CULINARY DIRECTOR

Chef Tae Strain is a Seoul born, Maryland raised chef whose work is shaped by experience in some of the most demanding kitchens in the country and by a deeply personal commitment to seasonality, hospitality, and place. His cooking is grounded and thoughtful, driven as much by care and intention as by technique.

Over the past 16 plus years, Tae has cooked in San Francisco, New York City, Washington DC, and Baltimore, building a career defined by high level execution and quiet leadership. He served as Chef de Cuisine at The Progress in San Francisco when it earned its first Michelin star, refining a precise, ingredient driven style rooted in Northern California agriculture. Earlier, he cooked in Michelin recognized kitchens in New York City, including PUBLIC, gaining foundational experience in rigorous, modern restaurant systems. In Washington DC, Tae became Executive Chef at David Chang’s Momofuku, where he led a significant evolution of the restaurant and earned recognition for food that balanced creativity, approachability, and discipline.

In Baltimore, Tae continued to build thoughtful, high caliber programs while developing his own voice. He is the founder of ggoma, an intimate supper club that explores memory, identity, and seasonality through food. As a Korean American adoptee, Tae often weaves personal narrative into his cooking, reflecting on belonging, time, and place without forcing story onto the plate. Ggoma became known for its emotional resonance.

Today, Tae serves as Culinary Director at Old Westminster Winery and is a chef-partner at Burnt Hill Farm. His work is rooted in direct relationships with farmers, winemakers, and the land, with menus shaped by the Chesapeake Bay watershed and the rhythms of the farm. His approach favors restraint over excess, clarity over complexity, and hospitality that feels genuine and human, helping build a food program as considered as the wines it accompanies.

Tae’s leadership reflects those same values. He listens first and leads with clarity and care. He expects excellence without sacrificing dignity, evaluates systems to improve them rather than critique them, and believes kitchens should educate, empower, and build lasting capability. That philosophy has helped shape Old Westminster as an environment rooted as much in people as it is in place.