Get to know Chef Steven Weiss

Chef Steven Weiss was born and raised in the beautiful Hudson River Valley area of New York State, He is a graduate with honors from Baltimore’s Culinary College in Baking and Pastry. After graduating, he secured a position with Marriott Hotels where he was discovered by a French Master Chef on his way to New Jersey and was asked to join a new team being created in Atlantic City. This started a 14-year run in “America’s Playground”. While working in various casinos, such as Caesar’s, Trump’s Taj Mahal, Merv Griffin’s Resorts, Showboat, Harrah’s and Tropicana, he honed his creative talents and started to enter competitions, such as:

• The New York Culinary Salon and Restaurant Show Culinary Olympic Tryouts (Gold Medal)
• 2 time Finalist in the Patisfrance Pastry Championships in New York, NY.
• Finalist in the Masters of Chocolate Competition in Philadelphia, PA.
• Hershey Chocolate Sculpture Competition (Gold Medal)
• 2000 Team Member National Pastry Team Championships in Beaver Creek, Colorado
• 2003 Team Captain National Pastry Championships in Las Vegas, NV
• 2005 Best In Show and Best Dessert in Shreveport, Louisiana
• 2012-2017 Lead Celebrity Judge for Cupcake competition Martinsburg, WV,
• 2011 Bronze Medal North East Regional Pastry Chef of the Year 2011

Taking Down the Competition

These competitions, allowed Chef Weiss to establish himself as a major player on the competition circuit. One highlight was winning a Gold Medal in pastry at the 2000 Culinary Olympic try-outs in New York City, where Chef Weiss was asked to become a member of the 2000 Eastern Regional Culinary Olympic Team, which competes worldwide.

Chef Weiss moved to Shreveport, Louisiana where he worked for Boyd Gaming and then off to Charlestown, West Virginia in 1996 where he was hired to establish and operate the first Penn Gaming funded Pastry Shop at the Hollywood Casino in Charlestown, West Virginia.
Steve has been featured in numerous National and International newspapers, magazines and web sites. Additionally, National Public Radio’s highly rated “Day to Day” news program featured Chef Weiss in an interview during his leadership as Capitan of “Team Weiss” in the Las Vegas 2003 National Pastry Championships. Chef Weiss has also been featured on various Food Network premiers, specials and “challenges”. The Food Network has touted Chef Weiss as “One of the Top Pastry Chefs” and “Sugar Artists” in the country. Chef Weiss has appeared in the following shows on the Food Network. He is a pioneer in the TV Food Competition genre and has continued to play an active part for the past 20 years.

• Food Network Special America’s Best Pastry (2000)
• Food Network Special $50,000 Pastry Challenge (2003)
• Food Network’s Pastry Daredevils (2005)
• Food Network’s Sugar Impossible (2010)
• Food Network’s Flying Sugar (2011)
• Food Network’s Sugar Inventions (2011)
• Food Network’s King of Cones (2014)
• Food Network Series Cake Wars Christmas (2015)
• Food Network Series Halloween Wars – Winner Season 10 (2020)
• Netflix “Is It Cake” Series (2022) Global Premiere #1 Show in USA and Canada after three days! And Top 10 in 75 countries globally.

Educating the Next Generation of Culinarians

In 2008 Chef Weiss had embarked on his next chapter, giving back to the community through education. He has successfully taken on the challenge of creating four culinary arts A.A.S. degree programs in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia through Blue Ridge Community and Technical College where he is the Associate Dean of Hospitality & Culinary Arts.

While at Blue Ridge CTC Chef Weiss:

• Was voted one of the 55 good things about West Virginia in 2012 by the State Journal
• Had been invited to train the White House Chefs of the West Wing in the Art of Sugar, Molecular Gastronomy and Charcuterie.
• Has acquired his Bachelor’s degree in 2012 from Shepherd University.
• Has created partnerships with local employers one being WVU Health Care by training pre-med students in the art of cooking by way of a program called MedChefs.
• 2022 featured on Northern Virginia Magazine “Is It Cake”

“Come and Experience the Premier center for Culinary and Hospitality Education in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia here at Blue Ridge Community and Technical College’s Academy of Hospitality and Culinary Arts”

Learn more about the Blue Ridge Community and Technical College’s Academy of Hospitality and Culinary Arts >>

Join Chef Steve at Root to Table’s “The Great Chefs Table” – October 8th >>