviting blank canvas that you can turn into whatever you like. We loved the exposed brick and concrete flooring. Chef Ryan and his staff really know what they are doing in the kitchen! The food was unique and not your standard «wedding food» but it was still able to be enjoyed by all palates. We had several guests tell us that this was the best wedding they’d been to. While we’ll take credit for part of that, the venue/​catering really made all the difference. Highly recommended. We feel lucky to have found this gem before the rest of the city’s brides/​grooms did!

Being healthy and living well is a huge priority to many foks in Chicago. But as many young professionals in Chicago can probably attest, actually eating healthy is a daunting challenge in maintaining that goal. Chef Ryan and his team agree, and Centered Chef exists with the goal of showing their students the how to’s of combining the «healthy» with the «delicious». Forget the blogs and endless posts on Pinterest, this is the real deal in action. Professionals showing you how to create good food in good-​for-​you ways. I attended last night’s session as a volunteer for a Corporate Team Building exercise. After the Team enjoyed some yummy appetizers and drinks, they were taught to make fresh pasta with homemade marinera, turkey meatballs, kale salad with honey vinergarette, and given a demonstration on avocado chocolate pudding. Everyone seemed to have a great time and Chef Ryan and his crew challenged the Team to a cookoff! As a judge, I sampled three delicious dishes made with slightly different styles. The whole evening was perfect, and I went home knowing just a thing or two more about fresh made pasta and a few good techiniques. Chef Ryan also mentioned they focus on detoxing seminars which are offered regularly. If you’re looking for something fun to do with a healthy focus or if you’re looking for a different place to entertain for corporate events, showers, bachelorette parties, or other groups, this is definitely something to check out as well! In the meantime, I’ll be back for more from Chef Ryan and his crew to learn more about entertaining and cooking in healthy, flavorful ways!

My charity organization held an event at Centered Chef for more than 200 guests. Sam and his team did a great job and the event was a huge success for our organization.
We looked at several other venues in the city but decided on Centered Chef because their loft space was very unique and could accommodate the 150+ guests we were expecting. Chef Ryan put together an incredible menu for the event and Sam worked with us at every step leading up to the event and the night of the event to make sure everything went smoothly. Sam was also very helpful when two days before the event we realized our attendance was going to be well above 200 guests — he opened up the kitchen for our use and added another bar to make sure things didn’t get too crowded upstairs. He also worked with us to help us stay within our budget (which was very tight, given we are a nonprofit organization).
I would strongly recommend Centered Chef as a venue for a charity event, wedding or any other large event. Sam and Ryan and their team did a great job and I can’t thank them enough.

Went to a birthday party hosted for a friend’s 30^th. Had an AWESOME time at Centered Chef. The meal was decided upon between a collaboration between my friends husband and Ryan (owner of Centered Chef). The decided on a Vietnamese menu. We made three dishes that were healthy, easy and sexy to make!

Chefs Jill Houk and Ryan Hutmacher have put together a wonderful package — delicious food that is good for you, too! I’ve used them for catering business events as well as for personal parties, and have had nothing but good experiences.
I have also used them for an in-​home cooking class/​birthday party for a group — it was fun, as interactive as each guest wanted it to be and got rave reviews from all who attended.

Another 5 star review from me. Are my reviews rigged? No. I am not willing to permanently trash a business’s reputation on the internet with a bad review, so I keep those to myself. However, I feel it is my duty to inform others of great products and services that I discover. Centered Chef is one of them.
Jill Houk and Ryan Hutmacher are the partners behind this company, which gets scientific with food. They are both culinary trained, and with their nutritionist, they blend truly healthy with tasty. You will never know you are eating healthily!
Centered Chef recently catered my annual client appreciation party, and I chose food that I liked, with dietary restrictions of: low fat, low/​no gluten, with some vegetarian fare. Jill put together a menu that was hugely popular at the party. Plus, they offer a doggy bag option, so my husband and I ate the «extra» that they prepared for us, bringing back memories of the fun event.
If you never thought that turkey bacon and dates went together, you have not opened your palette to the possibilities of delicious and healthy being in the same bite.
Centered Chef and their staff helped to make my party an event to be remembered fondly by everyone who attended. Thanks guys!