As head ice cream maker for Salt & Straw Portland and LA, and the brand new Wiz Bang Bar in Portland’s Pine Street Market, Tyler Malek has been instrumental, along with cousin and Salt & Straw founder and CEO Kim Malek, in creating the chef driven, small batch ice cream movement. Malek and his team hand make flavors that showcase the best local, organic and sustainable ingredients from Oregon and Southern California producers and artisans while using all natural cream from local farmers in each city. Malek has been selected as one of Forbes 30 Under 30 and Eater Young Guns Semi-Finalists for 2013. He discovered his passion for blending flavors together when studying abroad in Beijing, China and traveling throughout Vietnam and Cambodia.

Chef Katie Button is a Southern chef with a scientific mind who honed her craft at some of the world’s best restaurants, including elBulli. She is the executive chef and co-owner of Cúrate Tapas Bar and Nightbell in Asheville, North Carolina, which have earned world-wide recognition and accolades and Button a place among Food & Wine's Best New Chefs in 2015. This October, she releases her first cookbook, Cúrate: Authentic Spanish Food from an American Kitchen. 

Ashley Christensen is the chef/owner of Poole’s Diner, Beasley’s Chicken + Honey, Chuck’s, Fox Liquor Bar, Joule Coffee + Table, Death & Taxes and Bridge Club, all located in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina. Ashley’s cooking--hinged on her philosophy of bright, fresh flavors and locally grown, seasonal ingredients--has garnered local and national acclaim. Ashley is involved in a number of charities, including the Frankie Lemmon Foundation, the Southern Foodways Alliance and Share Our Strength. In 2014, Ashley was awarded the James Beard Award for “Best Chef: Southeast.” Her first cookbook, Poole’s: Recipes and Stories from a Modern Diner, is due out in September 2016 from Ten Speed Press. 

Chef Kevin Warren is currently catering for the Emmy award winning NBC’s The Voice Tailgate. He’s appeared in episodes of America’s Test Kitchen on PBS. As a Test Cook for ATK Cook’s Illustrated magazine in Boston, he was frequently filmed working in the kitchen for the 2011 season’s shows.

Before launching his personal chef, cooking classes and catering service, he assisted in the opening of Little Fork Restaurant, Hollywood, and also served as Executive Chef for the development and opening months of Daddy O’s Restaurant San Francisco.

Clayton Chapman is the chef and owner of The Grey Plume restaurant. Opening the doors in 2010, The Grey Plume was deemed the “Greenest Restaurant in the Country." With a purposive menu and progressive initiatives, it has become a cornerstone for the local food movement. Clayton’s determined vision for a responsible yet daring foodprint has grown into Provisions by The Grey Plume, an artisan grocery creating delicious, house made edibles. Clayton is a five time nominee by the James Beard Foundation and is a graduate of the Illinois Institute of Art- Chicago.

Jenn Louis is the executive chef/owner of two restaurants- Lincoln and Sunshine Tavern- and a full-service catering company, Culinary Artistry, in Portland, OR. She has competed on Bravo's Top Chef Masters, was named one of Food & Wine's "Best New Chefs," and her simple, sophisticated cooking style, utilizing seasonal Pacific Northwest ingredients, has earned her two nominations for the James Beard award of Best Chef: Northwest. Her debut cookbook, Pasta By Hand (Chronicle Books) published in spring of 2015, which was nominated for an IACP Award from the International Association Of Culinary Professionals in the category of Single Subject Cookbooks. This fall, Jenn will open an Israeli restaurant in the forthcoming Freehand hotel in downtown LA. The restaurant will be inspired by her travels and background, and will showcase the many warm, bright and vibrant flavors of the country, celebrating Jewish, Middle Eastern, European and Mediterranean influences. 

Olympia Provisions Chef/Owner/Salumist Elias Cairo is a first generation Greek-American who learned the craft of charcuterie by watching his father, who cured meat at the family's home in Salt Lake City. These old world preparations and preservation techniques set the foundation for his lifelong fascination with meat. Elias started cooking at a young age in his father's restaurants, and at the age of 20 began a trade apprenticeship in Switzerland, where for over four years he was taught classic techniques of cooking, butchery, and charcuterie by renowned European chef Annegret Schlumpf. During that time, he also attended Berufsschule in Wattwil, Switzerland for formal culinary education. From Switzerland, Elias moved to Kos, Greece to apprentice in a hotel kitchen, developing menu items based on the daily harvest of local farmers and fishermen.

