When Chance Smith, his wife Stephanie, and their four young boys moved from Colorado to Tennessee four months ago, they brought their dream with them.
Chance and Stephanie met in Dallas in 2012, a few years after he earned his degree in gastronomy at the renowned Le Cordon Bleu® Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management Institute based in Paris. Says Chance, “I often worked for free for two Michelin-rated restaurants* in Dallas to learn all I could, as well
as being an executive chef in the hotel industry.” It was during this time he partnered with a Dallas wine bar to cater “many great private dinner parties,” and Peace Love & Grub was born.
Realizing the difficulty of raising a family on a chef’s salary, Chance joined the ranks of corporate America working on the culinary side in healthcare. His job as vice president of culinary took him and his family from Texas to Indiana, Kentucky, and Colorado, and he and Stephanie continued to cater dinner parties as a side business. Says Chance, “In 2020, I was gone Monday through Thursday working in New York while Stephanie and the boys were in Colorado. Then Covid hit and I was stuck at home. This is when I decided to take a few steps back, and that the time was right to pursue our passion of working to really grow Peace Love & Grub.”
Chance and Stephanie’s love of the area, combined with having family close by who can spend time with their boys, ultimately bought them “home” to Tennessee. Their business model consists of three main areas: private chef dinner parties and classes, weekly meal prep and delivery, and small-event catering.
Chance’s reason for catering small dinner parties and events is truly straight from the heart. “We love the intimate setting of going to our clients’ homes and enjoying an interactive dinner party with them. Seeing our clients involved in selecting and preparing the food is always so fun. Everything we do is 100 percent
customized to the experience each client wants to have.”
“Our big story is the gratitude we have of understanding the path we’re on. As much of a dark cloud as Covid has been, it ultimately brought us back to our passion. And to be able to pass this gratitude on to our clients is extremely rewarding.” PeaceAndLoveChef.com
* A prestigious Michelin rating, from one to three stars, is bestowed upon a restaurant based on five criteria - quality of products, mastery of flavor and cooking techniques, personality of the chef represented in the dining experience, value for money, and consistency between Michelin inspectors’ visits.
Chance's Five Top Kitchen Gadgets
1. A really good, sharp knife. My favorite is my beautiful Damascus knife with the Texas flag on the handle.
2. A thermometer. Whether with sugar or meat, it’s where science meets food.
3. A very high-quality pot and pan set is paramount.
4. A silicone mat that can go in the oven. Silicone is fantastic!
5. A vegetable ricer to puree vegetables and potatoes.