About Chef Shelley Handler

I have worked as a culinary professional for 40+ years, and my career has taken me from a stage at Gualtiero Marchesi, Italy’s first Michelin 3-star restaurant, to the kitchens of Chez Panisse as the Café’s first head chef. I was part of the opening team at Campton Place, and have cooked in and opened a number of San Francisco's best-loved restaurants. 
 

A graduate and long-time instructor at the California Culinary Academy, I have taught aspiring chefs, avid amateurs and school-age kids since 1983. I created farm-to-table classes for children and adults for the Ferry Plaza Farmers’ Market, CUESA, and the Tenderloin Recreation Center. I now teach privately with a similar seasonal focus. 

 

I seriously love teaching, and I also loved my work in the world of taste and food innovation, having spent over twenty-five years as a consulting product developer for global food corporations such as Frito-Lay, Diageo, and Post. I also had a great time serving as a member of the San Francisco Chronicle’s Taster’s Choice panel from 1999 to 2014. 

 

As a food writer, my work has appeared both virtually and in print since 1993. My writing and recipes have appeared locally and nationally in publications including Family Circle, San Francisco Magazine, 7 x 7, the San Francisco Chronicle, the San Francisco Examiner, and Time-Life Publications.