Welcome to our table. We're a chef + wife team that loves to share the art of crafting restaurant-quality meals and cocktails at home in a virtual culinary experience.
Like friends coming over to share a meal, our cooking course is like having a double-date night with Chip and Joanna Gaines. We'll share expert culinary knowledge, craft a cocktail (or two!), and the deets on making entertaining look effortlessly chic.
We're your insider peeps who want to empower you to create a Pinterest-worthy culinary experience you'll be proud to share with your family and friends.
Chef Raf & Toni here
Hey there!
We love our day and date nights. It gives us time alone together and get inspiration from new dishes and cocktails.
quality time
The glass is just as important as the drink itself. Call us crazy but we drool over a vintage coupe or a beautifully etched rocks glass.
sexy stemware
We love having family visit us in our home, wherever in the world we live...it's always reason to cook up a storm for them, introduce new cocktails and celebrate.
family time
Nothing comes close to the Caribbean sea after living in Anguilla for almost 5 years. We are spoiled for life.
turquoise waters
We love us some date nights in the big city, but home cooking trumps all.
the heart of our home
They're my refreshers. They bring back memories of dishes I made once before, but over time, you understand the recipe more. I go back to them every couple years and it brings something new each time I read through them again.
My cookbook collection
Six
We wish we could travel more these days...oh the cuisine, culture...both fascinating and inspiring.
travel & culture
Seven
Our home, website, kitchen and wardrobe are all FILLED with brown, beige, cream, gray, and white!
neutrals
Eight
Toni and were born exactly 5 weeks and a year apart. So we both have this shared nostalgic attraction to MCM design.
Bring on the Old Fashioned like Don Draper!
mid century modern
Nine
We get up early to have breakfast at our favorite hole in the wall taco spot near downtown Houston, then hit the gourmet grocer, with Toni armed with a foamy cup of cappuccino.
Saturdates
Ten
It's our honor to include that version of tradition in our modern family. So even when things get hectic, we know we can return to the kitchen - the heart of our home - for nourishment
These are where the best memories are made. And undoubtedly had a long lasting impact on how we view our food.
Saturdays and Sundays are family affairs here at Casa G. And for us, that means quality time cooking.
Growing up, the best time of the week was gathering with the family in the kitchen or around the dining table. the smell of garlic roasting or brownies baking, the slow simmer of a sofrito, but most of all, the opportunity to reconnect with loved ones around a shared plate.
We savor these moments and invite you to experience them with your family in your kitchen.
We'll show you how to do it with style.
Yep. We even look forward to grocery shopping. There is nothing like my son asking me if we can try morel mushrooms and me saying absolutely yes!
Watching their eyes light up when they master a new technique or taste an unfamiliar cuisine is a bonding moment many families miss out on in the rush of everyday life.
slow down and smell the sofrito
Watching our kids experience the delight and confidence that comes with preparing and cooking a meal together is one of the greatest joys in life.
Our Story
Go on another Asian food tour
Spend Christmas in the Philippines with Toni's family. It's from September till January!
Take a road and food trip of the entire U.S!
On our Bucket List
our Timeline
the culinary journey
2017
After leaving the Caribbean following a devastating hurricane, I was transferred to the Four Seasons Hotel in Houston.
2013
Living the dream in Anguilla, BWI at the Viceroy that later became a Four Seasons Hotel, Resort & Residences.
2009
Philadelphia, PA.
BIG shoes to fill, replacing the Executive Chef of 23 years. Kept all the "bells", (despite the doubts of the food critics), at the Fountain, signature restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia.
2006
Vancouver, B.C. I became the youngest named Executive Chef in the company at the time. I was 32.
2003
BIGGER break. Became the Restaurant Chef at The Pierre, NY and what started my long and accomplished career with Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts.
2002
My BIG break. I became Jean-Georges Vongerichten's sous chef at Columbus Circle, NY.
2001
Moved to Spain to work with Michelin chefs in Barcelona and San Sebastian. No pay. I wanted the experience.
1999
I moved to New York from Miami to begin my culinary career
the Great state
a new passion for teaching
I lost my job and I started teaching cooking online. It allowed me to spend more time with my family and cook for them more.
love in the time of covid
this is
Houston, y'all
more on the blog
When you have braised pork, there are multiple dishes you can make with it.
One of them is miso ramen. With the broth, the Japanese egg, the seaweed and the broth, you've got yourself a hearty bowl of soup to keep you warm during the cooler months.
braised pork ramen
Confit is a French technique in cooking where you cook and store the meat in fat.
The benefit to cooking in this method is that you can cook once and eat all week. The meat rendered is moist and packed with flavor.
confit of chicken
This steak tartare recipe is my Love Potion No. 9 people!
It could be argued that this was the secret to my wife's heart.
The secret to restaurant-quality steak tartare is in the sauce. This is the same, fool-proof recipe I use at all the restaurants I've worked at throughout my career.
Make it to order, table side, just as they do at a French bistro and wow your significant other with this culinary favorite.
steak tartare
