Having received national accolades for his exceptional food creations, Esquire magazine best describes him as a chef whose, “fresh ideas place him in the top ranks of southern-Cal cuisine.” With an unmatched combination of training, mentorship and experience, Chef Hageman is leading San Diego in culinary excellence.
Hailing from a family who loves to cook, Chef Hageman’s interest and love for food was obvious even at a young age. As a child, he was responsible for making the family dinner and helping his mother in the kitchen. Entering the restaurant industry at 15 years old, Hageman took an after-school job washing dishes and eventually managing a local Italian restaurant. However, it was not until attending college to become an
accountant that he realized that his love for cooking was too strong to keep him out of the restaurant business.
In 1996, Chef Hageman attended the prominent Scottsdale Culinary Institute in Scottsdale, Arizona and graduated at the top of his class. Hageman spent his next formidable years cooking in several top restaurants, honing his skills and moving up the culinary ladder. In 1998 Hageman was offered a position at the prestigious Aqua Restaurant in the Bellagio Casino and Resort in Las Vegas, were he worked closely with award-winning, celebrated Chef Michael Mina. Here, Chef Hageman excelled, and become the Sous Chef within three months and was promoted to Executive Sous Chef six months later. Chef Hageman’s exceptional reputation here made him the top choice for the Chef de Cuisine position for the opening of Aqua’s third branch at the St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort and Spa in Dana Point, California. A few short years later, Chef Mina, having opened his own company, asked Chef Hageman to be the opening Executive Chef for the San Jose Marriott’s Arcadia Restaurant. Here, Chef Hageman earned the restaurant a “Three Star” rating and was named one of the 10 best new restaurants of the year by the San Francisco Chronicle. His accolades continued at the Palace Arms Restaurant in the Brown Palace Hotel with the elite Mobile Four Star Award of Excellence after a two-year absence, “Best Food in Two Decades” and “Best of Three in Denver” from the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News.
Now the opening Executive Chef for blanca restaurant in Solana Beach, California, Chef Wade Hageman is bringing his award-winning expertise to San Diego’s fine dining scene. Striving constantly to create new culinary delicacies, Chef Hageman has already earned rave reviews in Esquire, 944, Riviera, and San Diego Magazine in the restaurant’s one-year history. “I thrive on the intensity and the pressure of the fast paced kitchen, and love the constant challenge to be creative and produce beautiful food nightly,” explains Hageman. “I am really looking forward to bringing my brand of fine dining to Solana Beach and the San Diego Area!” A fresh face with rapidly growing esteem in the culinary world, Chef Wade Hageman is leading San Diego to new heights of fine dining.
