by lance perkins
Chef Paul McCullough grew up in New Jersey with an interesting family dynamic that made him the culinary master that he is today. McCullough explains, “I guess I am the product of a ‘fisherman father’ and a ‘casserole queen’ for a mother (laughs). My dad would take me out on these fantastic fishing adventures.
I was this little scrawny kid on a boat catching these big ol’ fish. He would filet them. He was such an expert. Then he would cook us amazing fish that night.” Paul continues, “My mom was the ‘casserole queen.’ They divorced when I was five. She was all about making food on a budget and whatever was the easiest fastest way to get healthy food on the table. So combined, my childhood consisted of learning cooking with a great combination of casseroles and really amazing high-end food.”
Paul’s first dreams and ambitions were much more of the theatrical than the culinary kind. He elaborates, “As a kid, I performed in a lot of plays and really enjoyed it.” In 1990 McCullough moved to New York and graduated from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy. Paul explains, “After graduation, I thought something amazing and miraculous would happen, like a big wand would come down and I would get this hit Broadway show, TV commercial or movie.
But it really doesn’t happen like that. I didn’t like the struggle and I didn’t like the unpredictability of not knowing when the next job was going to come in.
After four years of trying to make it in New York, Paul decided at 24 years old to move to Los Angeles. “When I first arrived in L.A., I made dinner for this guy I was dating and he got a phone call during dinner from this rich, retired doctor looking for a chef. I met with him and was really honest. I said, ‘You know, I didn’t go to culinary school, but I’m a really good cook.’
So he said, ‘Let’s see how it goes!’ It went really well… he liked me, his dogs liked me and the food was really good.” Paul got a great education not only by teaching himself how to cook, but while working in the doctor’s home, he learned many other things that would help him in the future.
McCullough’s name started getting passed around from person to person because of his culinary talents. Paul explains, “I started catering parties. I came really strong on the scene when Sex and the City was on the air in the late ‘90s. We were good friends with the producers.
So when the cast was in L.A., I would take care of the Los Angeles parties. So the night before they got their first Emmy, we had a big sit-down dinner for 30 people, pulled out all the stops and just kept that whole thing going over the six seasons of the show. It was a really great steady client, four or five times a year when they’d be in L.A.”
Paul has “rubbed shoulders” with countless celebrities as he has catered many photo shoots. Paul exudes, “We’d go all over the place. We’d be one day in Malibu shooting Tom Hanks on the beach and the next day we’d be in Joshua Tree with Darryl Hanna and then another day, we’d be in the studio with the cast from Will and Grace. I loved that because it wasn’t boring. I got to see Tom Hanks in his underwear, Daryl Hannah topless, Ricki Lake after her photo shoot, completely tanked on margaritas!
So it’s fun to get a glimpse of celebrities. Sometimes they have crazy food requests. Beyonce ordered all this amazing food for her crew and staff and then she wanted me to go and pick up Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles. But for the most part, they just want to be treated like everyone else. They don’t really want to be fussed over, but they do want to be treated well and they just want good, basic food.”
Along the way, Paul met his husband, accomplished director, Jeremy Stanford. Paul explains, “Jeremy is a big, tall and blue-eyed Australian. We have been together for 13 years in the spring. We got married last October. Our one-year anniversary was October 16th. It’s funny to be in such a long-term relationship and get married after being in it for so long.
I didn’t think it would feel any differently but it really did. I got married, and I’m really married, this ring on my finger is all legal now. Life couldn’t be any better. We bought a house seven years ago and we have a wonderful dog named Gus that we rescued from a shelter. So it’s funny when I talk to my sister or family who doesn’t live in L.A. and they say, ‘your life sounds so glamorous!’ But you know, it’s my status quo and it’s so normal now for me to have a great husband, a beautiful house and a successful business. I think, ‘hmm, what’s next?’”
That’s precisely why Paul decided to try out for Food Network Star. “I did a lot of cooking on TV for USA Network and got bitten by the TV bug. I had just so much fun with it, so I submitted my application, I got selected for Food Network Star and was in season three. I placed number four. I was in seven of the nine shows.
I hadn’t realized that I had played an integral part of the show until we had the reunion show and all the clips that they showed involved me. I was like, ‘Oh my God! Great!’ Too bad I didn’t win… but I guess everything happens for a reason.”
Many other opportunities have come along for McCullough since. Paul explains, “It certainly has opened a lot of doors. I was on Extra with Aisha Tyler doing a Labor Day segment and KTLA mornings news; I also do a lot of work with charities and advocacy groups. I cater for The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), but I also MC events.” At one event, two members of ‘Team Rainbow’ from last season’s Top Chef, Jamie and Richard battled it out at the “GLAAD Hancock Park – Top Chef Invasion.” Paul elaborates, “There were four celebrity judges and I emceed. I was like, ‘I’m Padma for the day and you’ve got to do what I say (laughter)!’ They had to chop onions, they had to chiffonade basil and had to supreme some oranges. I had to ask questions and comment on what they were doing and how they were doing it. I thought it was the most fun and for a great cause.
I love chatting about food and I love being in front of people. It was a great combination of utilizing my talents with an organization, all for the greater good of the gay and lesbian community.” Paul will be catering the 12th Annual GLAAD Tidings on November 8.
Paul has also been catering special events for City of Hope Cancer Hospital for about seven years. “We’re there three or four days a week, moving and shaking.” Many celebrities have come to pledge their support, Tommy Lasorda, Carol Burnett, Cindy Crawford, Brooke Shields and Janet Jackson just to name a few. Paul said, “It’s fun to cook food for these well-known people. They’re all there for the same reason we are, to make a difference.
To work with charitable food organizations and food entertainment is the best of both worlds. It’s like cooking for a cause. I had a very modest childhood and feel very grateful about my life now. I enjoy being able to give back.”
One of Paul’s goals for the future is to get his cookbook completed by the time he’s 40. “I have over 160 recipes written that need to be revamped. My cooking is always evolving. I also have a few leads on new television projects. I would love to host a cooking show of my own.”
