Personal-chefs make house calls

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

http://www.jsonline.com/features/food/124718789.html

Chef Sami Fgaier offers international flair

It's a long way from Tunisia's Kerkennah Islands to Madison, but personal chef Sami Fgaier brought his family's love of food and his country's culinary traditions to the U.S. in 1995.

"In Tunisia, we have a small breakfast, then a big lunch," says Fgaier, 36. "Then we immediately start planning what we're having for dinner."

Fgaier helped open Madison's Le Chardonnay Restaurant in 2002, offering a mix of Mediterranean and French cuisine that became former first lady Jessica Doyle's favorite menu. He closed the restaurant in 2009 and started Le Personal Chef, offering in-home dining services to clients in Madison, Milwaukee and elsewhere.

A self-taught cook, Fgaier is a relentless culinary traveler, spending time in major North American and European capitals pursuing new recipes and approaches.

"For me, cooking starts with fresh ingredients," he says. "Food should be a celebration that brings people together at the same time, in the same place and with the same desires."