The culinary fire of Matt McMillin has been burning since he was 4 years old. Today, McMillin has fostered that fire into a career as a chef, educator, cookbook author, and currently serves as the Chief Culinary Officer at Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurants.
Chief Culinary Officer
Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurants
In May 2010, McMillin joined Cooper’s Hawk, an award-winning modern, casual winery and restaurant that features a Napa-style tasting room, specialty and dining space. In the ever-changing restaurant industry, McMillin has been charged with leading culinary innovation of this concept for tomorrow, for guests to enjoy today.
McMillin also is a frequent host on the Cooper’s Hawk Wine Club trips, travel experiences he shares with some of the most loyal members who are looking to deepen their Cooper’s Hawk community and connection. These excursions take McMillin around the globe where he continues to explore food and flavors to bring back home to the Cooper’s Hawk menu.
In the year prior to joining Cooper’s Hawk, McMillin served as partner to a restaurant consulting company. And as an expert on Chinese and Southeast Asian cooking, he led the growth of Chicago’s famed Big Bowl restaurant for over a decade.
McMillin was a partner in Chicago’s prestigious Lettuce Entertain You restaurant group for 15 years, opening a number of concepts including Big Bowl, Ben Pao, Mity Nice Grill, Shaw’s Crab House, Vong’s Thai Kitchen, amongst others. He has also lent his skills to many of Chicago’s fine French restaurants such as Carlos, Le Francais, and Café Provencal.
In 2000, McMillin co-authored Big Bowl Noodles and Rice, a guide to making fresh, full-flavored cuisine accessible to the home cook. Passionate about teaching and being part of the Cooper’s Hawk communities, McMillin makes regular television, radio, and teaching appearances throughout the country and in 2025 served as a judge on the Thanksgiving edition of Bobby Flay’s Throwdown.
McMillin is a graduate of Kendall College, where he received the Escoffier Award for Culinary and Academic Excellence. He also serves as the president of the International Corporate Chefs Association, where he travels the world connecting with other chefs from the top 200 restaurant chains in the country.
A Chicago native, McMillin resides in Glenview, IL with his wife Susan and enjoys cooking for friends and family in his free time as well as meal prepping for their dogs.
