Philip Gelb is a vegan chef based in Oakland, California. Primarily self taught, he is inspired by his love of a variety of ethnic cuisines, particularly Japanese, Thai, Sichuan, Spanish, Italian, Middle Eastern and his grandparents Eastern European Jewish traditions. He has been offering his services as a chef with his catering and personal chef business, Sound and Savor (previously known as In the Mood for Food) for over a decade. He has a relentless and uncompromising approach to fresh, local and seasonal cuisine, disregarding all industrially processed ingredients in favor of making everything from scratch or sourcing  directly from other small local food producers.