David began his career in food and wine at a seemingly unlikely place—the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Oberlin, Ohio. While earning degrees in music composition and conducting, he worked his way through school in various restaurants and catering businesses. This bizarre and mysterious restaurant life took hold of him, eventually culminating in his graduating first in his class from the Culinary Institute of America, in Hyde Park, New York.

David continued working both in the front-of-the-house and in the kitchen at various restaurants on the East Coast, including working with Lydia Shire and Susan Regis at Biba and Pignoli in Boston. With the encouragement of friends and the attraction of the booming restaurant scene in Los Angleles (not to mention the weather), he decided to move west, where, in 2001, he became the general manager at Röckenwagner Restaurant in Santa Monica. In addition to helping the restaurant attain its first of many Wine Spectator awards, he oversaw the concept change, redesign, and remodeling of both Hans Röckenwagner’s Marina Del Rey restaurant, Röck (later Ballona Fish Market) in 2002, and Röckenwagner itself in 2003.

Also, to prove he doesn’t only like to work on the coasts, David consulted on the opening and wine list development of Bluestem in Kansas City, Missouri, which was recently named the Best Restaurant in Kansas City by both Kansas City Magazine and the Zagat Guide, and whose chef, Colby Garrelts, was named one of the Best New Chefs of 2005 by Food and Wine Magazine.

In 2003, he went on to manage Zax Restaurant in Brentwood, and joined the team at Josie in 2005, bringing his expertise in cost control, new project development, and strategic long-range planning, as well as a broad knowledge of the world of food and wine.