A Chef’s Success

From Point A to the A-List

Interview by Anna Gilchrist | Photography courtesy of Paula LeDuc Fine Catering & Events

“I became a chef by accident,” admits Chef Daniel Capra. As a natural creative, Capra’s teenage years were marked by a strong passion for the visual arts and music. He spent his time playing in a band and focusing on visual arts as part of a magnet school program. At age sixteen, Capra began working at a movie theater to support his artistic endeavors. Its kitchen featured a double-decker pizza oven, six deep fryers, and a sandwich station.

“Early on, I expected to succeed in music. The ‘kitchen thing’ never crossed my mind as a possible career path. It wasn’t until my mid-twenties that I had an ‘aha’ moment,” he recalls. Capra credits the turning point in his culinary journey to what he calls the “failure” of his music career. Stepping away from the aspiration led to a chance introduction to a Washington, D.C.-based chef, Greggory Hill. The encounter changed his trajectory forever. “His approach to food and menu development was truly art. That’s when it clicked for me—cooking is another form of (disciplined) art.”

Chef Daniel Capra, Executive Chef and Partner at Paula LeDuc Fine Catering & Events in Emeryville, California

Today, Capra is the Executive Chef and Partner at Paula LeDuc Fine Catering & Events in Emeryville, California. As a renowned chef dedicated to culinary art, he brings signature creativity, personality, and passion for food sustainability to every detail of his work on incredible weddings and other high-end events.

VIE: Tell us a little about your background. Where are you from, what was your early culinary journey, and what led you to Paula LeDuc Fine Catering & Events?

Chef Daniel Capra: I was born in Detroit, grew up in Virginia Beach, Virginia, spent some time in Iowa City, back to Virginia, drove to San Diego after high school and spent a year there, went back to Virginia for a few months, and then I moved to New Orleans where I spent ten years. While there, I met the most incredible woman, Ashley. We moved to the Bay Area in 2000 as she was returning to work at Paula LeDuc Fine Catering. Though I was interviewing at restaurants, I began working in the kitchen at PLD. I took on a sous chef position, and after a few years, I advanced to become the executive chef. A few years after that, I was actually ready to be the executive chef—ha!

VIE: Your work has taken you from the East Coast to New Orleans to San Francisco. How have those different culinary landscapes influenced your style in the kitchen today?

Chef Capra: Great question, and only recently have I understood the true answer. My early years at the movie theater (and then a vegetarian café) were about kitchen mechanics, flow, functionality, multitasking, endurance, and timing. In New Orleans, in addition to honing the skills I already had, it was about exposure to a range of ingredients, techniques, cultures, tools, and mentors. Once I arrived in the Bay Area, it was about locality, seasonality, and the expansion of techniques and cultures. Most importantly, I learned how to taste. I’m confident I had an “okay” palette and had been “cooking well” for years. I understood some specific flavors and flavor combinations, but the emphasis was on the action of getting the food on the plate, with very little explanation of how to taste it. I learned how to appreciate the taste of food in California.

VIE: You’ve cooked for everyone from President Obama to Oprah. Is there a particular moment or event that you credit as the most defining experience in your career?

Chef Capra: Crikey, I’ve been fortunate to experience what feels like career-defining moments every few months. Some stand out in scale—like the 2003 Gala Dinner with Chef Daniel Boulud or Sean Parker’s wedding weekend in Big Sur in 2013. Others have been more rooted in purpose, such as our 2019 partnership with World Central Kitchen to support furloughed workers or our ongoing collaborations with nonprofits like Foodwise, La Cocina, SF-Marin Food Bank, Tipping Point, and the Agricultural Institute of Marin. But more often, the moments that stay with me are quieter: watching team members in our kitchen grow into leadership roles, then turn around and mentor others with the same care they were shown. I still love what I do, and any success I’ve had is shared with the people I work alongside every day.

VIE: In your eyes, what truly sets Paula LeDuc apart from others in the competitive world of fine catering and events?

Chef Capra: What truly sets Paula LeDuc apart is the integrity and creativity our team brings to every event. We’re not just executing a service—we’re crafting experiences with thoughtfulness and intention. Creativity drives us, but never at the expense of quality or our values. We pay close attention to the details others might overlook, and we’re honest about our limits. If we feel taking on a project could compromise the standards of another, we’ll say no. That kind of discipline isn’t always easy, but it’s part of what allows us to consistently deliver something extraordinary. Even in high-pressure moments, there is a sense of joy and collaboration that fuels everything we do.

Paula LeDuc Fine Catering & Events produces premier culinary experiences for all occasions, from intimate to extravagant.

