Giovanni Filippone (Gio), executive chef at Vue on 30a, one of South Walton’s awarded Gulf front dining restaurants, will compete on Season 17 of HELL’S KITCHEN which premieres Friday, Sept. 29 at 7 p.m. CST on FOX.
Chef Gio was among those invited back on the show after nearly 10 years since his last appearance on season five. The winner of Season 17 will earn a head chef position at Gordon Ramsay Hell’s Kitchen Restaurant at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. “This time around, I wanted to do this for my kids,” Gio said. “My kids and my wife mean the world to me and this is another opportunity of a lifetime to show them that I still have what it takes.”
Vue on 30a invites everyone to join in the celebration on Sept. 29 at 7 p.m. CST as the restaurant transforms into a multi-viewing setting to cheer on Chef Gio. The party will begin at 6 p.m. where guests are invited to order HELL’S KITCHEN inspired dishes and drinks. In addition, Chef Gio will share some of his experience working with Gordon Ramsey and what it is like to be on a nationally acclaimed reality show setting. Photographs and autographs will also be available upon request.
Reservations for Chef Gio’s HELL’S KITCHEN premiere party on Sept. 29 are highly recommended by calling 850.267.2305. Join in the fun by using hashtag #TEAMGIO.
Giovanni was born in 1970 in Givet, France. When he was 10, he immigrated to Bayonne, NJ where he grew up. The strongest memories of his youth were always about family meal time and cooking together. “We never ate fast food and rarely ate out,” he said. Filippone learned the essentials of cooking as a teenager. Later he pursued formal training at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York, completing their chef program in 1997.
Chef Filippone is currently the Executive Chef for Vue on 30a in Santa Rosa Beach. Before joining Vue on 30a, Chef Filippone’s career began at the Sheraton and Wyndam hotels where he served under experienced chefs and was able to fine-tune his skills and gain valuable experience. “When working in the hotels, I was surrounded by great talent each day which pushed me to work hard and do my absolute best,” says Filippone. “The hotel industry helped me gain a great deal of experience, helping me to confirm cooking was always what I wanted to do.”
After his five years in the hotel industry, Chef Filippone took an opportunity for an internship at Beach Walk in Destin, Fla., and moved to the Emerald Coast shortly after in 2012.
Chef has incorporated all of his experiences into a refreshed menu which blends his twist of ‘American northern cuisine-meets American southern cuisine-meets southern Italy,’ with the fresh ingredients available in the area. Dishes like Pistachio Grouper have become a favorite for guests as well as his Fruits de Mer. These menu items plus others have reinvented Vue on 30a as a notable place to dine on 30A and has gained it notoriety by Florida Travel + Life Magazine naming Vue on 30a as “Best Waterfront Dining.”
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