Chef Brian Malarkey

As an award-winning Executive Chef, Brian Malarkey’s passion for cooking and entertaining is the driving force behind his pursuits in both the culinary and entertainment industry.

He is no stranger to the world of television and reality and culinary programming. In 2007, he was cast as a contestant on Bravo’s Emmy-nominated series, “Top Chef 3 Miami,” where he advanced to the finale gaining national recognition for his talents, charm and high-energy. This was the country’s first, but certainly not their last, glimpse into what makes Malarkey one of the country’s favorite and most well known chef.

Since his departure from the show Malarkey has made numerous appearances on a variety of television programs. Currently he hosts a series of weekly episodes on BRAVOTV.com for “Top Chef 6 Las Vegas” called “The Remix” where he puts healthy and fast spins on winning dishes. In the past year he was cast as a special guest on subsequent seasons of “Top Chef,” preparing dinner for the cast of the “Real Housewives of Orange County,” “Top Chef Masters” and will be seen on Animal Planet’s award-winning reality series “Jockeys: Win or Die Trying.” Over the course of 2008 Malarkey hosted a weekly cooking segment on FOX 6-TV where he was seen preparing dishes with his signature flair.

Since Malarkey’s “Top Chef” success he has also been involved in various endorsement opportunities, including a series of Diet Dr. Pepper commercials; a joint-promotion with Wal-Mart, Kingsford® Charcoal, GLAD, KC Masterpiece® and Hidden Valley® Ranch; a sponsorship by Chef Works and Beringer Wines. Malarkey also developed a menu for Fresh Dining, Southern California's leading purveyor of daily, home-delivered gourmet meals. In September he will be the emcee of the National SushiMasters competition in Los Angeles and a guest celebrity chef on a 14-day South Pacific Holland America Cruise hosting cooking classes, demos and cocktail events sponsored by Food & Wine Magazine. He rounds out the year as the headlining chef at Martha’s Vineyard Food & Wine Festival. 

Malarkey is not just a TV personality that cooks. He is a professionally trained, award-winning chef. A native of Oregon, Chef Malarkey grew up inspired by the cooking of his grandmother, in her beach house kitchen where she was often joined by her old friend James Beard. After being seduced all of his life by all the fresh seafood and abundant produce that the Oregon country side has to offer, Malarkey enrolled in Western Culinary Institute’s Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in Portland.

After graduation, Malarkey set his sights on California and sought the disciplines of French chef Michael Richard of Citrus in Los Angeles. After holding several positions in Chef Richard’s kitchen, Malarkey relocated to Minneapolis where he worked at the Loring Café and The Local before being named Sous Chef at The Oceanaire Seafood Room.  In 2001, he returned to his beloved Pacific Northwest to open The Oceanaire’s Seattle location as Executive Sous Chef.

In 2004, Malarkey relocated to southern California to open The Oceanaire in San Diego as Executive Chef and Operating Partner. Since the restaurant’s opening it has received more than 60 industry awards, including Malarkey’s Gold Medallion for Chef of the Year and Best Seafood-Fine Dining (2006-2009), San Diego’s Best Chef (2009), Zagat Top Ten Restaurants (2007), Wine Spectator Award of Excellence (2005-2008), and the DiRoNA Award of Excellence.

Malarkey is working on two cookbooks and writing a weekly blog on BRAVOTV.com and SanDiegoMagazine.com where he dishes about all things culinary. He is available for demos, special events and dinner parties, cooking classes, speaking opportunities, TV appearances, endorsements and more.

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