Upon returning to the United States, Elias relocated to Portland, Oregon, lured by the city's growing reputation for nurturing culinary talent. Beginning as a line cook at the venerable restaurant Castagna, he worked his way up to the position of sous chef in less than a year, eventually earning the title of Executive Chef. In the summer of 2009, Elias left Castagna to open Olympia Provisions, Oregon's first USDA-certified meat curing facility, and two European-style deli and restaurants.

At Olympia Provisions, Elias approaches the craft of charcuterie with purity and patience. The Olympia Provisions team butchers antibiotic-free Pacific Northwest pork, holding its cured meats in natural casings. Olympia Provisions was highlighted in the 2012 Saveur Top 100, and featured in national media outlets such as Bon Appétit, Oprah, Food & Wine, TastingTable.com, Martha Stewart, Esquire, Yahoo! Food, Every Day with Rachael Ray, Food Republic, The Huffington Post, Details, Inc., Food 52, Eater, The New Yorker and The New York Times. Olympia Provisions is also a two-time Sofi Awards finalist and the recipient of eight Good Food Awards.

When he's not curing meat and trying new foods, Elias spends much of his free time in the great outdoors of the Pacific Northwest, fly fishing and rock climbing. His adventurous spirit has brought on many adventures both local and worldwide, and shows no signs of stopping. 

Luke Saunders launched Farmer’s Fridge in Chicago in October 2013 after pinpointing a need for healthy meals that were served on-the-go. Utilizing his background in manufacturing, Saunders developed a concept using state-of-the-art software and machinery that would dispense and deliver fresh, wholesome food options in convenient locations. Saunders was just named to Forbes Magazine's 30 under 30 list for 2016. In addition, Saunders and Farmer's Fridge have been featured on NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, The Atlantic, O Magazine, In Shape and Cooking Light. Farmer's Fridge was also named USA Today’s “#1 Takeout in Chicago in 2015,” Time Out Chicago’s “Top Ten Salads in Chicago 2015,” and Thrillist’s “The Ultimate Lunch Loop Guide.”

Los Angeles native Brooke Williamson has carved out an impressive resume full of leading roles and professional achievements, from being the youngest female chef to ever cook at The James Beard House to placing as the runner up on Bravo's "Top Chef" season 10 in Seattle. Brooke, along with her husband Nick Roberts, now owns and operates a variety of hospitality concepts in the South Bay area of Los Angeles, including the gastropubs Hudson House and The Tripel, plus the four-in-one concept Playa Provisions and the artisanal, culinary retail shop Tripli-Kit. Later this summer, they'll be debuting a new elevated, fast-casual Hawaiian concept called Da Kikokiko.

Two-time James Beard Award winning chef Gabriel Rucker is chef and co-owner of Le Pigeon and Little Bird Bistro in Portland, Oregon. His edgy, highly original, and recipe-free masterpieces, evocative of French bistro signatures and classic American fare, have gained him both regional and national acclaim. Rucker and his team released their first cookbook, Le Pigeon: Cooking at the Dirty Bird (Ten Speed Press), in September 2013. Rucker is one of Portland’s most respected and decorated chefs, earning many accolades, including two James Beard Awards: Rising Star Chef in 2011 and Best Chef Northwest in 2013, as well as a nomination for Outstanding Chef in 2016, Food & Wine Best New Chef 2007, The Oregonian’s Restaurant of the Year.

Justin is the Proprietor Chef for JTR Group, which owns and operates several fine dining restaurants and event venues in downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma. Justin is a native Tulsan who has opened and been the executive chef for 10 different restaurants in Tulsa over his 13 year career. He has had the honor of cooking at the James Beard House in NYC and for President Bill Clinton. 

Leanne Brown, a Canadian-born food studies scholar and avid home cook, wrote Good and Cheap as the capstone for her master’s in food studies from New York University. After it went viral online as a PDF that today has been downloaded over 950,000 times, she published a print edition that won the 2015 IACP Judge’s Choice Award. Leanne was also named one of the 2015 Forbes ’30 Under 30’ and received a “Most Innovative Women in Food and Drink” award from Food & Wine and Fortune magazines. She and her husband live in Brooklyn. 

Akasha Richmond moved to LA many years ago to further her studies in yoga, and then decided to pursue cooking full-time, and became a private chef for such cultural icons such as Michael Jackson, who launched her career as a personal chef. She also worked for Barbara Streisand, Pierce Brosnan and Billy Bob Thornton.
Akasha was inspired by the cuisines encountered on the road, and would later connect these flavors with influences acquired during her many international culinary explorations—to places like India, Southeast Asia, Italy, Bali, Australia, Eastern and Western Europe, and Mexico— to create the menu at AKASHA, her first restaurant venture which she opened in 2008.

