This Platform Brings Food From The World’s Best Chefs To Your Kitchen

Back in the good old days, before COVID-19 thwarted everyone’s travel plans, many of us used to plan our vacation time around what we wanted to eat and where we wanted to eat it. These days, the “where” might be a bit tricky, but the “what” has just become much easier thanks to online platform YesChef.

According to a study commissioned by food and gift retailer Harry & David, close to two-thirds of consumers surveyed (62 percent) admitted they would recommend a vacation destination based solely on its food or cuisine. Food was an even bigger deal breaker for millennials, with 71 percent of those surveyed saying they would recommend a travel spot for its food alone. Meanwhile, a massive 82 percent of survey respondents said trying the local food and restaurants was the thing they got most excited about when traveling to a new place.

Enjoy the best food in the world—at home

While international travel to exotic culinary destinations is off the cards, YesChef allows users to enjoy food from some of the world’s top chefs without leaving home. There’s only one catch: we have to cook it ourselves!

Described as “Chef’s Table meets Masterclass”, YesChef is an online resource for enthusiastic home cooks who want to take their culinary skills to the next level, while exploring techniques and cuisines from around the globe.

Let Nancy Silverton teach you to cook

As of today, subscribers can access classes from culinary icons including “Queen of Delicious” Nancy Silverton of one-star Michelin Osteria Mozza and Chi Spacca in Los Angeles; James Beard Award-winning Edward Lee from superb 610 Magnolia and Whiskey Dry in Louisville, Kentucky; and the so-called “Godfather” of modern Israeli cuisine, Erez Komarovsky; along with select lessons from world-renowned eighth-generation Tuscan butcher Dario Cecchini.

More classes are being added, from the likes of Patagonia’s open-fire cooking trailblazer Francis Mallmann; Food & Wine’s “Best New Chef of 2018”, Nina Compton out of New Orleans; Southern culinary revivalist Sean Brock, who was one of the founders behind the Husk restaurant concept; James Beard Awards’ Rising Star Chef 2019, Kwame Onwuachi; and Peruvian husband-wife duo Pía León and Virgilio Martínez from top Latin American restaurants such as Kjolle and the legendary Central, with many more to be announced. 

“The go-to platform for cooking content”

“As a serial technologist, passionate home cook, and someone who loves learning from the best possible teachers, I spent many years being frustrated by the exhausting, fragmented educational experience that home cooks are forced to endure in the Internet age,” says YesChef’s Founder and CEO, Steve Avery. 

“My mission with YesChef was to build a single, trusted source, a go-to platform for authoritative cooking content that also dives into the chef’s history, culture, and backstory, providing the essential ‘why’. A place where anyone can learn how to cook the most delicious food from the world’s most inspiring chefs,” he adds.

From the couch to the kitchen

Featuring striking, documentary-style storytelling, and a cooking-centric user experience, YesChef doesn’t feel like an educational platform, and that’s the point. Instead, each class is a culinary journey led by a master chef, designed to draw viewers into their world, inspire them through storytelling, and, ultimately, lead them back from their couch to the kitchen to apply the lessons of the world’s best. Each class contains nearly five hours of exclusive high-quality video content.

 “I love the experience of showing and not just telling”

“YesChef lets me take students into my kitchen and favorite places, and teach my food through storytelling and conversations with friends,” says Founding Chef Nancy Silverton. “I love the whole experience of showing and not just telling.”

“When I first saw YesChef, I could see that it provided—probably for the first time, ever—the ideal virtual conditions for learning the art and fundamentals of cooking. It spoke volumes to me, and having the opportunity to be both a teacher and an ambassador has been incredibly meaningful,” adds YesChef Culinary Ambassador and Founding Chef Sean Brock.

Finding comfort in food during the pandemic

Going forward, YesChef intends to become the “Netflix of cooking”, offering an all-access subscription to an ever-growing library of cooking classes taught by some of the biggest gastronomic names of our time, and delivered through an immersive, interactive home cooking experience. Having already attracted subscribers from more than 80 countries worldwide, YesChef’s founder Steve Avery admits the level of global demand has surprised even him.

 “Our launch happened to coincide with the onset of a global pandemic, which had the unintended effect of significantly accelerating our growth.” he says. 

“The pandemic brought us home to be with our families, and many of us turned to food and cooking for more than mere sustenance. We were finding comfort in food, and we were cooking to show love and create memorable moments at home. YesChef fits right into that picture: it allows us to take real pleasure in learning and sharing food with loved ones, and helps people escape and go on a journey,” concludes Steve Avery.