Longtime Waukesha Chef Opens Biz After Overcoming Struggles

WAUKESHA, WI— Joe Piscitello often feels like he is in the body of a 70-year-old though he's just in his 40s. The chef worked 27 years in restaurants, acquiring the injuries, bumps and bruises that go with the territory of working in a professional kitchen.

But that didn't stop him from opening his own business, Chef in Da House, a personal chef service for parties and events.

On Piscitello's Facebook page, he also posts home-made soups that people can order directly. He offers different soups daily and tries to include vegetarian options. This week, he's making an organic creamy asparagus with mint and Meyer lemon soup and an organic chicken enchilada soup. A new menu posts every Sunday.

The soup idea comes from the need for comfort, especially during the pandemic, he said.

What comforts Piscitello are memories of growing up with his Sicilian family in Waukesha. Piscitello attended St. Joseph's Catholic Church and graduated from Catholic Memorial High School in 1995. "I was a tough kid and was always into trouble," Piscitello said.

He watched as his friends got into Marquette University and other top colleges. There was concern he wouldn't graduate as he had only a 1.2-grade point average. "The only thing I knew how to do was cook," he said.

Learning As He Went

Piscitello's parents were cooking enthusiasts who made meatballs and pasta and fresh-baked bread, he recalled. His favorite childhood memory was the smell of red sauce cooking every Sunday after he came home from playing outside. "Even now, when I make red sauce, it brings back memories," he said.

It was the love his mother put into her cooking that inspired him to want to re-create the experience for other people.

After high school, he earned a culinary degree from Milwaukee Area Technical College. In 2009, he opened up his own restaurant in Brookfield. Then the recession hit.

"I didn't have a business plan, but I loved to cook," he said. "I was crushed."

A few local business owners gave him a gift of $10,000, Piscitello said. "They knew how hard I was working. I had my car repossessed and thought it was the end of the world."

Piscitello ended up working at restaurants around the Milwaukee area and in Madison. Eventually, he relocated to South Carolina, where he was executive chef at the Boeing aircraft plant, working for the food service company Compass Group. He then worked as a private in-home chef for Indigeneous Cuisine, where he learned Southern cooking.

"I also taught them a lot about Wisconsin cooking that they didn't know about, such as fish frys and different types of cheeses," he said.

One day the owner of Indigenous Cuisine asked him to help with a private party, which turned out to be for the family of Jonathan Kraft, president of the Kraft Group of companies, as well as the New England Patriots. The evening went so well he was asked to provide meals for the whole week.

"I started learning how to do these private events and was good at being at the front of the house and keeping people interested," Piscitello said.

The Dark Side Of The Kitchen

Piscitello spoke of coming back to Wisconsin to deal with a longtime alcohol addiction, which caused him to lose good jobs, and he developed some health issues. He made the decision to quit and said he is now four years sober.

"I prayed for help a lot," he said. "I haven't had a drop since."

Piscitello found himself finally at a place for things to work out. He decided he was done being micromanaged and dealing with the stress of working under someone. "I didn't want to have a heart attack and wanted to keep my health," he said.

People don't know about the dark side of the restaurant business and the constant pressure to work long hours, he said. "If I could write a book about the secrets behind a kitchen, it would be really interesting," he said.

Piscitello was laid off from his job in March because of the pandemic. He pitched real estate agents to offer his soup as a closing gift instead of a cheese knife or fruit basket. That service hasn't panned out just yet, but he has found work as a private chef for parties, and he's selling his soups online.

Piscitello said he isn't trying to compete with big name restaurants in Milwaukee, as that isn't his market. "I'm a private chef. I go into people's homes and make them an experience they will never forget," Piscitello said.

To learn more about Piscitello's private chef business, visit his website. To order soups, go to the Chef in Da House Facebook page.