Preston Paine first fell in love with cooking thanks to a close family friend named Chela, who showed him the foundations that have carried him to where he is now in his professional cooking career. From how to properly hold and use a knife, grill, sauté, braise and more, Chela inspired his love for exquisite cuisine through her dark mole, fresh tortillas, stuffed cabbage soup and more.

When Paine left Dallas to study business development with a focus in restaurant design and play football at Tulane university in New Orleans, he started picking up different jobs in restaurants and gaining inspiration from the famous local styles and flavors there. After graduating, he began his career helping write menus and design concepts for a restaurant management & development company based out of Dallas. After two years, he still had the urge to continue expanding his palate and knowledge of different cuisines around the world. Therefore, he decided to spend a year working as an onboard chef and traveling extensively.

Once back stateside, he had the opportunity to work for the number one restaurant in the world, Eleven Madison Park. It retained its 3 Michelin-star status during his time there. Unfortunately, the covid pandemic shut down operations and sent him back to Dallas.

Eager to take a turn at entrepreneurship and restaurant design, Paine connected with his now business partner and opened up an award-winning new york-style bagel shop called Shug’s Bagels.

Once the shop was up and running smoothly, he helped open a couple of restaurants located in the Thompson Hotel in downtown Dallas, including catbird and nine at the national. Today, Paine is the executive chef at The Crescent Hotel. He is also a former contestant in the 8-episode long Food Network series ‘Ciao House’ which takes viewers on a delectable culinary journey through Italy’s rich flavors and traditions.