Peter Cho is the chef and owner of Han Oak, a communal, prix fixe Korean restaurant and private event space in Portland, OR. Prior to Han Oak, Peter worked under April Bloomfield for nearly 10 years, starting at The Spotted Pig and moving to executive chef of The Breslin in the Ace Hotel, NYC.

Chef Fernandez, 30, winner on Beat Bobby Flay and Forbes Top 30 Under 30 winner for food and wine, started his career at the young age of 15 years old. Winning a C-CAP (Careers Through Culinary Arts Program) $40,000 Scholarship to the Culinary Institute of America. He has worked with some of NYC's best chefs, including Alfred Portale, Marcus Samuelson and Marc Murphy. Becoming a chef at the tender age of 22 propelled Chef Fernandez to an amazing culinary start. 

Matt produces American single malt whiskey at Westland Distillery in Seattle, Washington. Westland was recently named the top craft whiskey producer in the world for 2016 by Whisky Magazine and Matt was named as one of the top 30 Under 30 tastemakers by Forbes Magazine.

Kosta Dionisopoulos is known as one of the Washington, DC area's youngest entrepreneurs in the perishable commodities industry. In 2009 at the age of 22, Kosta founded wholesale produce company, Delta Produce, in his home office. Today, the company has grown into an 8,000 sq. ft. warehouse in the heart of DC, sourcing and distributing everything from local to international specialty products to restaurants, hotels, catering companies and government facilities throughout DC, Maryland and Virginia. Now at the age of 29 and 7 years in business, Kosta has been recognized as a "30 Under 30" entrepreneur by Forbes magazine, and looks towards a future full of advancements for his expanding company, as well as new ventures within the food and beverage industry.

Widely considered to be "The Godfather of Sustainability," Chef Rick Moonen has dedicated three decades to sustainable seafood and ocean stewardship. With two restaurants in Las Vegas, rm seafood and Rx Boiler Room, Chef Rick continues to advocate for fresh, sustainable options without sacrificing flavor. 

Born in Melbourne, Stuart Cameron always knew from an early age he was destined for the culinary world. By the age of 14 he was offered a full time internship at a local restaurant then went on to begin a 4-year apprenticeship of Culinary Arts. Currently, Cameron holds the prestigious position of Executive Chef of Patria, Byblos and Byblos Miami. He brings his passion and extreme talent for creating innovative and authentic cuisine. Not only has he skyrocketed all his restaurants to the utmost success but his portfolio continues to grow with several restaurant openings slated for this year. 

After graduating from The Culinary Institute of America in 2007, Baxter worked for Todd English at his Orlando location, The Bluezoo. In 2011 he joined Sean Brock and the McCrady's kitchen team. Baxter relocated to Nashville to help open Husk in spring of 2013 and took over as Chef de Cuisine in fall of 2014.

Eden is a Le Cordon Bleu graduate. She is a food and television personality best known for her Cooking Channel shows, Eden Eats and Log On and Eat With Eden Grinshpan. She has guest co-hosted Vh1 Big morning buzz live, Live From Prince Street podcast, Tastemade's "5 ways With," judged Chopped Canada, Sugar Showdown and Donut Showdown, and is on Cooking Channel's new series Foods Greatest hits.

Executive Chef Justin Brunson brings close to two decades of culinary experience to Brunson & Co., his family of restaurants in Denver, CO that include Old Major, Masterpiece Delicatessen, Masterpiece Kitchen, and The Royal Rooster. His passion for heritage-raised meats, sustainable seafood, and ingredients sourced from local farms comes from a childhood spent gardening, hunting, and fishing. These activities along with his agricultural roots have helped to mold his passion for food and its preparation.

Vivian Howard is the chef/owner of Chef & the Farmer and The Boiler Room in Kinston, NC. She is the James Beard Award-winning host/personality for hit PBS Show "A Chef's Life" and an upcoming cookbook author. 

Stephanie Prida joined the Manresa team in 2012 following a four year stint in Chicago where she earned acclaim for her work at restaurants including One Sixty Blue Restaurant, Blackbird, RIA, Balsan Restaurant, and L2o Restaurant. As Pastry Sous Chef at Blackbird in Chicago, she was recognized for her talent, earning the Jean Banchet Rising Pastry Chef award in 2009. At RIA, the two Michelin star restaurant in the Elysian Hotel in Chicago, she developed a reputation for her desserts and her Paris-Brest, made of choux pastry and cream, achieved cult status. When she later accepted the role of Pastry Chef for the Michelin starred L2o Restaurant, local media mourned the loss of her acclaimed dessert.

Jonathan is the Executive Chef and co-creator of Justus Drugstore. He is a founding member of the creative team of Carpaccio Concepts, Black Dirt, & Persimmon Seed.