Hoss Zare was born in the city of TABRIZ, IN Azerbaijan, a northwestern province of Iran. He emigrated to the United States in 1986, landing in San Francisco where his older brother had moved to over a decade earlier. He began studying biochemistry at the University of California, Davis, in preparation for a pre-medical degree.

Shortly after his arrival to the U.S., he began working at his brother's restaurant, The Billboard Café, mainly to support himself through college, where he was taking a full load of courses every semester. He soon found himself behind the stoves at The Billboard where he practiced his skills under his brother's watchful eye.

By 1989, he had found his work in the kitchen as an essential creative outlet and decided to continue that process at the Fly Trap, in San Francisco. There, he met the former Executive Chef of Ernie's, Craig Thomas. As Craig's souse chef, Hoss quickly found his own perspective on the art of fine dining. After about a year, he took over the helm from Craig and ran the kitchen, to rave reviews , until 1992.

Being a self trained chef, and having gained a good footing in the traditional French and American cuisine at the Fly Trap, he decided to expand his culinary knowledge by moving on to Ristorante Ecco, in the South Park district of San Francisco. There he found the Italian combinations very much in line with his own background and perspective. Within a year, he took over the stove at Ecco, where again he garnered rave reviews from critics. In 1994, he was given the opportunity to open Aromi, a neighborhood restaurant on Polk Street in San Francisco. This was the place where Hoss completed the circle of his culinary tour; he was able to bring together his favorite recipes under one roof and together with the atmosphere he had created, he quickly exploded on to the culinary scene of San Francisco as a chef to watch. Aromi Reviews 1, 2, 3, 4

It is every chef's dream to create a concept and put it to the test at a restaurant.

It is every chef's dream to create a concept and put it to the test at a restaurant. That opportunity came for Hoss in 1996 when he opened his own restaurant, Zare, on Sacramento Street, and added his name to the culinary map of fine dining in San Francisco. His efforts at superior customer service from the Zagat Reviews , which nominated Zare as one of the top 40 service restaurants in the Bay Area.  Click here to read the Reviews for Zare Restaurant.

When Hoss Zaré opened Bistro Zaré in 1999, he reclaimed a spot that was very close to his heart. It was the site of Aromi, the restaurant where he gained recognition for his style of food. The concept behind the Bistro was simple: to offer the same high quality food that he offered diners at his upscale Sacramento Street location, but with a neighborhood appeal—comfort food, reasonably priced, in a relaxing environment. The Bistro quickly became a success (Click here to read review:  Three-Star rating from Michael Bauer of the San Francisco Chronicle.  But despite the soundness of the concept, the rush to the Bistro was as much for the food as it was for Hoss himself, something that he had not planned for. Indeed, this turned out to be one of the most difficult things to cope with, as he was needed at both restaurants at the same time. For a while he did his best to be at both places, but that took a toll on his personal life. What the Bistro customers rightly demanded was the same attention that Hoss himself provided for the clients both previously at Aromi and currently at the downtown location. Other problems arose as well. The opening of the Bistro coincided with a rise in dot com companies, which translated into a shortage of experienced personnel. As a result, it became difficult to offer the high quality food and service that he hoped to offer at the Bistro on a consistent basis. All of these elements prompted Hoss Zaré to offer the Bistro to another restaurateur.

Meanwhile things are proceeding very smoothly at the Sacramento street Zaré. Customers have been very pleased with our recent remodeling and on most nights you can find Hoss Zaré himself greeting and chatting with the diners.

Hoss Zaré has always tried creating a personable and comfortable experience for the diners at his restaurant. It is hard to believe but he knows virtually everyone who walk through doors of Zaré. He thinks of the customers as guests at his house rather than clients at his restaurants. It is a strong sentiment that many customers respond to and appreciate. This prompted Hoss to do something that he has been thinking of doing for some time: Chateau Zare.
Click here to learn more.

Click here for a printable version of Hoss's Bio


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