Benjamin Schad

Executive Chef

"I am a Certified Executive Chef with 40+ years experience in the Food & Beverage industry. For over 25 years, I have been in kitchen leadership positions. I have been married for 25 years to Victoria, and have 3 children Olivia, Maxwell and Kendall plus 1 grandchild Mason. I am a veteran of the U.S. Army where I spent 3 years as foodservice specialist. I graduated with honors from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. My training was under French Master Chef Jacques Thiebault at The Homestead Inn in Greenwich, Connecticut. In 2006, I was offered the Executive Chef position at the St.Charles Yacht Club (175 members) in Fort Myers where I excelled at connecting with the members and customizing dinner menus daily based on seasonality and inventory. In 2011, I was Executive Chef for residents of the Brooks at Rosie Spoonbills a private Member owned Casual Restaurant in Bonita Springs. I connected with the members there through my cuisine and many cooking classes. In 2016, I earned my Certified Executive Chef designation from The American Culinary Federation and was re-certified last year. The last 6 years I have had the pleasure of working for the Wynn’s Family in Naples as Executive Chef of Wynn’s Catering. In my free time I enjoy dining at local restaurants with my family. I grow around 200 varieties of Bromeliads and other sub-tropical plants in my gardens in Bonita Springs."