About Us

Patrick Mulvaney, a native New Yorker,  has been the owner of Culinary Specialists since 2001. Patrick has cooked professionally in 5 time zones beginning with his European apprenticeship in 1985. Back home in New York he worked with Leslie Revsin and David Burke before moving to Phoenix in 1988.

During his tenure in the desert Roxsand restaurant, Patrick was named "the rising star of the southwest" by the American Institute of Wine and Food. He returned home to cook a special dinner at the James Beard House. In 1991 he attended the School for American Chefs at Beringer Vineyards, studying with Madeleine Kamman. Madeleine encouraged his academic studies and in order to attend graduate school he enrolled at ASU where he received a bachelor's degree in chemistry. After one year in food science at UC Davis he returned to the Napa Valley, this time as a teacher and assistant at the SFAC. His time among the chefs and winemakers brought Patrick to the realization that he is, at heart, a chef not an academic.

During his year in Napa he fell in love with the Central Valley and its wondrous bounty and decided to make Sacramento his home. Stints at Paragary's and the Kitchen made him realize he wanted his own business and owning Culinary Specialists brings him closer every day to realizing the dream of operating his own restaurant.