Today we’d like to introduce you to Roberto Small.
Hi Roberto, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My career in hospitality began in 2009 at the Chart House, where I started as a host at just 17 years old. I began in the front of the house, but I was constantly learning from and spending time with the servers. As soon as I turned 18, I was promoted to server, a role I held through my high school graduation.
Later that year, I enrolled at Johnson & Wales University in Miami to pursue culinary school. Because I was paying for school out of pocket, working was essential. During summer breaks, I returned home and worked as a server at The Cheesecake Factory in Tysons Corner. When classes resumed, I transferred to the Cheesecake Factory at Aventura Mall in Miami, continuing to support myself through school.
Culinary school exposed me to every side of the industry—cooking, bartending, and service. One of my instructors once told me, “Roberto, you’re a great chef, but I think you’ll ultimately end up in front of the house because of your personality.” She was right. Throughout my college years, I worked as a server in a variety of high-end restaurants and luxury hotels across Miami—not just to pay for school, but because I genuinely loved it.
During that time, I had the opportunity to work at prestigious properties including the Mandarin Oriental, the Fontainebleau Hotel, and the opening team of the Nobu Hotel and restaurant in Miami. These experiences gave me a deep understanding of luxury service, consistency, and guest experience at the highest level.
In 2017, I moved to Los Angeles to be part of the opening team for the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills, while also pursuing my career as a private chef. A few months after arriving in L.A., I cooked for Eric Bellinger, who is Megan Good’s brother-in-law. That opportunity led to me becoming the private chef for Megan Good and Devon Franklin. I worked closely with their family for nearly five years, building trusted relationships and refining my skills in personalized, high-level private dining.
While Megan was filming Harlem in New York, I relocated to New York City to continue working with her, while also serving at Zuma New York. Balancing private chef work with restaurant service further strengthened my adaptability and understanding of both personal and high-volume dining environments.
In late 2023, my brother and I partnered to launch our own business in Miami: Yakitori Yatai. This marked our transition into entrepreneurship. We specialized in yakitori—Japanese grilled chicken skewers—along with vegetables and original dishes we developed ourselves. What began as a single pop-up at one bar in Coral Gables grew steadily. Within a year, we were operating regularly at eight different bars across the city.
We ran Yakitori Yatai through late 2023 and all of 2024 before deciding to pause operations temporarily. One of the biggest lessons I took from that experience was the importance of marketing. Being surrounded by other entrepreneurs made it clear how much intentional investment—both time and money—successful businesses put into marketing to sustain growth.
Today, I’m based in Washington, D.C., exploring the launch of my next business venture. My focus is on applying everything I’ve learned—from fine dining and private chef work to pop-ups and entrepreneurship—while placing a much stronger emphasis on branding, marketing, and long-term growth.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It definitely has not been a smooth road. I mean, as grateful as I am, and as much as I look forward to the future and what I’m doing, this is definitely a rocky road. Some of the struggles really are just doing everything on your own without having a corporate office or a big team behind you, investors behind you, or anything. like that
So when I was doing Yakitori Yatai, and it was just me and my brother running the entire production.
Cooking Japanese food is tough when you’re getting a lot of your ingredients from Japan. We were getting benchotan charcoal sent in at 80 bucks a box from Japan. We were getting Japanese Yuzu shipped in from Japan at 70 bucks a liter.
And when you only have two people, it’s up to you to do all the work. So even when you’re professional and you know how to cook, you just end up coming through rocky roads and struggles doing everything on your own, and you only have yourself to blame.
And any excuse/reason that you have or make ultimately is your fault/responsibility. And so to not have corporate to call for certain things because we’re corporate, to not have HR to call certain things for because we’re HR, to not have health insurance because we no longer work for a corporate company was tough.
So all that was new to us and to myself, and it was just a big struggle because anything that we wanted or needed to make happen, good or bad, we had to figure out ourselves.
And so there was no calling out and knowing other employees were going to do X, Y, and Z. There was no blaming it on someone else if we were late for something or if something didn’t come in food and beverage-wise. Everything fell under us, and that is always and will always be a big struggle.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Chef Roberto Antonio is a Hollywood-based private chef known for his refined, seafood-forward cuisine and globally authentic cooking style. A pescatarian since relocating to Los Angeles in 2017, Chef Roberto has built a distinctive culinary identity rooted in his deep respect for seafood—while maintaining mastery across a wide range of international cuisines.
Raised around food and inspired from birth by his father, a professional chef, Roberto always knew the kitchen was his calling. He honed his skills at Johnson & Wales University, where he developed a strong foundation in classical technique and global culinary traditions. That formal training, paired with real-world experience, allows him to cook authentically across cultures—something not every chef can truly claim.
While many expected him to follow the traditional restaurant path, Chef Roberto realized early on that his passion lay in a more personal, elevated experience. His vision was clear: to become a private chef in Hollywood. After graduating, he moved to Los Angeles, secured work in Beverly Hills, and ultimately achieved his goal of cooking for high-profile clients in Hollywood—turning a long-held dream into reality.
Today, Chef Roberto is a trusted name in elite culinary circles. He has been requested to work for nearly every major award show in Los Angeles, including the Oscars, Grammys, Golden Globes, Emmys, and Critics’ Choice Awards. These opportunities reflect not only his technical skill, but also his professionalism, discretion, and ability to perform at the highest level under pressure.
Chef Roberto takes immense pride in the reputation he has built—one defined by passion, precision, and authenticity—and continues to elevate the private dining experience through thoughtful, world-class cuisine.
One thing that truly sets me apart is that I am just as trained, experienced, and passionate about front-of-house service as I am about back-of-house execution. My ability to step seamlessly between the kitchen and the dining room allows me to oversee a restaurant as a complete operation, not just a single department. I understand service, guest experience, communication, and hospitality at the same level that I understand technique, flavor, and execution. This dual perspective allows me to educate, lead, and elevate both front- and back-of-house teams—something not everyone is able to do at a high level, let alone with genuine joy and passion.
Any big plans?
My long-term plan is to relocate back to either Miami or Los Angeles and make a focused investment in my own culinary business, or partner with an established concept that has already demonstrated operational and financial success. While my foundation is as a chef, my future growth is centered on fully understanding and mastering the business side of hospitality.
This includes making strategic investments in marketing, developing a strong grasp of restaurant financials and tax structure, and gaining a clear understanding of employee benefits and compliance as I begin to build a team. My goal is not only to operate a successful business, but to create a company culture that values professionalism, transparency, and long-term growth.
When I am in a position to hire employees, I want to be an employer of choice—one that people are proud to work for, feel supported by, and are motivated to grow with. I believe that investing in people, alongside strong culinary execution and sound business practices, is essential to building a sustainable and respected hospitality brand.
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Image Credits
All the photos were taken on my iphone
