Chef Chip Roman 
Chef/Owner
Blackfish Restaurant
Chef of the region’s top restaurant, avid fisherman and Conshohocken’s own Mrs. Patmore are just a few of the ways you can describe Chip Roman. The first comes from his Conshohocken BYOB, Blackfish, receiving glowing three-bell reviews and being named the No. 1 in the Philadelphia area by Philadelphia magazine in 2010.
The benefit of owning a restaurant that is centered on seafood, allows Roman to blend his passion for fishing with work. “Fishing is an escape, but it helps drive my creative process,” he says.
He has also created buzz for his dinners built around a movie or television show. “Our first theme dinner was A Christmas Story, and then someone suggested Downton Abbey, says Roman.
Roman continues to grow his culinary portfolio. His catering company launched before Blackfish opened, and he now has four additional restaurants. He launched Tradestone Confections, a line of gourmet chocolates and candies, and spends eight weeks a year overseeing the food-and-beverage program at Arenas Del Mar resort in Costa Rica. When asked which businesses he’d keep if he could have only one, Roman answers without hesitation: Blackfish. “It is my baby,” he says.
