Keith O'Dell

Chef Keith O’Dell hails from the Catskill Mountain region of New York State. Training early in his career in Manhattan at restaurants Butterfield 81 with Tom Valenti and at Patroon with Geoffrey Zacharian, Keith was drawn by the competitive and creative nature of being a chef. After graduating culinary school in Loch Sheldrake, New York where he focused on restaurant management and advanced baking, Keith decided to take his knowledge and pursue another interest, travel. He soon found that combining the two would prove to be a way to fulfill his dream of seeing the world and learning different cooking cultures first hand. Before long Keith was Chef de Cuisine at a fine dining/boutique hotel in La Jolla, California working with Executive Chef Luke Patterson. This is why you will see an element of “California Cuisine” and Pacific Rim/Asian Fusion in his cooking. In 2013 and 2014, Keith lived in Sweden, experiencing and learning the new Nordic and Scandinavian cuisine and culture. In 2014, he completed an apprenticeship at restaurant Noma in Copenhagen, Denmark. Noma was rated #1 in the World on San Pellegrino’s “World’s Best 50 Restaurants” in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014.

Keith breaks the mold of traditional old-world cuisine and has a gift of creating bold, intriguing, and delicious food by combining different cultural ingredients with flavors spanning the mundane to exotic. He possesses a deep knowledge of food and understands the importance of a balance between the dish being served and the dining experience. His personal favorite foods are comfort foods (like pasta) in addition to Asian cuisine and loves to go to restaurants just for dessert! Children are always welcome to stop by the lovely country kitchen for a selection of prepared treats like white chocolate chip ginger cookies or homemade pasta dumplings!