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Food & Drink

“These recipes are a reflection of me and the fact that people like them are a bonus,” says chef Alex Dispence.
Photography / Katie Addo

By Kellie Mazur

Alex Dispence was a fine dining chef. He cooked in some of America’s top resorts, country clubs and golf courses.

But you won’t find him in those places now. If you want to see what Alex is cooking up these days, you need to scroll TikTok and Instagram. The chef-turned-content-creator posts 30-second videos of delicious dishes that are easy to replicate at home.

The fare may not be what you expect.

“When I was working at these resorts, I remember cooking little plates of food with slices of radishes and micro-greens. But I would crave pizza, chicken wings and a really good burger. Those are the things I want to eat. The food I grew up on and still love” says Alex. “So all of my videos celebrate that style of cooking.”

Alex, a graduate of Niagara Falls Culinary Institute, found his audience on TikTok (@Sup Chef) and Instagram (@SupChef_).

His feeds feel decidedly #Buffalo. There are chicken wing dip bagels, Loganberry milkshakes, hash brown avocado toast, hibachi chicken wings and so much more that seem like one thing but will surprise you when you really dig in—just like our city.

“I moved away when I was 18. I was chasing my big-time chef dreams. But when I came back, I sort of fell in love with Buffalo all over again,” Alex says. “The people. The culture. The sports. The food! The food is second to none. It’s so approachable and so us.”

Going viral is not what Alex set out to do either. At first, posting videos was a way to keep busy during the early days of the pandemic. Alex would record himself cooking steaks and pizzas over a live fire and then post them online. He never expected what happened next.

“I post videos almost every day and that takes a lot of discipline and dedication, which I don’t know if I naturally had that before. It’s also helped me really be myself,” says Alex. “These recipes are a reflection of me and the fact that people like them are a bonus.”

With over 25K followers on Instagram and nearly 1 million on TikTok, Alex certainly seems to have the social media recipe down. A dollop of authenticity. Eight good shakes of creativity. Drizzled with Buffalove.