Jason Belkov
Executive Chef, Longwood Gardens
Jason Belkov grew up in Flemington, New Jersey where his mother maintained a backyard garden and cooked for the family as often as she could. He spent many of his younger years learning the skills of his mother's home cooking. Then during his teenage years, Chef Belkov worked a part time job in the town's most popular Italian restaurant, working all aspects of the kitchen from dishwasher to line cook.
Although Jason's love for cooking has always been strong in his heart, he attended college training to become a pilot for three years while maintaining a job as head chef of an Italian restaurant. After obtaining his associates degree in flight school he decided his love for cooking outweighed his love for flying and enrolled himself in the Johnson & Wales Culinary Arts program in Providence, Rhode Island. Graduating in 1995, Chef Belkov worked for a premier Newport, Rhode Island caterer, learning the skills to cater on an elite level.
One year after graduation, Jason felt the need to move back to his hometown to be closer to his friends and family and obtained a job as a line cook at the Hyatt Regency in Princeton. Jason credits the Executive Chef, Robert Fratticcioli, as his strongest influence in the culinary field. He worked in all kitchen outlets including catering, pastry, saucier, garde manger and in the fine dining restaurant. He learned about food pairings and flavor combinations that are used in his food today.
Chef Belkov moved on from the Hyatt to work for Jericho National Golf Club as the Banquet Chef in New Hope, Pennsylvania. He took the knowledge he learned from Chef Fratticcioli and built upon that foundation providing innovative culinary creations at the Country Club. He quickly was promoted to the club's Executive Chef overseeing two restaurants and a thriving catering business.
In March 2007 Jason joined Restaurant Associates at Winterthur Museum and Country Estate. Jason earned a reputation as a savvy food professional with his creativity and delicious food and flavor combinations. Jason personally oversaw the planning and execution of well over 200 wedding menus, worked with a number of local community organizations and corporations designing food and beverage programs for their events, prepared dinners for the Winterthur Board of Trustees as well as some personal events hosted by the du Pont family.
Jason designed and created a fresh, new series of menus for the Cafe at Winterthur. He has a special talent for making vegetarian and vegan items taste delicious and appeal to a broad audience. He utilizes freshest ingredients and has discovered a number of local, regional famers to provide such items as specialty produce, organic fruits and vegetables, cheeses, ice cream, and more.
Jason is a true food artist. His portfolio includes the creation of ice sculptures, pumpkin carvings and other culinary art forms. In December of 2007 he was featured on the Comcast Channel 8 Morning show demonstrating a recipe from the Winterthur cookbook.
Chef Belkov joined Longwood Gardens in July 2010 directly from the Winterthur Museum bringing with him his unique culinary flavor combinations and his love for fresh local ingredients. He is an esteemed member of the culinary team representing Restaurant Associates.
Will Brown
Restaurant Chef, 1906 at Longwood Gardens
Originally from Kennett Square, PA, Chef William Brown started his culinary career unknowingly at the tender age of 14.
Before attending the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, William worked his way up the ranks at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. At only 17 years of age, William was the Chef de Cuisine of a 150 seat restaurant on the property of the world’s premier horticultural showplace, and realized that his passion for the culinary arts was undeniable, and decided to attend culinary school.
After attending the most prestigious culinary school in the country, William was offered a position as Sous Chef at Winterthur Museum and Country Estate in Winterthur, Delaware. The Museum is a 175 room DuPont family mansion, where he honed his skills through exposure to corporate and social functions, as well as operating a 250 seat cafeteria. Winterthur also hosts an annual steeplechase named Point to Point and a weekend long GardenFair event, both hosting upwards of 15,000 people
After moving to Atlanta in March of 2005, and a six month stint as the Sous Chef of Table 1280 restaurant, he shifted to the catering division at the Woodruff Arts Center. Later, William became the Catering Chef and has pressed his culinary team to settle for nothing less than unsurpassed quality and freshness. After four years in Atlanta, William was offered the position to become the Executive Chef of the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia. Originally from the area, he jumped on the opportunity to move closer to his family. And then in the summer of 2011, William come back to Longwood Gardens and now heads up the 1906 team as Restaurant Chef.
William strives to combine classical French and modern techniques as well as incorporating local and seasonal ingredients in his menus. Attention to sustainable seafood and ethical food products is also at his forefront.
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