Chef William Howell enjoys creating one of a kind, personal, and special culinary events for his clients. He provides a unique opportunity to experience his talents using seasonal, regional ingredients, and customizing his dishes to the client’s wishes. Since moving to Tampa Bay, he’s been learning about the cuisine of the area, what’s in season and how to create adventurous flavor profiles. Chef William and his wife Rachel are Waterchase residents. He graciously shares some of his delectable recipes in the magazine from time to time.

Chef William’s culinary journey has taken him to different places that have allowed him to explore and enjoy the outdoors. After graduating from the New England Culinary Institute in Vermont, he had the opportunity to explore his passion for cuisine while completing two externships, one at The Biltmore Estate in North Carolina and the other at a popular restaurant in Vail, Colorado. Being an outdoor enthusiast, and enjoying the mountains, fly fishing and snowboarding, Vail was an exciting place to take root. The externship turned into a lasting role for over eleven years, including opening a sister restaurant nearby. Over time, he felt the need for a different type of challenge, one that allowed for a more personal experience for his clients. This brought him to a smaller restaurant and ultimately catering. Chef William found catering to be a great way to get involved because he likes “putting on the party” and enjoys “contributing to everyone having a good time”. A new adventure came about with Collective Retreats, a start-up glamping and dining experience, where William quickly became the executive chef. Chef William was instrumental in the addition of four more locations across the country. These glamping retreats have property partnerships with different and unique locations, such as organic farms, working ranches, and a winery.  This role allowed him to travel, enjoy a variety of environments, and experiment with seasonal ingredients. Over time, he developed the SOPs, logistics, and scaled the business for the company. As his career was morphing and growing, he met his wife Rachel while cooking for her at one of the locations. They had many things in common, especially food. They stayed in touch with each other for years. By this point, Chef William was working in Denver while managing teams remotely. As fate would have it, through both of their work travel schedules, they were able to reconnect. Ultimately, the couple alternated between Chicago and Denver to spend time. In October 2019, his time with Collective Retreats ended and he turned his start-up experience to develop a catering business. He began building clientele in the neighborhood in Chicago where they lived half of the time. During Covid, the world was uncertain. The couple decided to stay put in Chicago. In April 2020, he began cooking for some clients in the neighborhood with ‘ready to eat’ dinners. His catering business grew from preparing a few meals to over 100 dinners per week! The demand for his delicious meals exploded.

Chef William’s introduction to food and ingredients started in both his grandmother’s kitchens, where he stand on a stool to help him see over the counter. He recalls his time in his maternal grandmother’s home in Pennsylvania, where he would watch to see what she was baking. Most times, unfortunately, it was something healthy such as bran muffins with flax seeds. He spent time watching her cook and asking questions about ingredients. He remembers tasting different spices from her pantry, to improve the flavors of the foods he ate. While visiting his dad’s mother and father on their 200-acre farm in Bedford County, Virginia, he would eat a plethora of fresh fruits and vegetables. He remembers digging up a tiny potato out of the ground and washing it off in the creek, then biting into the crisp, yet tender vegetable. Another fond memory was eating fresh corn off the cob on warm summer days.

Chef William reflects on his creative process and what brought him into the world of the culinary arts. He shared that when he would dine out at different restaurants, he would ask himself “what would I do to make this better?” Many times, it would be to add salt or seasonings, sometimes the flavors were flat, or tasted all the same. He was always looking to experience new flavor profiles. He’d ask himself “what is going to make me take another bite?” His creative culinary mind considers textures, brightness, freshness, and balance. While he is eating something, he’s thinking about how he can make it better. The best part of cooking is sharing it with others.  He gets enjoyment and excitement by creating opportunities for clients to experiment with each bite using the components and sauces on the plate to make each bite wanting the next. 

The Howell’s have been in Tampa Bay for two years, and Florida has been an exciting place for Chef William. He has been learning about the cuisine of the area, enjoys talking with his clients about what types of foods and flavors they like, and loves the challenges of creating different and unique dining experiences. He explains how food seasonality is much different in Florida compared to other places he’s lived and worked. A winter dish here can have a much different look and feel than in other regions of the country.  He has created strong connections with locals, especially in Waterchase. Many of his clients are his neighbors, and he’s hosted some fabulous events within the community. He truly loves cooking for his clients and one of the best parts is “getting to know them throughout the process,” gaining a better understanding of what they like, and how to bring a more personalized experience to them. He is passionate about food. The ability to bring a special experience into someone’s home is something that is remarkable and memorable.  He has fun acclimating to a client’s kitchen and all that their environment has to offer. At an event, he will bring his own pots, pans, utensils, even plates and silverware. If a client is interested, he can recommend wine and other beverage pairings as well.

His advice to any novice cooks who want to improve their craft is to “just keep trying. Make mistakes and learn from them– it’s just food!” he says. Some of his best recipes develop from an idea on how to improve, and then experimenting.  Chef Willam never thought he would be a chef.  “It just kinda happened.” he laughs. “It’s a blast and it doesn’t feel like work.  It’s really a lot of fun.”