Chef James

Chef James
Born	James Tahhan (1988-10-26) October 26, 1988 Los Teques,  Venezuela
Education	Le Cordon Bleu
Home town	Miami, FL
Website	www.jamestahhan.com
Culinary career
Cooking style	Modern Latin American cuisine, Fusion cuisine, Spanish cuisine, and Middle Eastern cuisine
Current restaurant(s) Sabores - by Chef James
Television show(s) Un Nuevo Día ¡Levántate! Puro Chef

James Tahhan, (born October 26, 1988), better known as Chef James, is a Venezuelan chef, television personality, restaurateur, and author. He is best recognized for being the official chef of Telemundo, and being a co-presentor of its morning show Un Nuevo Dia, a position that has earned James two Emmy Awards. Despite his young age, James is considered a leading figure in the culinary world, renowned for his unique cooking-style that combines his vast knowledge of contemporary Latin American cuisine with his Syrian-Armenian heritage. In 2014, together with his friend, television personality Raúl González, Chef James opened his first restaurant, Sabores - by Chef James to critical acclaim by food columnists and critics. It has subsequently been named one of the best restaurants in Miami. In 2016, Chef James released his best-selling cookbook, The Homemade Chef: Ordinary Ingredients for Extraordinary Food, where he focuses on simple, high-quality ingredients from different parts of the world and blends them with Latin flavors to create extraordinary food in countless recipes. His goal was to create a cookbook that not only provides readers with delicious recipes, but also to gets them closer to the kitchen so that they can enjoy a healthy lifestyle through the art of home cooking. In that same year, his debut cookbook become the best-selling release both regionally and internationally on Amazon.com, the most valuable retailer in the United States. His success has made him immensely popular on social media, even to the point where he has become a social media phenomenon with millions of followers across his accounts.

Early Life and Education

James Tahhan was born in Los Teques, Venezuela, the son of Bachir Wahbi Tahhan, of Syrian-Armenian descent, and Mimi Masri, of Syrian-Venezuelan descent. He was later joined by one brother, Wahbi Tahhan. During his formative years, James spent countless hours in his childhood kitchen learning the art of home cooking from his parents. During this period, James was also influenced by David Abal, a neighbor and professional chef from Galician descent, who taught James the basics of at-home cooking.^[1]

At the age of 13, James emigrated to the United States with his mother, ultimately settling in one of the most dynamic cities, Miami, Florida. It was during this period that James began to work in-order to help his mother pay the household bills, something that left a lasting impression on James, and would eventually play a fundamental role in shaping the dedication and ambition that has made him so successful today.^[2]

During this period James suffered from childhood obesity, yet this did not impede him from pursuing sports, something that he would later excel at. James particularly shined in martial arts, where he was twice ranked number one in his division, and won the US Open Martial Arts Championship.^[3]

It was at this crucial moment where James started to learn that his early passion for cooking could be infused with his athletic lifestyle in a way that could be beneficial for his health and well-being.^[4]

At the age of 16, right out of high school, James decided to go to college and study chemistry in order to become a dentist. At the same time, he started working on radio, as a spokesperson for different brands and products, where his advertisements played on the largest and most recognized radio stations in the country including WAMR-FM, WAQI, and WMGE.^[5]

After two years, James started exploring the entrepreneurship and investments world, and re-kindled his passion for the art of cooking by attending the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Miami, where he specialized in international cuisine and pastries. He made the Dean’s Honor List by graduating as one of the three top students of his class.^[6]

While attending school, James also started his own catering business, called Avokado, his charismatic and enthusiastic personality gave him many opportunities in the field, some of them included consulting for different restaurants, giving advice on menu concepts, and even helping struggling restaurants in prospering.^[7]

Television career

Early career

His first job after graduating from Le Cordon Bleu was as a line-cook at “Arabian Nights”, a Mediterranean restaurant in Miami where he gained hands-on experience in managing a kitchen.^[8]

It was after almost six years working with different brands and products on radio that James saw an unexpected opportunity to become a television personality. After meeting a television producer, who saw James' charismatic personality and passion for food at a food festival in Miami, the producer urged James to audition for a position in Telemundo.^[9]

