Octavia's new star
San Francisco’s Octavia is being powered by a 23‑year‑old prodigy—Jack Irving—who climbed from dishwasher to lead cook after starting at 19, even as Melissa Perello remains the head chef and operator. Irving’s rapid, hands‑on ascent is being framed as a generational shift in Michelin‑level kitchens across the city (sfgate.com).
Jack Irving is 23 and is described by SFGATE as the youngest chef de cuisine in Octavia’s history. (sfgate.com: ) Octavia’s official team page lists Irving as chef de cuisine who joined the restaurant in January 2022 and credits him with deepening the kitchen’s fresh-pasta program. (octavia-sf.com: ) SFGATE reports Irving never attended culinary school, a detail the profile uses to underscore the speed of his rise within Octavia’s operation. (sfgate.com: ) Octavia continues to list Melissa Perello as chef-owner on its site, while SFGATE notes Perello now spends most of her time operating her businesses from an office and is rarely at the pass. (octavia-sf.com: ) (sfgate.com: ) Industry outlets credit both Perello and Irving on menu work: a StarChefs recipe published in February 2026 lists Melissa Perello and Jack Irving together for an Octavia dish. (starchefs.com: ) Listings and reviews note Irving now oversees Octavia’s service offerings, with Resy’s “Right This Way” recommending his chef’s tasting menu as the restaurant’s current signature experience. (blog.resy.com: ) Local coverage of Octavia’s community bake-sale fundraiser reported Irving helping oversee roughly 700 pastries that sold out in about an hour and a half during a wildfire-relief push. (abc7news.com: ) Photographs run with SFGATE’s March 17, 2026 profile show Irving plating a Liberty Farm duck entree, illustrating menu items he is currently executing on service. (sfgate.com: )
