I am Ashley McGee – chef, culinary instructor and a mom.
I created this blog, Food All the Ways, to share my passion for food and my stories of life in the hospitality industry.
With this website, I want to share so many things food-related that interest me, including the engaging stories of the hospitality industry, the history and culture of foodways, and the success of other chefs and restaurants that I love. I also want to help people find their inner chef and get excited to cook. I will provide recipes at different levels of skill, help people accommodate different food preferences, figure out how to incorporate healthy foods into delicious meals and also teach people how to cook with proper culinary techniques.
Why should you listen to me? I have been cooking professionally since 1992. And I LOVE FOOD! After getting my Bachelor’s degree in English from UNC, I worked in a corporate setting for a couple years, which let me know that I was not a desk-work person! My first foray into food service was at A Southern Season in Chapel Hill, NC. I decided that I needed to learn more, so I obtained my Associate’s Degree in Culinary Arts from the Culinary Institute of America, graduating first in my class, giving me the opportunity to speak at my own graduation. I fulfilled my food travel dreams by doing my culinary internship in San Francisco, working in a resort in Bermuda and moving to New Orleans to work for acclaimed chef, Susan Spicer, who really inspired the way I cook and think about food.
Later I moved to the Mississippi Delta where I learned to grow my own food and taught my first cooking classes. It was during this time that I found the Southern Foodways Alliance in Oxford, MS, which piqued my interest in the topics concerning why people in certain places and of different cultures eat the things that they do. A couple years later, I opened my own fine-dining restaurant, Stardust, on the Crystal Coast in Morehead City, North Carolina.
Once I became a mom, my focus changed and that is when I started teaching culinary full-time. I have been teaching at Johnson & Wales University in Charlotte, NC, since 2006. It was in that first year that I accomplished my certification with the American Culinary Federation as a Certified Executive Chef. I have been administrating practical exams for the ACF at JWU ever since, helping other chefs acquire their own certifications. I finished my Master of Science degree in Hospitality Management in 2021. At JWU, I teach many introductory skills classes, as well as directed experiential courses, and of course, the food media course which was how I found out about blogging in the first place. I helped create that course to help culinary students learn how to be more successful in doing cooking demonstrations. I have learned more about the dynamic world of food media than I ever imagined possible. I hope to share some of that with you!
At the very least, I have created this blog to leave memories and recipes for the foods I love and that mean so much to me for my two beautiful boys, Ralph and Jack.
Here are links to some of my “Experience & Expertise” content:
One of my favorite times on Charlotte Today with hosts Eugene Robinson and Colleen Odegaard was when comedian Joel McHale decided to be my sous chef, helping me make braised short ribs – you never know what will happen on live television!
This was an interview on WBTV’s QC Life show about tips for hosting Thanksgiving.
Chef Rhonda Stewart and I worked with Yash Mistry (pictured) and DC Lucchesi of Well-Run Media for the production of our podcast, “So Tell Me…Shake and Bake stories of Hospitality.” You’ll have to listen to our intro episode to find out what that means.
I’ve been teaching at JWU in Charlotte, NC since 2006. This link is to my faculty bio where you can get more information about me and the school.
I consider Susan Spicer not only my mentor but also a good friend. She included two of my recipes in this cookbook, which I consider such an honor!
I used to do a lot of cooking demos on WCNC before Covid changed everything. In this video, I made one of my favorite things – Roasted Mushroom Farro on the Charlotte Today show.
Click above to watch the 2022 Duke Energy Cookbook Promo where Chef Rhonda Stewart and I taught CMS Paw Creek Elementary students how to cook the vegetables they grew at school!
Click above to view the 2022 Duke Energy Digital Cookbook which was distributed to over 8 million Duke Energy customers.
Click above to view the 2023 Duke Energy Digital Cookbook which instead of kids, this year they featured their hard-working line workers and the foods they enjoy.
Here are my professional certifications:
I have been a Certified Executive Chef with the American Culinary Federation since 2006. I also serve as practical exam administrator for those seeking certification in NC. Click the link above to find out what it means to get certified with the ACF.
As a senior culinary instructor at JWU, I recertify my Foodservice Management Professional certification of Food Safety every 5 years. Click the link above to see what that entails.
When I first started teaching at JWU in 2006, I became a Certified Hospitality Educator to help foster my learning strategies to help me be a better teacher. Click the link above to see what that course entails.
This was probably the most fun I ever had getting continuing education credits! Plus I get to say I have my MBBQ certification. Click the link above if you want to do the course yourself – and it is approved by the ACF.
Here are my degrees and alma maters:
I received my Bachelor’s of Arts degree in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1987.
I received my Associate’s of Occupational Science Degree in Culinary Arts from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY in 1996. Click this next underlined part if you want to see a throwback video! I was honored by my class who chose me to give the welcome speech at our graduation. I am still shocked at how young I was 😉
I finished my Master’s of Science Degree in Hospitality Management from Johnson & Wales University in 2021.
