Connect with Chef Nicole Layog
Chef Nicole Layog
Born to Puerto Rican and Filipino parents, Chef Nicole was also raised with an Italian Uncle whose influence was just as impactful. Nicole is no stranger to a large table covered in traditions from all three cultures. Then, throw in some American Classics and you have the BEST Thanksgiving Spread anybody with a palate could dream of.
Her culinary career can still be looked at as a Rookie season(only 9 years, but that is only because she started her first career as a law enforcement officer for the Broward Sheriff’s Office. She put herself through a pilot culinary program at Miami Culinary Institute through Miami-Dade College. Nicole worked 40 hours a week as a road patrol Deputy and “Moonlighted” as a culinary student at MDC after working a 12-hour shift.
Chef Nicole is no stranger to taking risks and decided her passion for cooking exceeded her passion for law enforcement. After her 10th year of being a cop, she took a leap of faith, retiring and traded in her badge for an apron and knives. She relocated to Denver, Colorado where she began her career as a dish washer and a butcher. She used Whole Foods Market as her platform to gain product and background knowledge in Meat, Specialty Meat & Cheeses and the Bakery. Nicole felt working for non-corporate restaurants would advance her knowledge in her culinary skills and she wasn’t wrong. She worked for Ryan DiFranco at his notable fast-casual spot, DiFranco’s. This pasta making position turned into Nicole’s first Executive Chef Position after only 2 years of cooking, at Blueprint Bar Denver. She worked as a Chef de Partie for the traveling underground dining experience, Dinner Lab. Due to her experience in the Specialty Department at Whole Foods, she found a part-time niche at The Truffle Table, working for Karin & Rob Lawler. She then landed a spot on the line at James Beard Nominee, Dana Rodriguez’s, Work &Class. Dana gave her an opportunity to open her eyes to the hustle and bustle of REAL line work. This humbled Nicole into buckling down her career.
Chef Nicole was introduced to the Yachting industry by one of her mentors, Chef Nikki Pettineo, founder of ProSeasoning. She then took another leap of faith and returned to her roots in South Florida. After working on yachts and on private estates for thif last 4 years, she honed in on her ability to share her love and passion for cooking with high-end clients. She provides private dining experiences for up to 20 people. Keeping the number of guests to low number to protect the integrity of her message, her dishes and her flavors.
Chef Nicole found herself looking for a challenge outside of her culinary career and decided to apply for the CBS Reality Show, Big Brother. Nicole was casted for Big brother 24. She lasted 4 weeks in the Big Brother House. Even though her stay was short-lived, she was ableto bless the houseguests with some of her cooking prior to her eviction. She even made the infamous “”Have Not” week successful, only having steel cut oats, salsa, olives and pickles to choose from.
Post Big Brother, Chef Nicole has been donating her time to some local charities that she is proud of representing: Give Kids The World Village, Voices of Broward and Julian’s Fountain of Youth. Her culinary skills have been Silence Auctioned during Galas and LGBTQ Events.
