1. Favorite thing you’ve ever cooked?

Fish sticks and tartar sauce. It’s the last thing I cooked for my father before he passed. At the time, he wasn’t eating much at all but one day, at his bedside, he kept telling me how much he wanted some fish sticks and tartar sauce. It was boxed fish sticks, and I made the tartar sauce. No creativity, no special techniques. I was just at his service, trying to nurture him, and it made him so happy. It was about giving, filling another’s bucket.

2. Kitchen tool or equipment you couldn’t live without?

Professionally, a high-quality blender. Let it rip!

3. What pantry items would you bring on a desert island?

Good olive oil, great short grain rice like Koshihikari, a vinegary hot sauce, some kind of pickle (kimchi, haam choy, or kraut), and salt or tamari.

4. What restaurants in D.C. would you consider yourself a regular at?

Honestly, I eat at Oyster Oyster every night, haha, so I don’t get out very often. But when I do, I’m probably at Yellow or Stracci Pizza the most.

5. Favorite cookbook?

I don’t like the idea of “favorites,” it can lock you in, and I think it prevents growth. I have around 300 cookbooks. But one that was very important to me wasn’t really about the recipes.

A few years into cooking, I started to think I’d made a mistake becoming a cook. I had even begun the admissions process to go back to school for graphic design. The chef I was working for gave me Éric Ripert’s “A Return to Cooking.” The expression in that book, the travel, the joy, the art, it all grounded my choice of profession. That was 20 years ago, and the rest is history.

6. Your drink of choice?

I rarely drink alcohol, so probably Ya Shi Xiang Dan Cong tea (yes, you read that right!), or a great ceremonial matcha, or a very good seasonal small-batch kombucha.

7. Favorite food movie?

“Dinner Rush.” It’s great, kind of a mob/”Sopranos” vibe set in a busy NYC restaurant, with late ’90’s and early 2000’s tropes. A fun watch. For the team at Oyster Oyster, it’s kind of a cult classic now.

8. You’re hosting a dinner party. What are the vibes?

I like an eclectic group of people at a dinner party. When everyone comes from the same bubble, the conversation and experience can feel a bit one-note. I’d rather keep it lively — artists, chefs, musicians, doctors, people from different worlds around the same table.

When I host, I usually like the cuisine to have a theme or common thread. It might be Mexico City-inspired, red-sauce New Jersey, Korean anju, or backyard wood-fired pizza. Everything is served family-style and meant to feel convivial.

9. What restaurant industry person do you admire the most?

Every single person who cooks for kids. People like Dan Giusti with Brigaid.

10. The greatest dining experience of your life so far?

They’re all memorable in their own way, and I’ve been fortunate to have some incredible meals throughout my career. One that really stands out happened back in 2010.

My wife and I had been hiking around the Southwest and ended up at Pizzeria Bianco. I’m not usually a fan of waiting in lines, but this one was impossible to ignore. The sun was setting, the air was cooling down, and everyone was just enjoying the moment. We’d take turns grabbing glasses of wine and a few snacks from Bar Bianco while we waited.

At one point you could see Chris Bianco himself run out of the restaurant to grab herbs and figs from the trees next to the building. There was a spontaneity to the whole experience; it felt communal, almost whimsical. And when the pizza finally arrived, it certainly didn’t disappoint.

11. Your greatest professional achievement?

Taking the leap to focus on sustainable food systems, leaving a lot of my training and recipes behind and starting fresh with Oyster Oyster. It was a leap of faith, and the way it’s been received, along with having a team that believes in it, is such an honor. This year we turn five and I’m ready to keep pushing.

12. What single dish best describes your personality?

That’s not something I’ve ever really thought about. Maybe spaghetti aglio e olio. It’s confident in its simplicity, delicious, and for some people, maybe it has a little too much garlic — but that’s alright.

13. If you could go back in time, which restaurant would you dine at?

The French Laundry in 1999. It seems like a special moment in that restaurant’s history.

14. Your favorite meal from childhood?

Crabbing with my grandfather in the summer and then eating them for hours at night, picking the meat and dipping it in drawn butter.

15. What is your wish for the restaurant industry?

For independent restaurants to get a leg up in this world. We need better support for genuine, creative, responsible restaurants so this industry remains a real profession and the craft continues. Otherwise, we’re all going to end up eating corporate slop bowls.

16. What do you wish you did better? What do you do well?

I’m always looking to improve, personally or technically. I try to never become complacent. There’s always something to learn, and I think that answer covers both questions.

17. If you could eat through a city for a day, where would you go?

Seoul in Korea. I’ve never been, and I’d love to spend a day there with my wife, hitting up all the pojangmacha, visiting the amazing bakeries, and then ending the evening somewhere elegant, like Mosu or Mingles.

18. The one thing you can’t resist splurging on when you go out?

That’s tough. I love a great lunch four-course prix-fixe, a lovely dining room. Sign me up. And add a dozen oysters.

19. What do you value most in restaurants?

The way they can make you feel. When a restaurant is genuine and the team feels great and they express that, you feel it too. You just can’t beat that.

20. It’s your last meal on earth, what are you eating?

I don’t like to think of endings, but rather, beginnings.

Deanna Ting is Resy’s Cities Editor. Follow her on Instagram. Follow Resy, too.