Born and raised on Long Island, Michael was formally trained at both the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY as well as the renowned Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs, WV. In 2010, he was named USA’s Chef of The Year by the American Culinary Federation. Matarazzo has been to the Culinary Olympics in Erfurt Germany three times as both competitor and coach. He served as team captain for the 2008 US Regional Culinary Olympic Team, leading the team to become the first US Regional Team to win the World Championship, effectively defeating 32 teams from 62 nations. Since 20011, he has served as the lead advisor to The United States Military’s Culinary Olympic Team. In the spring of 2011, Matarazzo represented the US in the Global Chefs Challenge in Vancouver, BC and placed second in the Western Hemisphere.

Michael is currently the Executive Chef of Farmington Country Club in Charlottesville, VA, which sits among the top 40 Platinum Rated private clubs in the US. He most recently founded Be Better Culinary Perspectives, LLC, in which he provides back of house coaching and mentoring to food service operations nationwide. His mission with Kitchen Brain Podcast is to shed light onto the inner workings of professional kitchens and the Chefs that run them. He also hopes to provide professional chefs around the globe with content that is relatable and inspires a different approach and mindset to their everyday lives.

“This is the industry that I’ve devoted my life to and it’s the industry that I love. I believe there are some aspects of it, however, that are broken and in need of serious attention and exposure. Kitchen Brain will be the tool that I use to play my part in finding solutions to make the Chef’s life a better one.”

-Michael Matarazzo
Founder & Host
Kitchen Brain Podcast