ST. LOUIS, MO—December 10, 2025—The Missouri Athletic Club (MAC) has named Michelin-starred Chef Bogdan Danila as Executive Chef for the new MAC Clayton location at Pierre Laclede Center. Chef Danila will lead the culinary direction for the Club’s third location, bringing international experience and a fine-dining background to one of the region’s most anticipated private club openings. 

Raised on his grandparents’ ranch in Bistrita, Romania, Chef Danila experienced true farm-to-table living long before it became a global movement. “Everything we cooked came directly from the land. My grandmother’s terracotta wood-fired stove was the heart of our home,” he said. “That environment taught me that cooking is about community, craft, and creating experiences that make people happy. It set the foundation for everything I do.” 

Chef Danila began his professional journey at the two-Michelin-star Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud, later spending nearly six years with Gordon Ramsay’s team in London, where he refined his discipline, technique, and leadership. His career has included luxury hotels, acclaimed restaurants, and high-performing private clubs. His Michelin star made him the first Romanian chef to receive the honor. “Standing on the Michelin Gala stage in New York next to chefs like Thomas Keller and Daniel Humm felt surreal. It was a moment where everything came full circle,” he said. 

Most recently, Chef Danila served as Culinary Director and chef at Broken Sound Club in Boca Raton, Florida, where he oversaw multi-concept operations and helped guide a major clubwide relaunch. 

“Chef Bogdan Danila’s arrival represents our commitment to culinary excellence for the members of the Missouri Athletic Club,” said Chip Misch, CCM, General Manager and Chief Operating Officer of the Missouri Athletic Club. “His technical mastery, creativity, and sincere commitment to hospitality align with the MAC’s long-standing mission to deliver extraordinary experiences across every area of Club life. MAC Clayton will open with a culinary program that is distinctive, refined, and welcoming.” 

At MAC Clayton, Chef Danila will oversee all facets of the culinary program, including concept development, menu design, team leadership, and special-event dining. Clayton’s kitchen will support a range of experiences, from polished business lunches and signature bar offerings to tasting menus and private celebrations. His guiding principle is clear: elevate humble ingredients with skill, precision, and a deep respect for the environment. 

“My philosophy is simple: cook with nature, honor the surroundings, and let technique speak louder than luxury,” he said. “Anyone can buy expensive ingredients. The real craft is finding the beauty in what grows around us, building relationships with local farmers, and creating dishes rooted in truth, seasonality, and sustainability.” 

Seasonality, regional partnerships, and sustainability will anchor MAC Clayton’s culinary identity. The kitchen will feature on-site butchery and in-house food processing, follow cheek-to-tongue practices inspired by European kitchens, and prioritize local vendors across the Midwest. Chef Danila’s early conceptual menus include refined yet approachable offerings, from a baked onion filled with triple cream cheese and topped with local beer to a chocolate soufflé cooked to order. 

“Bringing a Michelin-level experience into a private club is about more than technique,” he said. “In a club, you build long-term relationships. You learn people’s preferences, their stories, their expectations. You cook with intention. Many members have never experienced this blend of high-level craft and genuine personal connection, and I’m excited to bring that to the MAC.” 

Chef Danila shared enthusiasm for the evolving culinary landscape in St. Louis and the vision guiding MAC Clayton. “The dining scene here has real momentum. The leadership team, the history and energy of the building, and the warmth of Midwestern hospitality made me feel welcome from day one. This is the right time and the right place for me to make a meaningful impact.” 

The MAC’s expansion into Pierre Laclede Center builds on its historic Downtown and West Clubhouse locations, further strengthening Clayton as a hub for business, culture, and hospitality. The new clubhouse is being designed by HOK, the internationally recognized architecture and design firm founded in St. Louis in 1955. With more than 70 years of global hospitality, cultural, and corporate design expertise, HOK brings both local roots and international perspective to the project. MAC Clayton will feature elevated dining, social, fitness, and gathering spaces that reflect the Club’s longstanding commitment to excellence and tradition. 

Earlier this year, the Club announced the first leadership appointments for MAC Clayton, naming Greg Gerber as Director of Operations and Morgan Smith as Membership Manager, key roles that will work closely with Chef Danila to shape the member experience from the outset. 

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About Missouri Athletic Club 

The Missouri Athletic Club’s (MAC) mission is to create extraordinary experiences in all aspects of Club life in the spirit of excellence, service and tradition. Established in 1903, MAC is a private athletic, dining, social and business club with locations in Downtown St. Louis and West St. Louis County. In addition, MAC has reciprocal arrangements with seven area private golf clubs. More than 2,750 business, professional and civic leaders and their families comprise the MAC membership. Since 2000, the MAC has been consistently recognized by the Club Leaders Forum as a Platinum Club of America. This prestigious designation is awarded to the top 5% of private clubs in the United States, reflecting exceptional innovation, management, service, and excellence standards.

For information regarding membership, including interest in MAC Clayton, contact Morgan Smith, Membership Manager, MAC Clayton, at [email protected].

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