Hailing from the Pacific Northwest, Chef Doug Blair grew up in a family that valued food grown and prepared from their own garden, but it wasn’t until some years later that he discovered his own passion for the culinary arts.

While studying communications and Spanish in college, Blair worked as a bartender at a local night club in Idaho. Watching the dishes created by the kitchen night after night, his interests shifted toward cooking. Blair left Idaho and moved to Seattle, WA, where he gained experience in some of the city’s top kitchens, from Italian restaurant Carmine’s, to his own restaurant Mezza Luna. From there, a food and beverage director position at St. Mary’s Lodge and Resort in Glacier National Park brought him to Montana. The high-level of dining and scale of working at the resort gave him the experience and know-how to succeed in a resort environment, which would come in handy shortly thereafter.

While on vacation on Kiawah Island, SC, Blair instantly fell in love with the Lowcountry and was hired on the spot at the island’s resort, working there for a few years. He then spent some time in the kitchens of downtown Charleston, later returning to Kiawah Island as the opening executive chef for the private, members-only restaurant Voysey’s at the Cassique Golf Club.

In his position with Voysey’s, Blair was given the opportunity to help design the restaurant’s kitchen from the ground up, and train under award-winning, consulting chef Tom Colicchio at New York City’s famed Gramercy Tavern. Blair’s background in Italian, French and Mediterranean cuisines are reflected in his technique. He brings a “purist” approach to cooking, doing everything in-house from butchering to curing meats, to regularly meeting with local farmers in order to maintain the highest possible quality in every product he uses.

Blair finds inspiration in the ingredients yielded from the surrounding Lowcountry, especially its produce and seafood. He has a sharp attention to detail and has a goal to always maintain a creative, stimulating cooking environment. Under Blair’s careful guidance, Voysey’s has become a premiere dining destination in the Lowcountry, and has been recognized as one of the top private club restaurants in the world.