As a child growing up in Tampa, pastry chef Devin Braddock cooked for her two sisters and brother while their mother was at work.
“I always knew I wanted to be a chef, and I was always interested in pastries,” she says.
After graduating from high school in 2009, Chef Braddock moved to Miami, where she still lives today, to attend the College of Culinary Arts at Johnson & Wales University in North Miami. But she left shortly after.
“On-the-job training suited me much better,” says Chef Braddock, 28. “I learned so much from my chefs and leaving work excited every day.”
Ten years later – and with ample experience in Miami’s culinary world under her toque, including training with James Beard-nominated pastry chef Hedy Goldsmith at Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink – Chef Braddock has a new role. In July, she was named executive pastry chef for Miami-based Ark Hospitality Group, and she oversees the bread and pastry group for Ariete and Chug’s restaurants, both in Coconut Grove, and for Taurus Beer & Whiskey House in Miami.
“I’m excited to work with such a talented team,” she says.
Chef Braddock, who has a penchant for creating nostalgic desserts with modern refinement, has tempted South Florida diners with such standouts as molten brownie-batter cookies and café con leche pie on a stick. But she enjoys classic confections just as much as creative ones.
“I enjoy the simple things done right – a well-seasoned cookie, custardy ice creams, moist chocolate cake,” she says.
She loves that the life of a chef is never boring but admits it can be challenging at times.
“The hours can be long, and the kitchen is chaotic in some ways. There are so many personalities that make up a kitchen – lots of passion, hot tempers and egos. But I would say a good kitchen is more ‘organized chaos.’ At the end of the day, we all work as a team and family.”
On her days off, she catches up on sleep and laundry; does some research and development; and sometimes indulges in her favorite dessert, New York-style cheesecake.
As for her future, Chef Braddock thinks it looks pretty sweet, she says: “Hopefully I’ll still be rocking out pastries in Miami, with a little travel under my belt.” O