Steve Ulibarri hails from Los Angeles, California. He has been the celebrated executive chef at Cuisine Unlimited Catering & Special Events for 18 years. Steve is unwavering in his commitment to excellence in service, cuisine and creativity.
Steve has been instrumental in the growth of Cuisine Unlimited. In addition to catering operations, he manages three corporate food operations, two hotel sites, annual Sundance Film Festival and Red Butte Summer Concerts. The Cuisine Team were recently awarded a major contract for the new Eccles Performing Arts Center with eight venue sites debuting in 2016.
Beyond their operation in Salt Lake City, Steve has been involved with major national events including the PGA Tour in Chicago, hospitality services for the Olympics in Atlanta, Salt Lake City, Athens and Torino, the Republican National Convention in 2008 in Minneapolis and numerous other high profile events. Steve’s ability to work under creative and timeline pressure is unmatched, helping Cuisine to be awarded the “National Caterer of the Year” award by Event Solutions® in 2003, Utah Small Business of the Year, Utah Business Magazine’s Corporate Caterer for six years. Inc Magazine has listed them one of the top 5000 small businesses in the U.S. in 2012, 2013, and 2014. They were also selected on of the four top small businesses by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in 2014.
Steve has trained and mentored many students and enjoys educating his staff to the nuances of fine foods. He conducts classes for the Park City Culinary Institute and appears on many local TV programs providing food demonstrations. He was involved with the catering text book recently published by Wiley Publishing. He has proven leadership skills and works regularly on positive teambuilding and motivational development activities.
For many years, Steve managed a demanding career and the responsibility of being a single parent. He is now is married with a blended family of eight.
Where do you find inspiration?
Enjoys sharing and learning new ideas from other catering chefs. Looks for inspiration from them as well as new ideas from visiting high end restaurants and attending conferences.
What excites you most about the year ahead in the catering industry?
We just experienced 3-D processing of food art for decorating things like wedding cakes. New technology is changing every facet of our lives and even impacting the food industry. The advancement of kitchen equipment to decrease labor and increase productivity is exciting to see and learn about.
What do you hope attendees will take away from your session?
We find that our clients return from visiting a foreign country ready to share their experiences with their family and friends…including the food of that country. On the corporate side, we are asked for ethnic cuisine on a regular basis. Brazilian cuisine will be important with the upcoming Olympic Games and we’d like to share some of the great food we have experienced from our visits in planning our next Olympic project in 2016.
What new trend or trendy ingredient are you using today?
We’re making a lot more of our own sauces and dressing using fresh regional ingredients. Everyone is reading labels and more aware of additives. We need to be responsible with what we are also offering our clients…after all, we are providing their nutrition. We’re hearing, for example, that the natural sweetness of honey is making its way into foods in place of sugar. We’re hearing this being added to milk and even distilled beverages.
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