Jim Loellbach

Personal Chef, Custom Provisions

When he got his first job as a bus boy at the Quincy Coach House restaurant, Jim Loellbach had no idea that he would end up with a career as a personal chef.

After graduating from the Cordon Bleu Institute in Chicago, Loellbach opened his own business, Custom Provisions, providing personal chef services and culinary instruction. He hasn't forgotten his first job, though.

"I learned that cooking and serving are only two parts of providing a dining experience," says Loellbach of his time as a bus boy. He says his first job was hard work, but that he learned two important lessons: the importance of being on time and "that restaurant work is hard."

"In my current job," says Loellbach, "I do the cooking, but also the menu planning, shopping, cleaning, packaging, and labelling."

What does Loellbach have to say to YJC clients looking to get into a culinary career?

"Service comes first. Everything is important to delivering the service that customers expect."