Chef Whitney grew up in the small town of Cartersville, Georgia, and enlisted in the Air Force early on. When her enlistment ended, Whitney started waiting tables at Boshamps in Destin, Florida, where the delicious food piqued her interest in learning more about the culinary field. After a few months, Whitney requested to move into the kitchen to learn.
After four years in that kitchen, reading and learning as much technique as possible, Whitney moved on to positions at South City Kitchen under Chef David Gross; True Food Kitchen as Executive Chef; and Assistant Culinary Director for Hillstone Restaurant Group (a widely respected restaurant group).
Among her mentors, Nicole Christner stands out for taking a chance and hiring Whitney into her first kitchen management position almost 10 years ago. She has remained a close friend and mentor to Whitney ever since, and in Whitney’s words, “She teaches me every day that you are a product of your work ethic, humility and resiliency alone.”
Chef Whitney’s style of cooking is farm-to-table seasonal cuisine. “I feel like a heavy focus on seasonality opens you up to a variety of cultures and genres within food,” she shares. “I like to keep it simple, visually striking, and always saturated with flavor.”
Chef Whitney’s favorite things to cook are centered around fresh fish—red snapper, grouper, flounder, cobia, and more. “Gorgeous fresh fish with some seasonal vegetables and a butter sauce is something I could prepare every day with a million different variations,” she says.
When Whitney has free time, you can usually find her hiking, trying to find a good karaoke night, or grabbing lunch with friends. She also loves fishing and cruising!