Shortly after, James decided to respond to an open-call audition for Telemundo’s morning show Levantate (now known as Un Nuevo Día). His charm quickly won over producers and executives, who quickly named him the official chef co-host of the show and the network.^[10]

Telemundo

Chef James with his two Emmy Awards

Currently, James is a co-host of the morning show, Un Nuevo Día, which has earned him two Emmy Awards. During his time on the show, he has made more than 1,500 live appearances on camera, and has amassed a mass following of fans thanks to his delicious recipes and charming personality.^[11]

James has also managed to successfully cross-over to the English market. During an initiative named "Healthy Week" by the network NBC Universal, James was able to speak to American viewers across the country, where he promoted his belief in healthy and delicious meals that could be made at home.^[12]

During Hispanic Heritage Month, James was chosen to participate in segments of the widely popular Today Show, where he shared his spin on classic, yet flavorful Latin American dishes.^[13]

Utilísima

His captivating personality and huge smile has not only made him a widely popular in the U.S., but also across Latin America. On March 2012, James was selected by Utilísima to be one of their newest faces on their hit T.V. show, “Puro Chef”.^[14]

He has subsequently participated on the 4th and 5th season of the show, and has conducted the special Thanksgiving edition.^[15]

Author

Among his other his interests and hobbies, James also loves to write and share his recipes.

• In 2016, Chef James released his best-selling cookbook, The Homemade Chef: Ordinary Ingredients for Extraordinary Food. James, who has a passion for inspiring cooks of all levels to feel comfortable and confident with his simple and savory recipes, wanted to share that in his debut cookbook. In addition to the array of spectacular recipes, James invites readers to go behind the scenes of his life as a professional chef, sharing valuable tricks of the trade to help you avoid common kitchen errors, be creative when you miss a step or two, pick the best ingredients at the farmers’ market and the supermarket, and learn foolproof shortcuts for faster food preparation. In that same year that it was released, his cookbook become an instant best-seller both regionally and internationally on Amazon.com, the most valuable retailer in the United States.^[16]
• James is also a food columnist and has also written several times for "Venue Magazine", where he gives readers recipes, cooking advice, and his thoughts on healthy living.

Restaurateur

Chef James in the kitchen

In 2014, Chef James opened his first restaurant, Sabores - by Chef James , together with his friend and television personality, Raúl González. The goal when they first opened the restaurant was to show people what real Latin American cuisine is, “people think it's rice and beans and shredded meat, and really it's this hidden treasure that nobody has pushed. We wanted to change that," James said.^[17]

In order to do that, James first had to travel all over Latin America in order to embrace and understand the real root of Latin American cuisine.^[18] During his travels, James cooked alongside people from all over the continent, from large cosmopolitan cities, to small isolated villages. It was after he travels that James was able to sit down and create the unique and eclectic menu that has made his restaurant so popular.

Shortly after opening, his restaurant was named one of the best in Miami. According to one source, “Chef James Tahhan's new menu for Sabores is full of flavor. From a rum-driven Old Fashioned to a medley of exotic mojitos and croquetas, Sabores's new menu will satisfy the Latin foodie in everyone.”^[19]

Public Image

Named one of the leading Latin chefs in the U.S,^[20] and "Miami's Hottest Chef", James has garnered much attention for his skill and talent at such a young age. Once source commented, “Not many chefs have their own restaurant, host an Emmy-award winning television morning show…but James Tahhan isn’t like many chefs.”^[21] His charisma and talent has also earned him critical acclaim. In 2013 and 2014, Chef James was recognized by Latin Gourmet as the Chef of the Year.^[22]

He has also been awarded the “Social Media Chef” of the year.^[23] According to one source, Chef James is one of the most influential Latino chef on social media with a reach of over one million followers on all his networks, with a weekly constant growth of around 15 thousand followers.^[24] Currently, James holds millions of followers across his Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts.

His popularity has also made him jump from the kitchen to the cover of magazine covers. By popular votes, Chef James was selected for the “50 Most Beautiful People” edition of People en Español magazine.^[25]

References