VIE: How would you describe the food and experience provided by Paula LeDuc Catering & Events to someone who has never experienced it?

Chef Capra: We strive to bring a restaurant experience to a backyard, a beachfront, a hangar, a museum, etc. We create and customize menus per event based on the client’s preferences, leaning into seasonality, creativity, and an array of tastes.

VIE: What inspires the menus you create for Paula LeDuc? Is there a specific philosophy or seasonal rhythm you follow when designing an event menu? Do your personal preferences ever influence the menu design?

Chef Capra: When working on a menu, I begin with a list of ingredients that will be in season and break out a few ways I might showcase each one, as well as what would pair best with a specific fish, cut of meat, duck, or game hen. I ask what should stand out on its own or what might work well in a pasta filling or sauce. I’m a huge fan of incorporating fruit into savory dishes, and throughout the year, we preserve, pickle, can, and dry various market gems to use throughout the year. The gardens and farms we work with play a vital role in the dishes we create.

VIE: How do you maintain the same artistry and attention to detail when designing dishes for intimate gatherings versus large-scale events?

Chef Capra: The creative process is always the same—whether it’s dinner for twelve or a gala for twelve hundred. We dream big, chase flavor, and obsess over the details. That said, during the brainstorming phase, there’s usually a moment when someone on the team gently (or not-so-gently) asks, “So… how exactly are we going to pull that off?” That’s when the fun starts. Sometimes, it leads to a brilliant workaround, and sometimes, it’s a full-on “back to the drawing board” moment, complete with coffee, laughter, and a healthy dose of humility. But no matter the scale, the goal is always the same: to create something beautiful, delicious, and memorable.

VIE: What’s your favorite dish?

Chef Capra: One answer is duck and andouille gumbo. Other options include moules frites (steamed mussels), a smashburger, a perfectly ripe peach with olive oil and parmesan, or fried chicken with a side of fries. How could I possibly choose one favorite dish when there are so many fantastic options?

VIE: The Beaulieu Garden is a unique part of your culinary process at Paula LeDuc. How does having access to a private estate garden influence your sourcing and creativity?

Chef Capra: What we grow in the garden reminds us how little it takes for something to shine—a squeeze of lemon, a drizzle of olive oil—and yet how much must align for it to even reach the plate. The garden is more than a source of ingredients; it’s a quiet meditation on resilience, impermanence, and wonder. From seedling to harvest, each step is vulnerable to forces beyond our control—too much rain, too little, an unexpected frost, or the whim of a hungry blue jay. It’s a humbling reminder that creation is as much about surrender as it is about intention.

VIE: Beyond the kitchen, you’re involved in philanthropic efforts and serve on the Foodwise board. What drives your commitment to food justice, and how do you bring those values to life through your work at Paula LeDuc?

Chef Capra: At the heart of my commitment to food justice is a deep respect for the people who grow, harvest, and prepare our food. Farmers, producers, kitchen teams, and service staff are the foundation of our industry—and yet they’re often the most overlooked and under-protected. Through my work with Foodwise and other organizations, I’ve seen how powerful education can be in shifting this narrative: connecting people more deeply to where their food comes from, who’s behind it, and why equity in the food system matters. At Paula LeDuc, these values show up in the choices we make every day—supporting local farms, building relationships rooted in fairness, and creating opportunities for mentorship and growth within our team. Food should nourish more than just the body; it should sustain communities and affirm dignity at every level of the process.

VIE: Looking ahead, are there any upcoming projects or events you’re particularly excited about?

Chef Capra: As I am answering these questions, my kitchen is wrapping up production for the SF Jazz Gala this evening. It’s going to be an incredible event honoring Don Was. He’s such a brilliant artist. Next week, the kitchen will conquer about 200 lbs of plums for plum jam and plum chutney. In August, I always look forward to a three-day music festival, Outside Lands, and the food we do in the VIP Golden Gate Club section. In September, one of my favorite dinners is a fundraiser for the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank. There’s a lot on our calendar to get excited about.

VIE: What advice would you give young chefs or culinary students hoping to follow in your footsteps?

Chef Capra: Don’t rush. Understand, loud and clear, you are going to make mistakes, and you will experience failure. We all have, and we all still do. It’s essential that you take the time to reflect on and learn from those moments, deciding whether to embrace humility and move ahead with grace or feed your ego with excuses and blame others, thereby limiting your growth. Believe in yourself. As Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.”

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Visit PaulaLeDuc.com and follow @paulaleduc and @chefdanielcapra on Instagram to learn more, or contact the team.