i. Biography
David Kirkland built his work around two fixed lines: health-focused comfort food and Traditional Korean Naengmyeon. Across both, the method is the same—layering and blending flavors with the same timing discipline that comes from DJ work—so the result stays deliberate without turning stiff. Balance is the point: comfort that stays light, tradition that stays active, and a palate shaped by rhythm as much as by heat.
Coming Up
Early kitchen work for David Kirkland at Cafe at St. Louis Art Museum in St. Louis, Missouri, Frazier’s Brown Bag in St. Louis, Missouri, and Venice Café in St. Louis, Missouri, built range across very different rooms. Museum polish, neighborhood pace, and the pressure of service all sit inside that period. In 1996, he became Resident DJ at several clubs throughout San Francisco in San Francisco, California, adding another craft built on tempo, atmosphere, and reading a room over time. From 2008 he served as chef and manager at Cafe Osage in St. Louis, Missouri, taking on both the food and the daily running of the operation. Today, David is owner and Executive Chef of Turn Restaurant and David Kirkland Catering (since 2016) and Executive Chef of Buda Myeonoak. Those roles mark a career that moved across kitchens and cities without losing the core discipline underneath it: precise cooking, steady execution, and the ability to keep different influences working in the same key.
Where They Are Now
At Turn Restaurant in St. Louis, Missouri, and through David Kirkland Catering, Kirkland works in a format that brings service, flavor, and identity into one place. That frame suits the range of his cooking, because it lets the menu carry both his directness and his control. Traditional Korean Naengmyeon sits at the center of that technical side, where precision, texture, and restraint matter more than display. Health-focused comfort food remains the other half of the equation. Put together, the two specialties define a kitchen with clear contrast: one side grounded in ease and practical nourishment, the other cold, traditional, and exacting. The work reads as paired disciplines rather than competing ones.
Signature
David's signature dishes include Mul-Naengmyeon, Bibim Naengmyeon, Brie LT sandwich, Biscuit Flight, and Slow Jam. The list maps the range plainly: dishes that can live together on one line while answering different moods, different service needs, and different cravings.
Honors
The recognition attached to his career is title-based: the owner-and-chef-owner appointment in Missouri. In David Kirkland’s case, the acknowledgment is tied directly to authorship and consistency, built through a career that keeps varied disciplines working as one.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of David
Where did David Kirkland work before?
David Kirkland's earlier career included Cafe at St. Louis Art Museum, Frazier’s Brown Bag, and Venice Café.
What is David Kirkland known for?
Health-focused comfort food.
Explore
In the same rooms
