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Monday 9am - 7pm Tuesday 9am - 7pm Wednesday 9am - 7pm Thursday 9am - 7pm Friday 9am - 7pm Saturday 9am - 7pm Sunday 9am - 7pm

The Heirloom Chef

Name: The Heirloom Chef
Address: 612 Poirier Street, Oakland, CA, 94609, US
Telephone: +15103903210
Price range: $$

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The Heirloom Chef

The Heirloom Chef is a personal chef and catering service for Bay Area professionals.

We use only the best seasonal, locally sourced ingredients to make time honored dishes with a creative edge. Meals, created by our team of chefs, are described as California comfort food and can always be customized for your taste and diet.

09/17/2026

On Sunday, we had the pleasure of catering To Make Home in the World: A Convening on Black Feminist Futures, a garden gathering in Berkeley celebrating Black feminist world-making.

The afternoon brought together artists, scholars, gardeners, musicians, and community members for conversation around the ways Black folks make home, plant seeds, create sanctuary, and imagine just futures, even in hostile terrain.

Guests donned their garden party best for music, conversation, and joyful respite, with conversations featuring Leigh Raiford, Tianna Paschel, Candice Hoyes, Leslie Bennett, and Jocelyn Jackson. Diasporic sounds from DJ felakutchii , books from Marcus Books , and music from Candice’s new album rounded out the afternoon.

We were honored to contribute small bites and sangria prepared by Chef Gita to a gathering so rooted in community, creativity, and possibility.

Photos by Rachel Weill

UC Berkeley

Black Sanctuary Gardens
Milicent
Leslie Christiane Bennett
Leigh Raiford
People's Kitchen Collective
Tianna Paschel
Candice
felakutchii

09/15/2026

Chef Nichole is basically a one-woman food system.

Born and raised in Santa Cruz, Nichole has spent the last 15 years cooking professionally, with stops in Boston, Austin, Asheville, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles and Nevada City before finding her way back home in 2006.

These days, you’re likely to find her wandering a market in search of something weird and wonderful, talking about how amazing the structure of a whole fish carcass is, or tracking down the people growing and cultivating the food she loves.

She cares deeply about the sea, climate, food access, bees, barley tea, trying crazy new spice combinations and off-the-radar music. Her cooking reflects that curiosity, drawing inspiration from wherever it finds her and from the incredible ingredients grown and gathered within miles of home.

Nichole joined Heirloom because she was looking for something more intentional and values-aligned. We’re pretty thrilled she found us!

P.S. Swipe for Chef Nichole’s trick for ultra creamy (without the cream) black garlic udon noodles.

09/10/2026

You may recognize her, but have you met Jenny?

Jenny has been a friend of The Heirloom Chef for a while now, including a starring role in one of our photoshoots. And now, we’re excited to officially welcome her to the team as our newest admin.

Born and raised in the East Bay, Jenny loves her local community and has strong neighborhood ties. She’s also a small business owner herself, having recently opened Park Play Place an indoor play space for families and youth with her husband.

When she’s not keeping things running behind the scenes at Heirloom, you’ll find her spending time with her husband, their four kiddos and their ever-growing collection of pets: a new puppy, a cat, a bearded dragon, two tree frogs and six chickens.

We’re so happy to have you on the team, Jenny!

09/08/2026

Chef Paula’s tofu trick: brine it first.

For the rest, she measures with her heart. This is how Chef Pauls turns a simply brined tofu into one of her go-to stir-fries.

Since “measuring with her heart” doesn’t necessarily equate to exact measurements, we asked nicely and got her to jot down a recipe for us:

CHEF PAULA’S CRISPY TOFU STIR-FRY

For the tofu • 1 block extra-firm tofu • Salt, for the brine • Cornstarch, for coating • Neutral oil, for roasting

For the sauce • ¼ cup soy sauce • 1–2 Tbsp brown sugar • 1 Tbsp Shaoxing wine • 1 Tbsp oyster sauce • 1 Tbsp rice vinegar • 1 tsp sesame oil • White pepper, to taste • 2 cloves garlic, minced • 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated • 1 tsp cornstarch • ⅓ cup water

For the stir-fry • 1 red bell pepper, sliced • 1 celery stalk, sliced • Water chestnuts, sliced • Dried chiles, to taste • Peanuts, for finishing

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Brine the tofu. Cut tofu into bite-sized pieces and simmer in a saltwater brine for about 15–20 minutes. Drain and pat very dry.
2. Make the sauce. Whisk together soy sauce, brown sugar, Shaoxing wine, oyster sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, white pepper, garlic, ginger, cornstarch and water.
3. Get it crispy. Toss the drained tofu with cornstarch and a little oil. Roast at 450°F for about 15 minutes, or until golden and crisp.
4. Stir-fry. Sauté the bell pepper, celery and water chestnuts until crisp-tender. Add dried chiles and cook for about 1 minute.
5. Bring it together. Add the crispy tofu and sauce. Bring to a boil and cook until the sauce thickens and coats everything.
6. Finish with peanuts and serve over rice.

Save this one for your next stir-fry night. And remember: exact measurements are optional.

09/03/2026

Have you met Chef MD? Madame Donut is originally from the Philippines and grew up calling many places home, with Maui holding her heart for years.

She began her culinary career in San Francisco and is thrilled to be back in the Bay Area, for its deep respect for food and craft.

Cooking professionally for nearly two decades, MD brings a thoughtful, playful approach rooted in classical technique, island influence, and zero-waste values. She’s passionate about real ingredients, intentional flavor, and feeding people well.

09/01/2026

The details are in the details.

Raspberry Cheesecake / Graham Cracker Crust / Homemade Raspberry Coulis / Fresh Whipped Cream/ Almond Brittle

A little texture.

A little drama.

Tamari Butter Scallops

Surf & Turf / Flat Iron Steak / Tamari Butter Scallops / Argentinian Chimichurri / Preserved Lemon Relish

Garlic Whipped Potatoes

Seared Trumpet Mushrooms / Garlic Whipped Potatoes / Asparagus for our vegetarian guests

Wild Arugula Salad

Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette / Shaved Parmesan / Sourdough Croutons / Smoked Fleur de Sel

08/21/2026

Today we’re celebrating our co-owners, Maggie & Erika, for World Entrepreneurs’ Day.

In January 2020, Erika bought half of The Heirloom Chef from longtime solopreneur Maggie and took over the day-to-day operations.

Just a couple of short months later, in March 2020, COVID hit the business hard, but the two have weathered that storm, as well as a postpartum leave, scaling from 3 to 13 chefs, and starting a new location (and new brand) in Cincinnati.

Here’s to the vision, determination, and grit that got us here. Cheers to this powerful pair.

08/18/2026

Chef Gita’s clients describe her food as “beautiful *and* delicious.” We couldn’t agree more.

Vibrant ingredients, beautiful presentation, and meals that are as nourishing as they are joyful. There’s always a story woven into Chef Gita’s cooking, and we’re so happy to have her sharing it here. 🤍

Address

612 Poirier Street
Oakland, CA
94609

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 7pm
Tuesday	9am - 7pm
Wednesday	9am - 7pm
Thursday	9am - 7pm
Friday	9am - 7pm
Saturday	9am - 7pm
Sunday	9am - 7pm

Telephone

+15103903210

Website

http://www.theheirloomchef.com/

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