Hailing from a large family of diverse eaters, Chef Rhiana Hritz began earning her chops right at home, where pleasing her family’s palettes was the match to her culinary flame. Her earliest memories include walks through her grandmother Hritz’s garden harvesting vegetables for the daily soups and summers with memeré Shumway picking wild berries for homemade pies. It’s true that the kitchen was the heart of her home, and she takes that love with her to every kitchen she graces. To her, cooking is not a job, it’s a passion and her continued romance with food can be tasted in each of her elegant dishes.

 

While earning her degree in design, she was a personal chef for a family with special dietary needs. Continually challenging dietary restrictions such as low-sugar, low-fat, low-sodium, gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan needs head-on, these limitations are never a sacrifice for flavor in her dishes. She has spent hours in fine-dining restaurants honing her front and back-of-house skills in modern French, Japanese, and seafood restaurants all while juggling her career as a graphic designer and photographer. As a student of culture and design, Chef Rhiana combines her family traditions with the influence of her global travels to create visually breathtaking dishes with an updated fusion of flavors.

 

Relocated from the Greater New York area nine years ago to South Florida, you’re more likely to find a mango than an apple in her dishes, food writing and cooking classes.

 

“I still love apple picking in New England, but I have mangos in my backyard now. I believe in sourcing local produce at their peak for the freshest ingredients. My dog, Murphy, and I love to ride our bike to the local farmer’s markets every chance we get!”