Come Early, Stay Late
ABOUT BRIAN MALARKEY Brian Malarkey has been a professional chef for more than 20 years. During that time, he has worked under renowned chef Michel Richard at Citrus in Los Angeles, under Stephen Brown at the Loring Café in Minneapolis, and as a sous chef and then executive chef for the Oceanaire Group. Under his direction, Oceanaire San Diego received more than 60 industry awards in less than five years. Celebrity came to Malarkey when he competed on Bravo s super-popular Top Chef and survived to the final round. He later guest-starred in series on Travel, Bravo, and OWN, and hosted two TLC shows Mega Bites where he claimed the Guinness World Record for World s Largest Rice Krispie Treat (10,314 pounds) and the show Kick Off Cook Off where he teamed with Erin Andrews to judge the cooking talents of superstar football players. He is still in search of that perfect TV venue (maybe on a network with a big foodie personality or two, or three?) but in the meantime he has gained star status in  San Diego through his various events, appearances, and longstanding commitments to charity. Recently, the chef has added restaurateur to his credentials. In 2010, Malarkey and business partner James Brennan opened Searsucker, which became an instant smash and was voted the #2 hottest restaurant in the America by TIME magazine. Since then, Malarkey has played a key role in opening up Burlap, Gingham, Gabardine, and Herringbone, and plans to expand his empire nationally over the next few years. He has won the Diners Choice Award from OpenTable and has been named Chef of the Year by the California Restaurant Association, San Diego Chapter.