Elevate!

Welcome to Elevate! Private Chef Services, Inc.

“Food is an adventure. It is so much more than individual items on a plate. Foods can remind us of treasured occasions in our past, give us comfort, or transport us to the places we dream of. Food can open our senses to a whole new world.

One of the main principles I follow in the kitchen comes from the Japanese idea of ‘Umami’. Umami is the sum of its parts, combining the four basic tastes to create an explosion of flavors and sensations both familiar and exciting. Derived from the Japanese word ‘Uma’i,’ meaning ‘goodness,’ my goal is to bring to you the joy and satisfaction of the culinary world, the way the experience of food is meant to be.”  – Chef Leda Avra Wolk

Born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago, IL, Leda worked as a line cook in a Chinese restaurant at the age 16. Leda moved to the Aspen Valley in 1989, where she was introduced to a new culinary world.

After 10 years in the valley, Leda wanted to broaden her horizons, and she lived in Asia, Central & South America, the Caribbean and Hawaii over the next 7 years, where she studied regional cuisines while teaching scuba diving for PADI.

Once Leda landed in Hawaii, she received her degree in culinary arts with honors from Gros Bonnet Culinary Academy in Honolulu, Hawaii. After graduation, she came back to our beautiful valley in the mountains, where she has worked as an executive chef for restaurants ranging from sushi, Pacific Rim fusion & traditional Japanese to steakhouses, Rocky Mountain & classical French cuisines.

Leda was a featured chef for the 2009 Aspen Food & Wine Classic, and has had the honor of cooking for Masahuru Morimoto, among others, and has won awards for her culinary and mixology skills. Leda now enjoys her work as a private chef, here and abroad, and continues to certify divers through the top scuba diving organization in the world.