“Mise en place; Basic Knife Skills, Decorative Cuts and Techniques for the Proper Preparation of Vegetables”

Taite Pearson’s culinary path has been forged through determination and cultural curiosity, combined with a natural affinity for cooking and a learning-by-doing work ethic. Food was always part of the family dynamic when he was growing up in Colorado, and he cooked frequently as a child. Although he attended Colorado State University in Fort Collins ostensibly to study architecture, Pearson harbored an interest in martial arts and Japanese culture. The desire to learn more about Japanese cuisine, in particular, led him to apply for a job at Suehiro restaurant in Fort Collins. It wasn’t, however, an easy process. “After several pleading visits, the chef finally took me on as an apprentice,” Pearson recalls. “But that 18-month stint turned into a full-blown passion for all things food.”

Pearson’s ambition to become a chef began to supersede his desire of becoming an architect. Eventually leaving school to concentrate fully on his culinary career, Pearson set out to cook in some of the best kitchens in Arizona, landing his first sous chef position at the age of 20 at Wright’s at the Arizona Biltmore. Positions at a number of esteemed restaurants in Phoenix and Tucson—including Mary Elaine’s, the Ventana Room, and Janos—followed.

Moving to Chicago in 1997, Pearson worked as a sous chef at the venerable Charlie Trotter’s before moving to Brasserie T, where he was executive sous chef.

Now armed with invaluable experience from working in a number of the nations best kitchens, Pearson returned to Tucson in 2000 and opened his own restaurant, Linen. There, he refined his technique, creating degustation-focused, modern French cuisine. Linen received great acclaim and Pearson was credited with setting the standard for restaurants in the southwest.

The need to flex his culinary muscles in a bigger, more diverse city led Pearson to Las Vegas in 2002, where he once again proved his mettle, working as chef de cuisine for Wolfgang Puck’s Postrio, Spago, and Wolfgang Puck Bar and Grill. He moved to Joël Robuchon at The Mansion in 2005, helping the renowned establishment earn its Michelin three-star rating, before returning to the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group as executive chef and director of culinary development.

“Being a chef is often about adaptation and understanding the environment in which you are practicing your craft,” Pearson says. To that end, when he moved to Southern California in 2007, he took on a series of new challenges, including working as the private chef to Mr. David Geffen.

In December 2008 at the KOR Hotel Group’s Viceroy Santa Monica, Pearson accepted the position of consulting executive chef, refining, restructuring and reinventing their culinary program.

Recently Chef Pearson has relocated to Ketchum, Idaho to embark on a Progressive American Tavern restaurant concept by the name of Sego.

He is enjoying the Idaho lifestyle with his wife, Stephanie Pearson, an interior designer, and their 5-year-old son.