John State is the Culinary Director of Food & Beverage for Commercial Business Transformation at Disneyland Resort.

State's return is a homecoming of sorts, as he started his Disney career in 1995 at the Flying Fish Cafe at Disney's BoardWalk at Walt Disney World Resort, where he was tapped to join the opening team to plan and design the restaurant.

From Flying Fish Cafe, State was at the helm at California Grill at Disney's Contemporary Resort from 2002 until 2006. He left Walt Disney World Resort in 2006 to open a JW Marriott hotel in Grand Rapids, Mich., then headed to Chicago in 2009 to work as an executive chef with Darden Restaurants. His new post brought him back to Disney in 2015 just in time to launch the 60th Anniversary celebration of the Disneyland Resort.