Justin Dean: Chef, Amateur Butcher, Farmer, Acid Alchemist, Educator, Consultant, & Dad

Born and raised in the backroads of Kentucky’s farmland, it was only natural that I follow the winding contours of the terrain from Field to Fork. Beginning at my parents’ farm in Mason County where I attended high school, my path led to Providence, RI where I graduated from Johnson & Wales with a degree in Food & Beverage Management. From there, I honed my skills at the Maisonette, a restaurant with the longest running streak of five-star awards from the Mobil Travel Guide.

With an accumulated 30 years of experience in the food and beverage industry, I have helped open more than a dozen concept restaurants and collaborated on countless side projects, including working with Woodlands Pork and Black Oak Holler Farm. It was in these wooded mountains of West Virginia where I got a taste for carving up perfect, porcine samples of woodlands mast finished hogs nearly 15 years ago.

These days, when not ensconced in with my kids’ sports activities, I spend my time working with schools to improve the quality and nutrition of meals being served, keep my vinegar bubbling, give new life to food waste, and continue to spread the good food gospel to those that like to eat.