The Journey from Pastry Chef to Business Owner, With an Affinity for Gourmet Desserts.
Melanie Parker is a Washington, DC, Native who loves “Baking People Happy.”
Melanie Parker is a Washington, DC native who loves “Baking People Happy.” Her specialty… gourmet desserts. She has been a pastry chef in many of the city’s best kitchens. In 2002, Chef Parker graduated from the L’Academie de Cuisine in Gaithersburg, MD., earning a Culinary Arts degree. Following her academic training, Melanie apprenticed under Tracey O’Grady at Bocuse d’Or in Lyon, France. The 701 Restaurant, located in the DC’s Penn Quarter, tapped Parker to join the staff in 2010. Chef Parker served as the pastry chef at Founding Farmers and Equinox also in DC. Her education and experience were the foundation needed to launch Mel’s Munchies some years later.
In 2008 and 2009, the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington, nominated Parker as “Pastry Chef of the Year”. Washington Post food critic, Tom Sietsm, noted, “Parker tweaks tradition. She re-thinks classic dessert dishes.”
Chef Parker created signature dishes for the Black Restaurant Group at two of their acclaimed restaurants, Addie’s in Rockville, Maryland, and Black Salt Fish Market & Restaurant in Washington, DC. The Madison Hotel, The Sofitel Lafayette Square, Kinkead’s, and Colvin Run Tavern in Vienna, VA., were also recipients of Chef Parkers’ creativity.
Now, she is offering years of training and experience to the world. She loves sharing her gift with all that have an affinity for hand crafted decadence. Love and time tested dedication are the key ingredients in everything that Chef Parker creates.
