Phil started his cooking career over 30 years ago working up from a helper to Sous Chef at the Officer’s Club while stationed at Fort Ritchie in Maryland. Phil continued to follow his passion for cooking in many different settings across the country, venturing west into Wyoming, then north to Alaska.
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eedless to say, during his 17 years living in Kodiak, Alaska it was tough to come up with the great woods like apple, hickory or pecan so he had to be content with smaller BBQs using chips of the wonderful woods. He did, however, perfect the art of smoking so well that some summers found him working with over 1,000 pounds of wild Alaska salmon for friends and neighbors!
After leaving Alaska for the warmer, drier climate of Arizona, Phil was able to pursue his BBQ passion year ’round! Phil began catering for private parties, weddings, birthdays, high school fundraisers, corporate BBQs and neighborhood gatherings. After observing and cooking with other teams at several competitions, Phil became Pit Master of his own competition team and has been winning awards around Arizona since.