HOUSTON — Chef Tobias Dorzon ran toward dreams of being in the NFL but found stardom cooking for some of the best athletes and entertainers.
Dorzon’s cooking journey started with the tough decision to walk away from pro football. The former running back picked up a chef’s jacket after being cut by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the CFL. His agent planned to get Tobias another tryout, but he had other plans.
“I was like the Art Institute has about two more weeks for registration,” Tobias recalled. “I’m going to go ahead and hang the cleats up.”
Tobias spent time as an intern after graduation, then went to further his education at the Italian Culinary Institute in Sicily.
“I went out there for six months just studying fine dining and learning the aspects of food,” Tobias said. “The touches, the smells and the textures and different types of food and all cultures of food. It was something that pretty much changed my whole culinary career.”
His career has gone from cooking fine dining cuisine in a food truck to running a million-dollar restaurant.
Dorzon led kitchens in someone else’s vision for years before partnering with former Houston Rockets guard James Harden. Harden tapped him to create the menu for his restaurant, Thirteen. Tobias led the kitchen to be one of the best in Houston.
Thirteen’s success helped the chef open his own restaurant back in his hometown in Virginia. Huncho House opened its doors to bring a fine dining experience to those who are not familiar with it.
“Champagne upon arrival, just as you wait for your registration, is just something I know is something that people haven’t experienced,” Tobias said. “Just getting people introduced to trusting the chef has been the greatest obstacle of my chef career.”
Tobias earned more notoriety as a contestant on Food Network’s “Tournament Champions,” hosted by world famous chef Guy Fieri in 2022.
He made it to the quarterfinals going up against some of the best chefs in the country, but his greatest battle came from an opponent that was not in the arena. An anxiety attack almost derailed the biggest moment in his young chef career.
“I think sitting in this greenroom for a while, my nerves started to get the best of me, and once I got to the arena, I just froze,” Dorzon said. “Now, I’m thinking about every Black kid that looks like me, seeing me not being able to complete the job because of my anxiety. So, I had to get myself together and understand if you overcome this right here, you’ll show people it’s not impossible.”
After a pep talk with Guy, he was able to re-enter the arena and win a spot in the semifinals.
Dorzon now advocates for Black men and boys to take better care of their mental health. The chef regularly sees a therapist and encourages others to seek help.
“If you’re going through something or you have something on your mind, there are people you can talk to about it,” Tobias said. “You don’t have to keep it all in, because keeping it all in doesn’t really help you.”