Category: Chef 2020

Michael is a scientist turned full time chef that has been serving in the bay area for almost 10 years.  Winning 9X nationally for his grilled cheeses, he took the trophies to the streets to become street vendor turned food pop-up turned SF shop over the years.  The GrilledCheezGuy serves at breweries and major bay area events (Off the Grid, Conservatory of Flowers, Faction Brewery, etc) and caters all over the Brie Area.   Chef Michael takes pride is sourcing locally and promoting and using other small biz alongside him. Please visit us at www.grilledcheezguy.com

Family owned and operated since 1986, Bellwether Farms is located in Sonoma County, California, about an hour north of San Francisco, a few miles from the Pacific Ocean, in some of the finest dairy land in America. We established the first sheep dairy west of the Rockies and our flock continues to graze on bucolic hillsides surrounding the farm.
We are committed to making the very best cheese and cultured dairy products using full-fat milk from local Jersey cows and natural, whole sheep milk with its abundance of nutrients and good fats intact.
Our award-winning cheeses and yogurts are found in retail and specialty cheese shops and favored by chefs in many of the finest restaurants across the country. We are regularly featured in The New York Times, Martha Stewart, Sunset Magazine and gourmet food publications. www.bellwetherfarms.com

Chef owner Ryan Ramey learned to cook from his mom who taught him how to maintain a garden and cook all their meals.  He began studying culinary arts during high school at the SRJC. From there, Ryan went on to work at the Petaluma Sheraton where he received much of his banquet experience and guidance. He then moved to San Diego to become the Executive Chef of The Turquoise Cafe Bar Europa where he managed two farm to table restaurants along with their own 2 acre farm.  Ryan is passionate about farming and sustainability and has raised pork for the Estero Cafe. He works with our local farmers to arrange his kitchen scraps be picked up and used as tasty treats for chickens and pigs. In addition to cooking and farming he is an avid surfer, scuba and free diver, spear fisherman, and mushroom forager.

Nestled just a short distance from the Sonoma Plaza, Ramekins Catering + Culinary School hosts an exceptionally scenic venue with a European feel.  There’s nothing like rolling up your sleeves and getting a little messy in the kitchen! Ramekins offers a refreshing alternative to typical events with culinary activities, classes and catering.

Chef Cole Dickinson is executive chef at MacArthur Place, where he oversees all food and beverage operations for Layla, The Bar at MacArthur, The Porch, weddings and social events, poolside dining, and the hotel’s in-room dining program.
Chef Cole joins MacArthur Place from Acacia House at the Forbes 4-star Las Alcobas Resort in Napa Valley, which was recently named one of the Bay Area’s best 100 restaurants by the San Francisco Chronicle.  He brings a vibrant culinary pedigree to Sonoma, having worked for years as a protégée of Chef Michael Voltaggio, first at Charlie Palmer’s Dry Creek Kitchen in Healdsburg, followed by Voltaggio’s Hemisphere at the Greenbrier in West Virginia and then at The Bazaar by José Andrés in Beverly Hills. He was named executive chef at the Voltaggio Brothers Steak House and helped to oversee the kitchen at Michael Voltaggio’s wildly successful ink, named a GQ magazine “Best New Restaurant in the US” in 2012, as chef de cuisine.
His professional experience also includes work with some of the world’s most highly lauded chefs and restaurants such as Heston Blumenthal’s Fat Duck in London; Laurent Gras’ 3 Michelin star l2o in Chicago and with Wolfgang Puck in Hollywood. Dickinson has competed in and won Food Network’s ‘Chopped’ and has been recognized as a StarChefs ‘Los Angeles Rising Star Chef,’ an Eater ‘Young Guns’ winner, and has also been named one of Zagat’s ’30 Under 30.’

When life gives you lemons, make lemon glaze! That’s what Harvey and his family have been doing for over 10 years, doting his vintage mini donut machine and oversized top hat Harvey has been delighting donut fans from Wine Country to Silicon Valley cooking and hand decorating every donut onsite. It’s truly is a family effort!

Chef Robert Nieto launched Fleur Sauvage Chocolates in April of 2019 after over 18 years of working as a professional Pastry Chef, Chocolatier, Sugar Artist, and Baker.  Robert’s nickname, Chef Buttercup, came about like most nicknames, as a joke… but 10 years later it seems to have stuck!
In 2016, Robert was named one of the Top 10 Pastry Chefs in America by Dessert Professional Magazine.  Over the course of his career, Robert has completed a myriad of pastry competitions including being a member of Pastry Team USA for the Mondial des Arts Sucre international competition in Paris France (2018).  Robert and his teammate came in 5th in the world in this intense and highly competitive competition.  Robert has also competed in the Valrhona Chocolate Chef Competition (C3), Pastry Live, and even completed a full Ironman Triathlon (Lake Tahoe, 2013).
In December of 2019, Robert and his team the Bah Hum Bakers, won the Food Network series, Holiday Wars!
Robert realized his dream of opening his own chocolate company after years of planning, preparation and hard work.  Fleur Sauvage Chocolates (Fleur Sauvage means Wild Flower in French) makes artistic and delicious chocolate bonbons, candy bars, chocolate tablets, and chocolate showpieces for events.

