Traci is the quintessential California farm girl, raised in the San Joaquin Valley, influenced by her Mexican and French Acadian grandparents, she cooks from her heart with a deep love for the earth and its bounty. Before opening Jardinière in San Francisco in 1997, James Beard award-winning chef Traci Des Jardins worked in some of the finest kitchens in Los Angeles, France, and New York City. Traci’s professional cooking career began when she followed her heart and landed a tryout with Joachim Splichal, then at 7th Street Bistro in Los Angeles. Within two weeks she was running a station in Splichal’s kitchen in an environment with uncompromising standards of excellence and discipline that spurred her to further hone her craft in France where she apprenticed with legendary chefs including Michel and Pierre Troisgros, Alain Senderens, Alain Ducasse, and Alain Passard. Beyond the kitchen, Traci sits on the advisory board of Bocuse d’Or USA joining fellow chefs in the quest to elevate culinary excellence in the United States. Traci is a deeply committed activist and philanthropist working with hunger-relief organizations such as Share Our Strength, Citymeals On-Wheels and other non-profits such as La Cocina and amfAR.