Chefwear's Original Fan Club

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Rochelle Huppin designed her original Baggy pants because she wanted to wear something comfortable and fashionable to work every day, not because she wanted to revolutionize the culinary apparel industry. But within a year of their introduction, Rochelle’s custom 100% cotton elastic waist pants would take the kitchen by storm. And if it weren’t for one fund raising event and a few amazing chefs, we might still be wearing the stiff 100% polyester belted pants from the days of old.

While working as a pastry chef for Wolfgang Puck at Spago, Rochelle wore her custom chef pants proudly. Coworkers instantly noticed the vastly different fit and fabric that set her pants apart from others. They began asking about the Baggy pants; “How do they feel?” “How do they hold up?” and most importantly, “How can I get a pair?”

During a 1990 Wolfgang Puck Meals on Wheels event, Rochelle gave Chef Puck, and a few other highly respected chefs (Waxman, Valiani, Denton, Flay) a pair of the Baggy chef pants. The original Baggy pants made such a huge impression that they asked for more. These chefs are still some of Chefwear’s biggest fans.

Wolfgang Puck has been a huge supporter of Chefwear. He has been featured on three Chefwear Magazine covers; Spring 2002, Holiday 2002, and June 2004. Wolfgang’s Postsrio Las Vegas also hosted Chefwear’s 20th anniversary celebration on January 24th, 2010.

Shortly after the Meals on Wheels event, Chef Jonathon Waxman opened Table 29 in Napa. With his new restaurant, he wanted a new uniform and called on Rochelle to design Chefwear’s first custom printed fabric (Red and White Houndstooth). In 1993, he appeared on the cover of one of the earliest Chefwear Magazines. Since then, he has been one of the company’s most devoted clients, making TV appearances and outfitting all of his restaurants in Chefwear.

Superstar chef Bobby Flay also received a custom made pair of Baggy pants at the Meals on Wheels event. As Chef Flay’s career blossomed, so did Chefwear. In April of 1994, Flay’s Mesa Grill in New York hosted a Chefwear Magazine photo shoot.

Chefs Marc Valiani and Jody Denton seemed to always come as a pair. Their careers running parallel, Marc and Jody both worked under Chef Dean Ferring, Wolfgang at Spago, and then together again as partners at Restaurant LuLu in San Francisco. At each stop they wore Chefwear. Both chefs have also been featured in some of the earliest 1991-1993 Chefwear Magazines. When Chef Marc Valiani passed away in 2011, Chefwear donated a portion of the profits from one of our most popular prints, Black and White Houndsooth, to benefit “Project A.L.S.”

After the Meals on Wheels event, word started spreading about Rochelle’s Baggy chef pants. A Los Angeles Times article in June, 1991 prompted over 150 phone calls in 3 days. Joaquim Splichal and Michael Mina were among the first to request the Baggy pants. Chef Splichal’s first order was for 100 pants as holiday gifts to his kitchen staff at Patina. Chef Mina tasked Rochelle with creating a custom print (Aqua Sea Life) for his new restaurant Aqua. He also offered up Aqua for the first on-location Chefwear Magazine shoot and he was featured on the cover in 1993.