Chef Adam Navidi
Chef Adam Navidi's
Signature Catering
Fine Dining Chef de Cuisine
Hyatt Regency
Huntington Beach CA
Chef Adam Navidi’s Signature Catering is eponymous for a very good reason; Chef Adam has ambitions to become a legend in his own time on his home turf. An Orange County native, Adam enrolled in professional cooking classes at age 15, putting his skills to the test as a prep and pantry cook in the kitchen of a popular chain restaurant.
Lured by his sense of adventure and love of snowboarding, he moved to Colorado and then to eastern Oregon, following the snow and supporting himself by cooking in the kitchens of the best chefs along the way. Reaching Seattle, he studied at the Seattle Culinary Institute, while interning at leading Seattle restaurants, including Watersedge. After a brief stint in the Bend, OR country club circuit, he realized home was near family and California’s agricultural bounty and innovative cuisine. Prior to starting his own business, Adam kept pace with the industry as a catering chef, and as a student of Jean Louis Palladin, who taught him the principle of cooking with the freshest seasonal ingredients.
Since the launch of Chef Adam Navidi’s Signature Catering (“Catchy California Cuisine”) and his appointment as Fine Dining Chef de Cuisine at The Californian Restaurant in the Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach, Adam’s cooking has attracted the attention of Orange County society and the local press. In 2004, OCMetro named him one of “10 Top OC Chefs Under 30,” and the premier issue of Best of OC ranked him among the “Top 6 Chefs of OC.” (Always prescient, when asked about the latest culinary buzzword in OC culinary circles, Adam had one word to say: honey!) In 2007, OC Homes featured his “black and white” catering menu in a feature on black tie dining.
Adam devised his Spanish Cocktail morsels as a fanciful nod to the tapas tradition for his catering menus. It also serves as a perfect amuse bouche for his white tablecloth clientele at The Californian.
Spanish Cocktail
Great for holiday Hors d'oeuvres party!
(Yields 24+ pieces )
4 oz. |
Bellwether Farms San Andres cheese (1/2" cubed) or Manchego |
4 oz. |
cantaloupe (melon balled) |
1 Tbsp |
ground cumin |
1 oz. |
local Orange Blossom honey |
On small cocktail fork or cocktail pick, stick cheese then fruit ball and display neatly on nice serving tray.
Squeeze small drop of honey on fruit or cheese and sprinkle with ground cumin. Serve Immediately!