Michael Wallace '90
Michael Henry Wallace ‘90
A servant leader. A man of great faith, principle, conviction and integrity. A mentor to many. A creative spirit and amazing artist. A talented culinarian. A goal-setter and achiever. A loving husband and devoted father. These are words that describe CIA ’90 graduate, Mike Wallace. He had a big personality. He had a great sense of humor and he always saw the best in people.
Chef Mike was supposed to begin his next culinary adventure as the Executive Chef of the New Orleans Country Club on September 11, 2015, but tragically died of a heart attack at the age of 50 on that day.
Mike was born on June 17, 1965 in Northridge, California. He was the youngest of five children and experienced tragedy at an early age: His mother passed away when he was 10 years old and his father when he was 13. He was raised by his oldest brother and sister-in-law in Los Angeles and, around the age of 14, he started dabbling in the kitchen. After graduating from high school, Mike enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1984.
Mike served as a Food Service Specialist in the U.S. Army from 1984-1988. It was during this time that he decided to go to culinary school. After much research, he decided to apply to the Culinary Institute of America, as it was the best culinary school in the world! He met his wife, Juliene, in May 1987 and they were married a year later.
Mike made a list of the things he wanted to accomplish and his first goal was to be accepted into the CIA. Mike attended the Culinary Institute of America from January 1989 – September 1990. He was very involved in his classes and was the group leader of his class. He completed his externship at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City and earned his Associate’s degree in Occupational Studies. At graduation, he was awarded the Frances L. Roth Award for outstanding performance.
Just three weeks after graduation, Mike and Juliene were on a plane bound for Geneva, Switzerland for his first position at a five-star hotel. This was the second goal on his list. He worked there a year and then worked at a one Michelin Star restaurant for his second year abroad and, along the way, traveled extensively and dined at many 3-Michelin Star restaurants.
After his European experience, Mike went on to work at many fine hotels and resorts, including The Regent Beverly Wilshire, The Dana Point Resort, Opryland Hotel, The Hilton Ocean Front Resort, Del Lago Resort and The Grand Hotel Marriott Resort, Golf Club & Spa where he worked for nine years.
Throughout his culinary career, Mike earned many awards, including South Carolina Chef of the Year 2001, Alabama Chef of the Year Finalist 2008, Spirit to Serve, Manager of the Year, Community Leadership, Mentor, numerous Leadership awards and multiple awards for food competitions.
Mike was very creative and an amazing artist. He could draw, paint, sculpt and create ice carvings, fruit carvings and anything else creative in the kitchen. His plate presentations were works of art to him and, even when he cooked at home, he made each plate beautifully presented.
Chef Mike was a servant leader. He didn’t expect anyone to do anything that he wasn’t willing to do himself. He enjoyed teaching culinary classes and mentoring young chefs. He loved helping others.
Mike loved the CIA and was very proud of his Alma Mater. He was very involved in recruiting externs and participated in many career fairs at the CIA over the past several years.
Mike was very involved in community outreach and worked closely with many schools. He cooked for many fundraisers and also made gingerbread houses with several students in the local schools over the past several years. Mike served at his church in teaching children on Sunday mornings. He was also involved in feeding the homeless.
Mike was married to his wife Juliene for 27 years. He had three children – Jasmine Thyme, Daisy Saffron and William Sage. When he wasn’t in the kitchen, Mike loved spending time with his family and traveling.
Two of Mike’s favorite mottos were: “If you are going to do something, do it the very best that you can” and “Do it right the first time.” He expected the very best because that is what he strived to do each day!
“Chef Wallace earned the right to lead with his Faith, Family and Culinary profession by putting his heart and soul into everything he did! From culinary innovation, extraordinary vision, passion, leading big teams and achieving extraordinary industry results, Chef Wallace was an ACE in everything he did and with everyone whom he came in contact with. Chef Wallace’s legacy and torch will be carried on for decades because of his dedication, passion and extraordinary spirit to serve others!”
David Clark, Former General Manager, The Grand Hotel
“’If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life.’ That was the quote in the opening paragraph of a cover letter that Mike Wallace sent to me on August 6, 2015 when he applied for our Executive Chef position at New Orleans Country Club. Chef Mike was a man of faith, the consummate family man, a tremendously talented Executive Chef and just a genuinely good, loyal guy who made this world a better place. I am convinced of that in just the brief time that I knew him. He was a proud graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and the CIA can be assured that he was a disciple of their teachings and an extraordinary leader. The skills he constantly mentioned to me to be most important in an Executive Chef’s tool box were: Quality, Service, Structure, Creativity, Innovation, Hard Work, Ethics and Loyalty. I cannot think of more important qualities. I think about him often. Everyone who knew him will miss him dearly, even those who only knew him for a short time.”
Bobby Crifasi, CCM, CCE, CPA, General Manager, New Orleans Country Club