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Get To Know Chef Patrick Tanyag

By chefhollywood88

“The minute you pigeon-hole yourself into a particular niche or dismiss other cultures and ideas… you stop growing as a chef.”

Chef Patrick Tanyag  

Corporate Executive Chef – Sweetbake INC / Culinary Consultant

“Eat everything!!! Seriously, EAT ALL THE THINGS! The curiosity and passion I put into trying new things and experiencing everything is what I attribute the most to my success and ability to pivot as a chef.”

Chef Patrick Tanyag or as many know him as Dahangrychef is definitely one of the most dynamic and interesting chefs you will ever meet.  Hailing from the DC area he is currently the Corporate Executive Chef for Sweetbake INC as well as a Culinary Consultant for Bunpapa, Bread and Water Company, and Beeliner Diner just to name a few.  “Currently, I’m responsible for designing menus, conceptualizing new ideas, and overall just making sure none of the locations catch fire! I have a big hand in operations especially as it relates to the food but also advise and assist with more business-oriented strategizing. I’m also the I.T. Guy and designated smart-ass. I guess you could say I’m a jack of all trades. Whatever it takes!”  That whatever it takes attitude is what makes Chef Patrick so sought after, and it doesn’t hurt that he he has 20 plus years in the industry under his belt either.  

After attending The Art Institute of DC for a while, he choose to break off and do more on the job training.  This wasn’t his first introduction into the culinary field though, that came a lot earlier in his life.  “I was a ‘latch-key’ kid growing up. I spent a lot of time alone after school and grew up watching Julia Child and Martin Yan. I had a very keen interest in cooking from very young and those shows helped nurture that. As I grew older, Thomas Keller, Grant Achatz and Wylie Dufresne became the chefs that inspired me to keep learning and working on my craft.”  That inspiration paid off and then some because now Chef Patrick is inspiring up and coming chefs and has shares his wisdom with the next generation. “Do it because you love it. Do it because you dissect every dish you come into contact with. Do it because you enjoy experiencing new things all the time. Do it because you love food and feeding people. The things you will have to sacrifice isn’t worth anything less. Passion should be your main motivator.”

With everything on his plate, and all of the things he’s already accomplished in his career you’d think that Chef Patrick would be ready for a break.  It’s actually the opposite, and he just experienced one of his proudest professional moments yet. “When I started consulting again not too long ago after the pandemic started, it opened up a bunch of doors for me. Made me realize that there was more than one way to be successful. And right now, this very moment. I’m the most happy and fulfilled I’ve been in a very long time. The moment I realized that I didn’t have to rely on anyone to do the things I needed to do… definitely the proudest I’ve ever been of myself and the path I’ve chosen.”  As you get to know Chef Patrick you quickly realize that this path might have actually chosen him.  “Being a chef is an escape. A way to express myself creatively while using all of the senses.  For most, cooking is a means to an end. A Chore. A mundane task one does to keep from starving. To me its so much more than that. Some of the deepest conversations and most meaningful relationships in my life have almost always involved a pretty plate of food.”  From all of his passion for the culinary world down to how he feels about being a chef, he is the epitome of what the industry needs and lucky for us he has so much more up his sleeve. 

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