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“I think it’s important for chefs to look beyond just the food. With everything I do I’m not only trying to create amazing food but a total experience. Your guests don’t get to keep the food you create — the only thing they get to take with them is the memory of the evening. The food is just the starting point.” (Ryan Smith 2013)

Ryan Smith began his culinary career in his hometown of Saratoga Springs, NY at the age of 15. It was during summers spent at Siro’s Restaurant, “the most famous trackside restaurant in America” (LA Times), that Ryan first developed his love for cooking.

Ryan received his formal culinary training at the Art Institute of Washington, where he earned an Associate of Arts degree in Culinary Arts. He quickly moved on to work in some of the Washington DC area’s finest restaurants, from Chef Roberto Donna’s flagship restaurant, Galileo, to Fahrenheit Restaurant, located in the 5-star, boutique Ritz-Carlton Georgetown hotel. Each experience helped shape him into the chef he is today.

Ryan moved to New York City in 2008 and quickly integrated into the New York food scene, working both as a personal chef and consultant, and as the Executive Chef of one of the Upper West Side’s favorite neighborhood restaurants, Roth’s.

In 2011, Ryan started his most recent project as Executive Chef of New York Vintners, a private event space and wine education center in Tribeca. With Chef Ryan’s help, NYV has grown into New York’s leading wine and food education center. Offering over 150 unique food and wine classes, Ryan regularly uses his space to collaborate with some of the world’s best winemakers as well as local artists, actors, and musicians to create what he calls “alternative dining experiences.” These experiences can be as simple as collaborating with a winemaker to create a menu that elevates and showcases the unique aspects of their wine, all the way to elaborate dinners where food, wine, and art unite around a common theme.