How Joui Wine chef Megan McAfee found passion for culinary arts

“I learned everything there,” McAfee said. “(Kearney) wanted to teach you. She wanted to open your mind to everything.”

McAfee started as a temporary dishwasher during the holidays, only working one day a week.

“Sometimes you just have to do the grunt work to get to where you want to go,” McAfee said.

When the holidays ended, Kearney kept her on board and overtime she was given more work to do. Being that young in the restaurant industry, she was given nicknames like “little culinary” or “potato queen.” McAfee recalled doing everything potato related because it was the cheapest product she could mess up.

Overtime, she learned how to prep, the proper cutting techniques, and at 19 became a prep cook. She worked at Rue Dumaine for seven years and by the end she was in partial management.

The dream to be a chef

Her interest in the restaurant industry started well before Rue Dumaine. McAfee, who is originally from Franklin, always said she wanted to be a chef when she was a kid.

“I was watching Food Network more than I watched cartoons honestly,” McAfee said. “Emeril Lagasse was the guy I watched all the time.”

Her passion for cooking came partly from her grandmother who she described as a great cook. She said she cooked every single meal and had a huge garden in her backyard.

McAfee studied culinary at the Warren County Career Center her junior and senior years of high school. Other establishments she worked at besides Rue Dumaine included Old Scratch Pizza in Dayton, Sotto in Cincinnati and Tender Mercy in Dayton. She also had a stint at Hungry Toad Farm in Centerville where she learned the culinary world through a different lens.

“I’ve been through different ups and downs of life and different changes and that place saved me. That place got my mind going. It was out in the sun. It was hard work,” McAfee said. “There’s something magical about being there.”

Creating a culinary program to compliment wine

When McAfee saw that Lauren Gay was opening Joui Wine in Dayton’s Fire Blocks District she reached out to see what she had planed for her culinary component. McAfee had met Gay through Tender Mercy and stayed in touch.

“Everything that she wanted was something that I was very interested in doing,” McAfee said.

When Joui Wine opened in December 2023, McAfee was hired on as head chef.

“Simplicity is sometimes the best,” McAfee said. “I think that’s what I go by mostly just because with this kitchen here I don’t have a hood system, so I can’t have an oven. I can’t have a lot of equipment, so I have to work with what I got, which is fun.”

McAfee said her goal is to elevate a customer’s experience at the wine shop and bar. Joui Wine is not meant to be a full meal, but rather an afternoon snack or small bite before or after dinner. McAfee focuses on offering shareables such as dips and charcuterie.

Dips currently on the menu include White Bean Miso Dip and Crab Rangoon Dip. When it comes to charcuterie, McAfee rotates a selection of cured meats and cheeses with items like mustards, pickles, nuts, jams, fresh fruits or honeycombs.

She really enjoys plating these items because “you eat with your eyes before you eat.” She enjoys having a blank canvas and working with different textures, flavors, heights and colors.

One of her favorite dishes to change up on the menu are the deviled eggs. The bar currently offers Elote Deviled Eggs with the rim of the egg dipped in a Tajin mixture, roasted corn filling the center, a traditional egg yolk filling on top, more roasted corn, cotija cheese and cilantro. It’s then served with a lime wedge.

Other items on the menu include Stuffed Olives, Spring Rolls and Dark Chocolate Truffles.

McAfee said she has enjoyed learning what their customers want and crave.

A Dayton girl at heart

When McAfee isn’t at work, she’s in northern Kentucky where she lives with her boyfriend. She’s outdoorsy, enjoys camping and hiking and loves a wide variety of music from bluegrass to jam-band. She’s looking forward to fall festivals and exploring more of Cincinnati and northern Kentucky. So far, her favorite restaurant in northern Kentucky is Mai Thai in Florence.

When asked what’s something most people don’t know about her, she said she has an autistic brother that she loves very much.

McAfee drives over an hour to work, but said it’s worth it.

“If you have something special, hold on to it. Usually the things that are good are not going to be easy,” she said.