Our Journey

Akhtar Nawab
Akhtar Nawab is an acclaimed chef and the founding partner CEO of Hospitality HQ, a creative consulting and management group which offers bespoke solutions for culinary-driven concepts across the country.
The son of Indian immigrants, Nawab grew up in Louisville, Kentucky. He spent a lot of time in the kitchen with his mother, a native of Lucknow. A passion for cooking, born in his small Kentucky kitchen, led him to an esteemed career at some of the most acclaimed restaurants in the country: La Folie, Bizou, Gramercy Tavern, Craftbar, and Craft. The latter received three stars from The New York Times and won the James Beard Foundation’s “Best New Restaurant” Award during Nawab’s tenure.
Nawab received StarChefs “Rising Star Chef” award while serving as executive chef of East Village gastropub The E.U., before striking out on his own as chef/partner of Elettaria in 2008. Shortly thereafter, he began a stint of consulting work with Mexican restaurants, notably at the hotspot La Esquina. In 2017, Nawab opened his innovative Mexican restaurant Alta Calidad in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, which earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand rating in 2018, 2019, 2023, and 2024 and continues to thrive as a neighborhood mainstay. Akhtar is also the chef advisor and partner in Bar Chinois in Washington, DC.
In addition to his work as a chef and restaurateur, Akhtar offers restaurant consulting services. The team has developed a niche practice in the world of food hall development, management, and innovation. Today, they are widely known as the country’s premier food hall management firms with properties in Charlotte, NC (Monarch Market), Orlando, FL (Great Southern Box Co), Silver Spring MD (Solaire Social), and more.

Michael Wetherbee
Michael has worked with some of the world’s most renowned chefs, restaurants and operators including David Chang’s Momofuku Ma Peche (awarded two stars by The New York Times), as well as AvroKo’s PUBLIC (one Michelin star) and Saxon + Parole (awarded one star by The New York Times). In 2017, Michael opened Alta Calidad with his partner, Chef Akhtar Nawab, and has been instrumental in growing the company from a single restaurant to helming the diverse portfolio of food & beverage assets Hospitality HQ has today. Michael’s range of operational experience spans from fine dining to fast casual restaurants, hotels, food halls, and beyond, affording him the unique ability to create dynamic and memorable food and beverage experiences for guests of any Hospitality HQ property.

Isak Buan
Isak is the culinary manager for HHQ, providing back-of-house support and management for HHQ’s culinary outlets. Isak’s training and experience runs from his first job in high school at Danny Meyer’s Eleven Madison Hot Dog Cart, busy neighborhood spots such as Win Son and Win Son Bakery in Brooklyn, to seven years spent with Andrew Carmellini’s NOHO Hospitality at Lafayette, Bar Primi, and Locanda Verde.
His ability to manage styles of service from fast food to fine dining gives him a unique skill set to help operate the various kitchens within HHQ.

Matthew Femiani
After the humble beginnings of working as a busboy in high school, Chef Matthew’s culinary journey began in earnest in the kitchens of two iconic New York chefs, first as a commis at Jean-George Vongericten’s French-Thai fusion restaurant, Vong, and then as a line cook at David Bouley’s Viennese bistro, the Danube. After some time studying literature and working as a private chef, Matthew went to culinary school at the Culinary Institute of America, starting at the campus in Hyde Park, New York, and graduating from the campus in Napa Valley, California. While finishing school, and ten years after, Matthew spent time in a range of kitchens all practicing the general tenets of California cuisine: seasonal, local, sustainable and a vegetable-forward focus. After the pandemic he traveled in Europe and returned to New York. For over twenty-five years, Matthew has worked with a wide variety of cuisines and maintains a passion and curiosity about flavor and technique.

Matthew Mayz
Matty Mayz has been in hospitality for over 10 years working through all positions from Maitre D’ through upper management at AvroKo’s PUBLIC (one Michelin star) and Saxon + Parole (best American restaurant bar through the spirited awards). In 2018, Matty joined the Alta Calidad team as general manager and has been a key component in having the restaurant be the neighborhood staple it is today. The team he has built at Wayward Fare strives to have this restaurant be another Vanderbilt Ave gem with generous hospitality, great food and wine, and an atmosphere that will have us be an additional landmark in Prospect Heights!