South Jersey native Dylan Sambalino had a long journey before becoming chef de cuisine at Hearthside in Collingswood, New Jersey. Dylan grew up cooking with his dad, a former restaurant owner who was always cooking elaborate meals for the family. His passion for food led him to the prestigious four-year culinary arts program at Johnson and Wales in Denver.
After culinary school, Dylan stayed in Denver and worked at hotspots around the city. He took a job at Trattoria Stella as a prep cook and worked his way to sous chef under Valentino Ujkic before ending up at The Populist under Kathryn Caine as a line cook.
Fueled by a desire to work within the Michelin bracket, Dylan found his way to Range in San Francisco, where he was named lead line cook under Chef Phil West. His experience there brought him to the Michelin-starred restaurant, Al’s Place, working under Chef Aaron London, where he worked his way from the prep room to the hotline.
After exploring the culinary scene out west, Dylan headed back home to the Philadelphia region. He honed his butcher skills at Kensington Quarters as a butcher’s assistant under Jake Wilson, now head butcher at Primal Supply. For a few months, he worked at the tasting menu-driven Talula’s Table in Kennett.
When he caught wind of Chef Dominic Piperno’s project, Hearthside, opening in the town near where he grew up, he knew he had to be a part of the opening team. Dylan joined Hearthside a few weeks before its doors opened. Under Chef Dominic at Hearthside, Dylan quickly mastered all the stations and worked his way to sous chef, learning to master the hearth and source the best ingredients to create dishes. Within two years of the restaurant’s opening, he was named chef de cuisine.
As chef de cuisine, Dylan is responsible for collaborating on new, inventive, seasonal dishes with Executive Chef Dominic. He has used his coast-to-coast experience to develop popular dishes such as the Char Siu Pork Belly, Grilled Octopus with butternut squash, palapa, and hazelnuts, and Hamachi Tartare with Asian pear, puffed rice, and bulgogi vinaigrette.
