Published: Sunday, February 17, 2008 at:12:41 AM



Get To Know:
Executive Chef Evan Lee



While guests (and lucky staff!) are already enjoying the fruits of his thoughtfulness and labor in the kitchens of Bitter End, we are pleased to introduce the resort’s new Executive Chef Evan Lee.

Evan Lee grew up in New England and served the U.S. Air Force in Desert Storm and traveled to Japan, Germany and Bahrain. Always interested in cooking, and the different ways people eat, Evan then studied at the New England Culinary Institute where he received a BA in Hotel Restaurant Management and an Associate degree in Culinary Arts.

He spent some time working for Tufts and Harvard and then returned to the New England Culinary Institute as an instructor. While at NECI, he had the opportunity to become one of the opening chefs for the NECI at H. Lavity Stoutt Community College on Tortola in 2001. And that’s when and where he fell in love with the British Virgin Islands.

“The wonderful people and culture fit my personality well. I had my two young children here with me, and we learned as much as we could about the area and its history,” he says.
Returning to the States, to Arizona, so that his kids could attend high school there, Evan cooked for crowds and for the select few, both as an Executive Chef at a country club in the White Mountains and for Michael’s Catering, a five star-five diamond catering company, where he specialized in catering for such sporting events as the Superbowl, PGA tournament events, as well as for private events for the local sports teams and their players.

Always wishing to return to the BVI, when the opportunity came he leaped on it and is quite happy that he did.

“I ventured past Bitter End many times while fishing or exploring the islands and always wanted to see what it was about. Now I know. I am very happy to be here and hope this is the last job I ever have to start new again.”

In addition to adding zing to the menus at Bitter End, Evan wants to learn to sail and eventually get his captain’s license; he’s always dreamed of owning his own boat and seeing the world again on his terms.

When asked about his favorite dishes, Evan replied:

“The signature dish here at the Bitter End would have to be the Pumpkin soup; it has been a tradition for 30 years. As far as my favorite, I would have to say that creating a dish using fish that was caught only hours before is my favorite thing to prepare. I love fish and nothing tastes sweeter than fresh wahoo!”