Meet the Chef

Meet David Bush, Executive Chef at St. Francis Winery in Santa Rosa, California.  Here in the Sonoma Wine Country he specializes in wine and food pairing for both private and public functions hosted at St. Francis Winery.  His job entails tasting St. Francis' wonderful wines and creating tantalizing pairings with the freshest Sonoma Wine Country produce available...it's a tough job but someone has to do it!

Dave has always had a passion for good food which led to his training at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco where he completed his studies in December of 1995. He worked his way through several restaurants in San Francisco; including Azie under Chefs Jody Denton and Donny Masterton, the Carnelian Room under Chef David Lawrence and many others. 

Chef Dave has a love for fishing for many reasons but most of all he just loves being outdoors.  When asked about fishing, Bush said:

When fishing you really become aware of your surroundings, and all that is going on in the environment.  I am passionate about conservation and environmental efforts that help maintain all the beautiful lakes, rivers, etc. that we have in our country, and believe in spreading that message to others.  My love of the outdoors is part of the reason that I became a chef. Too many Americans are detached from where their food comes from and don’t know how to process raw products directly from nature or even the farm for that matter.  I decided that I was not going to be one of those people who didn’t understand food, how to handle it, how to create it or where it came from.  Of course I also love to eat and have fun with the creative part of being a chef also. Ultimately fishing combines all the things I love; solitude, the outdoors, environmental awareness, a good challenge, camaraderie, and of course a billion different accessories to purchase and fiddle with.

He and his wife grew tired of the cold San Francisco summers, so they fled north to the Wine Country landing in the town of Sonoma.  After Dave's move to the Wine Country he worked as Chef de Cuisine for Sondra Bernstein's growing collection of Girl and the Fig restaurants, as well as completing a bachelor's degree in history from Sonoma State University.  He joined the St. Francis team in June, 2007 and is taking the wine and food programs to new heights.

Read Chef David Bush's blog.

St. Francis News

David Bush
Executive Chef