5 Questions for Chef Jakob (Jake) Peterson

Chef Jakob Peterson’s fine-dining background includes sous cheffing at Chicago’s Michelin-starred Acadia, followed by leadership roles with Etta. He later helped open Acadia House Provisions in Stonington, Maine, before returning to Chicago and partnering with restaurateur Steve Gogolab to launch Dēliz in late 2025. He currently serves as Dēliz’s executive chef.

Meet Chef Jakob Peterson

Q: What made you first want to be a chef?

A: I told my parents I wanted to be a chef when I was 10 years old. I have a strong food history—my mom’s side of the family opened the first grocery store in Redondo Beach. She let me start cooking my own ramen when I was in kindergarten. That snowballed into letting me cook alongside her. I would also watch Food Network stars Bobby Flay and Tyler Florence and try to recreate their dishes for dinner.

Q: What are your favorite fall ingredients?

A: Definitely fall mushrooms, truffles and white Alba truffles we fly in from Italy. Even though mushrooms can be a pain because you have to clean them really well, especially the foraged ones. And you have to make sure you’re buying from someone who really knows what they’re doing.

Q: What’s your favorite equipment in the kitchen?

A: Our Grillworks live-fire grill. Open-fire cooking gives our steaks a great crust and a great char, which translates to flavor. We like cherrywood for flavor, but it burns quickly, so we mix it with oak for a longer, cleaner burn, and charcoal to retain heat. We also have a wood-fired oven that we use for our shellfish elevation with oysters, scallops and lobster.

Q: What’s your favorite Italian dish?

A: Any pasta hits home because it’s something I was literally raised on as a kid. Right now, I’m pretty proud of our wild boar bolognese—I cook it in stock instead of heavy tomato sauce, and add wine and guanciale, and serve it over tagliardi that we make. It’s pure rustic Italian cooking.

Q: What are you working on next?

A: My mom always joked that the only side of the family that really matters when you’re Italian is the Italian side. I’ve been cooking Italian for a long time, but I’m excited to branch out and bring in some more global influences and techniques from my days at Acadia.