Chef Dave, as known to his friends, graduated from the New England Culinary Institute after attending the University of Georgia.

He then gained valuable experience in New York City. "I was fortunate enough to work for some great chefs who pride themselves on training the next generation of chefs." His teachers included, Christian Delouvrier at Les Celebrites, Michael Romano at Union Square Cafe, Erik Maillard at The Mark Hotel, and John DiLeo at Zoe. After almost five years in New York, he headed to the South. "I wanted to go fishing year round," he pleads.

He became the chef at Azalea in Atlanta for a brief time before joining J Mac's Island Restaurant on St. Simons. Chef Dave's 3 years at J Mac's as executive chef was another learning experience. "The locals of St. Simons taught me a great deal about appreciating personal time and finding more of it."

Now as chef and owner, his goal is to develop a team that will enable Halyards to expand into a family of restaurants. "By maintaining a level of professionalism that pays attention to detail, our obtained daily goals will help us to achieve our long term goal," he explains, "which is to become an industry leader in the South."

When not a work, Chef Dave spends time fishing, listening to the blues or just hanging out with his two yellow labs.