JAMES STA. MARIA,
EXECUTIVE CHEF

James Sta.Maria got his restaurant experience managing a Bar & Restaurant in the Philippines. He also assisted and guided his brother in starting a small eatery of his own. Working in the restaurant industry was a new and happy challenge for James, and he found himself enjoying it more and more. He’s even found that he can apply his engineering background to cooking, since numbers play a huge role in cooking.

James has been working at Ayza for the past two and a half years and has worked his way up to become the chef of Ayza Wine & Chocolate. Though he did not start with a culinary background, he knows that theory and background, along with a love of food and cooking, is all that matters.