National GOOD FOOD award recipient, Chef Jeffry Ross, is the executive chocolatier and co-owner of BACI Chocolatier. Jeffry is a graduate of Ecole Chocolat in San Francisco, and honed many of his culinary skills while living in Europe before settling in Sonoma County. Jeffry has appeared on KSRO’s “At the Table with Clark Wolf” and was recently a judge at the 17th annual Wine Country Chefs of Tomorrow.
Jeffry opened his first chocolate production kitchen in 2015. Since then, Jeffry has won several national titles for his handcrafted, artisan chocolate. In 2018, Jeffry received his first GOOD FOOD award from Chef Alice Waters, Executive Chef, founder and owner of Chez Panisse restaurant. Recently crowned “2019 BEST Chocolatiers and Confectioners in America,” it would be no exaggeration to say that Sonoma County has become home to one of the most talented chocolatiers in the Bay Area. When developing his artisan recipes, Jeffry’s focus is on our regional, Sonoma County identity. Appropriately, BACI Chocolatier’s entire collection of award-winning confections are handcrafted in small batches, using only the finest quality, seasonal materials, meticulously sourced from small, local farms and independent producers.
 
Jeffry’s passion for fine chocolates brought him from Europe to Sonoma County, where years of culinary R&D consistently earns him top accolades and recognition. BACI confections can be found at select Bay Area wineries, boutiques, gourmet grocers, and from their online store. BACI Chocolatier is proud to curate a collection of personalized, luxury chocolates for corporate clients, weddings, events, catering, as well as individual gift giving.

As pioneers of farming Sturgeon for caviar, Plaza de Caviar’s mission is to provide quality caviar that rivals the traditional imported varieties. By offering an alternative to the caviar harvested from will Sturgeon and indoor chemically trated international farms, they can alleviate the demand for imported caviars thereby ensuring an abundant and consistent supply of caviar from around the world for generations to com. Equally important for them, and for the survival of wild Sturgeon, is to educate our consumers on the importance of choosing sustainable caviar.

Taylor Lane’s Certified Organic and Fair Trade coffees have been roasted locally since 1993. Come enjoy some Sonoma County hospitality at our coffee bar, located in The Barlow marketplace in charming downtown Sebastopol, and be sure to follow us at @brewtaylorlane.
www.taylorlane.com

Michael had a passion for food service from a young age. Michael attended the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco where he then began his career at the Michelin starred restaurant Acquerello and then headed to Healdsburg as Sous Chef at Restaurant SCOPA. It was his role as Sous Chef with E&J Gallo that brought together his knowledge of food, local farms, and wine. This year, Michael became the Executive Chef at The Grove Café at Redwood Credit Union.

After a globe spanning career, honing his craft in dome of the finest resorts, restaurants and food cities in the world, Chef Krisztian settled in the heart of Sonoma’s wine country, at his restaurant, Tisza Bistro, in Windsor. Here his passion for hospitality, sourcing quality local ingredients and sharing his love of cooking are on display.
A native of Budapest, Hungary, Chef Krisztian was raised at the culinary crossroads of Europe, a place where east meets west in a melting pot of strong flavors, spices, history and technique that define Hungarian gastronomy. Like many great chefs, it all goes back to his mother’s cooking and a sense of tradition and honesty that he refined through years of study and practice that are the foundation for his cuisine today.
After graduating from the Karoly Gundel Culinary Arts Institute and working in grand hotels in Budapest, he trained with some Europe’s most acclaimed chefs, including stints with Paul Bocuse at the three Michelin star L’auberge du Point de Collonges and at Alain Ducasse’s SPOON. Krisztian’s passion for cuisine led him to open his own acclaimed restaurant, Zsolnay, in Tokyo, Japan and saw him on the opening team at Jamaica’s Ritz Carlton Rose Hall and at the Ritz Carlton in Hong Kong. His career progression included experience as Chef du Cuisine at Scottsdale’s five diamond, iconic JW Marriott Camelback Resort, Executive Sous Chef at the storied Balboa Bay Club & Resort in Newport Beach and Executive Chef of Napa’s prestigious Meritage Resort and Elaine Bell Catering.
At Tisza Bistro, Chef Krisztian can be found delighting his guests with artistic presentation and global inspiration, deftly blending old world European charm with new world flair and sensibility. Chef Krisztian has come to love Sonoma County as his new adopted home and welcomes guests to experience the best that wine country cuisine has to offer.