South Florida's Hottest Chefs: the Calendar (Plus Q&A with Charlie Soo of Talay Thai, a.k.a. Mr. September)

Myhotchefs.com recently rolled out a calendar featuring a dozen of South Florida's hottest chefs. We won't tell you our favorite (but we do have one!), so you can judge for yourself.By "hottest," the calendar creators didn't factor in looks, but rather reputation. Alas, we were still excited when we got...

By Devin Desjarlais

August 9, 2010

[
        {
          "name": "GPT - Billboard - Slot Inline - Content - Labeled - No Desktop",
          "component": "16971022",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "15769925",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "16575154",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "GPT - Rectangle 2x - Slot Auto-select - Labeled",
          "component": "15782206",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "16575154",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "GPT - Leaderboard to Tower - Slot Auto-select - Labeled",
          "component": "15782207",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

Myhotchefs.com recently rolled out a calendar featuring a dozen of South Florida's hottest chefs. We won't tell you our favorite (but we do have one!), so you can judge for yourself.

By "hottest," the calendar creators didn't factor in looks, but rather reputation. Alas, we were still excited when we got lucky enough to snag an interview with Mr. September -- who had the guts to tell us how awesome he is!

The perks of buying the calendar don't end at 12 months of staring at

attractive chefs. Oh no, you get a $25 dining certificate to each of the

chef's restaurants. That's a $300 value, peeps.

And the winners are...

Janurary - Allen Susser (Taste Gastropub)

February - Dudley Bell Rich III (Carmen's at the Top of the Bridge)

March - Fabian Basabe (Da Vittorio)

April - Cindy Hutson (Ortanique on the Mile)

May - David Hagan (City Cellar)

June - Jayme Franklin (Cuoco Pazzo)

July - Bruce Feingold (DaDa)

August - Zach Bell (Cafe Boulud)

September - Charlie Soo (Talay Thai)

October - Brian Rutherford (Bistro Mezzaluna)

November - Michael Wagner (Lola's on Harrison)

December - Douglas Rodriguez (D. Rodriguez Cuba)

And now for the feature presention,... Mr. September, Charlie Soo!

How does it feel to be so sexy?

I don't feel sexy. I'm a chef. I's a hard job and you work a lot. But it feels great, and if it helps the restaurant and my people, then I'm happy.

Did someone nominate you?

The young lady who put it together. She might've thrown me in for color, because when she first asked, I was like, "you can't find any other hot chefs?" But I can be the token guy. She definitely wasn't going by looks and talent if I'm in there. She was going by reputation. The restaurant is banging, but I can't say the chef is hot.

So...what'd you wear?

We sat down for a photo shoot. I wore my chef's jacket. I think a lot of chefs would've dropped out if we had to wear something sexy because we're out of shape. Of course I'm not. I ride my bike to work every day.

You're so modest.

When you think about it, it's more my service and my bartenders than me. They all make me look good, so that's why I got the award.

Do you have a picture of yourself hanging in the kitchen?

I don't even know what picture she used. She was going to put this pic of me in an ape outfit, but thank god she didn't.

Do you think the calendar will bring more business?

I honestly don't know. It can't get much better than it is now. But I guess when you start from the bottom, everything looks good.

KEEP NEW TIMES FREE... Since we started New Times, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of South Florida, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.