Every morning when Ivy Hung woke up, she had a recipe in her head.
Working in the graphic design and high fashion industry in California, Ms. Hung was able to express her creative side, but only at night could she indulge her love of cooking, often by hosting dinner parties that showcased her ideas.
“I realized I needed to do something with these recipes to keep my sanity,” says Ms. Hung. “I needed to follow my dream.”
In a matter of years, Ms. Hung received a degree from the French Culinary Institute in New York, tackled game cuisine in Wyoming and Colorado and is now ready to influence the university’s dining offerings as Sodexo’s new executive chef with GW’s Dining Services.
“We are thrilled about bringing Chef Hung on board at GW,” says Sam Ramos, general manager of Sodexo Campus Services at the George Washington University. “Her knowledge of international cuisines makes her the perfect addition to our team.”
At GW, Ms. Hung will oversee all culinary aspects of the university’s campus dining program. She will focus on developing more healthy dining options and incorporating local food into menus. Ms. Hung will also concentrate on training and development for the culinary team that sparks creativity and hones skills.
A native of Hong Kong, Ms. Hung describes her cooking as a fusion of West Coast style with global influences and an emphasis on seasonal, fresh ingredients. “When I create recipes, I do pairings with seasonings and herbs that also happen to be good for the body,” she says.
Ms. Hung’s passion for cooking began right on her family’s dining table. She describes her mom as an “excellent chef” who valued ingredient quality and variety.
‘There were always a lot of dishes every day on the family table,” says Ms. Hung. “When I ate at friends’ houses, I quickly realized that not every family ate like mine.”
After graduating from the French Culinary Institute in 2003, Ms. Hung received fine dining training from renowned chef Mario Lohninger at Danube, a premiere high end restaurant in Tribeca. “People would come for four course dinners at 11 p.m. and I wouldn’t leave until 2 a.m.,” says Ms. Hung.
She then brought her fine dining knowledge to resorts in Wyoming and Colorado, where she worked with game meats and regional food for three years.
Ms. Hung next worked in Hong Kong and England before arriving at GW, where she hopes to incorporate her global culinary exposure and love of teaching.
“My style and philosophy in terms of cooking—as well as approach to mentoring—is very in line with where Sodexo at GW wants to go in terms of direction,” she says. “I believe everyone has something to bring that’s their strength and style. Everyone works best when they are being themselves.”
Ms. Hung is not worried about pleasing GW’s diverse student body—as well as their varied diets.
“People love life and embrace life in their own way, and you have to respect other people’s tastes,” she says. “So that’s why, while I want to introduce new kinds of foods and backgrounds, I want my food to be inclusive. If it’s approachable and simple, people will eat it.”