Andrew Gruel

Coming Up

Before Gruel became a public voice for approachable seafood, his training moved from schoolrooms into the pace and discipline of professional kitchens. He trained at Pingry School and Bates College, then worked in the dining rooms and back-of-house pressure of the Ritz Carlton in Boston and Jack's of New London in New London, New Hampshire. Those early years point to a cook learning not just technique, but service discipline—the kind of foundation that shows how a kitchen functions from both sides of the pass. In 2009, he stepped into a role that matched the direction of his later work: director of seafood for the future at Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, California. The title points to a broader brief than a single menu, one tied to how seafood is sourced, understood, and shared. From there, Gruel founded and served as Executive Chef of Slapfish from 2012–2022, building a concept that made its case through clarity, energy, and a refusal to treat casual food as lightweight. His profile widened on television as well. Along the way, he judged Food Truck Face Off on Food Network and Chopped Junior, bringing a quick read and a set of standards to competition formats built on time, tension, and improvisation. In 2015, he also hosted Say It To My Face! On FYI, followed by Cooking with Gruel in 2015–2015, extending a screen presence that was as much about explaining the logic of the food as showing the finished plate. Today, Andrew is co-host of The SoCal Restaurant Show since 2012, a role that keeps him in ongoing conversation with the restaurant world, its personalities, and its pressures. He is also founder, CEO and Executive Chef of Calico Fish House, carrying his seafood-first approach into another dining room, and a member of Huntington Beach City Council since 2025, adding civic responsibility to an already multi-layered career.

Where They Are Now

Gruel remains closely associated with sustainable seafood and restaurant ownership, two arenas that define the throughline of his professional life. At Calico Fish House in Huntington Beach, he holds the roles of founder, CEO, and Executive Chef, a combination that suggests hands-on involvement from concept through execution. The restaurant extends his view that seafood should feel immediate, welcoming, and usable in everyday life rather than separated by formality.

Signature

Andrew Gruel is a chef focused on sustainable seafood. That focus has kept his work centered whether he is shaping a restaurant concept, appearing on television, or speaking to the wider hospitality community. It is a specialty that sits at the intersection of kitchen practice and public argument: seafood treated with care, but not framed as precious, and kept close to the casual, direct use of the plate.

In Their Words “Memorable food should be hands-on, approachable, and affordable.” The line condenses Gruel’s public stance into a simple trade principle: food should be lived with, not merely admired. That emphasis has helped define his path from Slapfish to Calico Fish House and beyond.

Honors

Andrew's honors include Top 40 Under 40 Entrepreneur. The recognition fits a career built as much on restaurant creation as on cooking, reflecting the scope of a chef who has worked not only to prepare food, but to build the systems, brands, and conversations that move it to more people.